Traditional Scottish Songs
- Caledonia
Caledonia (the name given to the north of Scotland by the Romans) is a popular title for poets and song writers. Although these verses on Caledonia by Robert Allan (1774-1841) are fairly simple, they manage to include many of the elements which go to make up most people's romantic vision of Scotland.
Caledonia
The simmer sweetly smiles in Caledonia,
The simmer sweetly smiles in Caledonia,
Where the scented hawthorns blaw,
White as the drifted snaw,
'Mang the bonnie woods and wilds o' Caledonia.There's mountain, hill, and dale in Caledonia,
There's mountain, hill, and dale in Caledonia;
There's mountain, hill, and dale,
Where lovers tell their tale,
By the bonnie siller streams o' Caledonia.The twilight hour is sweet in Caledonia,
The twilight hour is sweet in Caledonia;
The twilight hour is sweet,
When fa's the dewy weet
On the bonnie banks and braes o' Caledonia.The glens are wild and steep in Caledonia,
The glens are wild and steep in Caledonia;
The glens are wild and steep,
And the ocean's wide and deep
That encircles thee, my native Caledonia.There's a bonnie, bonnie lass in Caledonia,
There's a bonnie, bonnie lass in Caledonia;
Ilka airt the wind can blaw
She's fairest o' them a',
An' the dearest ane to me in Caledonia.Meaning of unusual words:
simmer=summer
weet=wet
Where else would you like to go in Scotland?
