Explore more: National Library of Scotland

Explore the Gaelic resources found in the National Library of Scotland

With thanks to Dr Emily Munro, Learning and Outreach Officer at the National Library of Scotland Moving Image Archive at Kelvin Hall in Glasgow.

Moving Image and Sound Collections

The Moving Image and Sound collections hold over 6000 records of Gaelic language films, TV programmes and audio recordings.

https://www.movingimage.nls.uk

The moving image archive includes film and TV footage from around Scotland, including news and documentary from STV and Grampian, and the MG Alba collection, a comprehensive library of Gaelic television output since January 1994. MG Alba material can be viewed on site in Glasgow and Edinburgh.

Digitised Gaelic Collections

Freely available for online access:

An Comunn Gàidhealach - https://digital.nls.uk/an-comunn-gaidhealach/archive/125660248
A collection of over 300 items published by An Comunn Gàidhealach, the organisation which promotes Gaelic language and culture and organises the Royal National Mòd. Dating from 1891 up to the present day, the collection includes journals and newspapers, annual reports, educational materials, national Mòd programmes and published Mòd literature and music.

Early Gaelic Books Collections - https://digital.nls.uk/early-gaelic-book-collections/archive/75733573
Includes books in Gaelic and other Celtic languages, works about the Gaels, their languages, literature, culture and history.

Gaelic Manuscripts of Scotland - https://digital.nls.uk/gaelic-manuscripts-of-scotland/archive/188155936
A selection of Gaelic manuscripts from the 14th to 19th centuries. Many composite volumes with several authors and contributors, and subjects including songs, religion, history and mythology. Primarily in vernacular and classical Gaelic, but also Scots and Latin. Highlights include 15 medical manuscripts belonging to the Beaton family of physicians, 16th-century poetry in the Book of the Dean of Lismore, and the genealogies of the '1467 manuscript'.

Rare Items in Gaelic - https://digital.nls.uk/rare-items-in-gaelic/archive/97491774.
Books printed in Gaelic between 1631 and 1900. Includes poetry and songs, religious books such as catechisms and hymns, and different editions of the Bible and the Psalms. Also includes the second book ever published in Gaelic in 1631.