Ireland has had many names throughout its history, including Scotia, a Latin term meaning “land of the Scots”. Understanding why Ireland was once called Scotia requires looking at the history of the various cultures and conquerors that have inhabited the island of Ireland over the centuries.
Quick Summary
In brief, Ireland was called Scotia because of Scottish invaders and settlers who came from the north in the 6th century AD. Over time, Scotia came to refer specifically to Ireland, to distinguish it from Caledonia, the Latin name for Scotland. The name fell out of use after the 12th century.
Early Inhabitants of Ireland
The first human inhabitants came to Ireland around 8000 BC after the last ice age. These Mesolithic hunter-gatherers slowly gave way to Neolithic farmers who began clearing forests and introducing agriculture around 4000 BC. Megalithic tombs like Newgrange date to this period.
Around 500 BC, Celtic culture and language began to predominate. The island was divided into many warring kingdoms and tribal territories. Gaelic culture and language took hold. This was Ireland before the Roman conquests that spread across Britain and Europe.
Who were the Scots and where did they come from?
The Scots originated in Ireland, according to medieval Irish legends. The legends tell of an Egyptian princess named Scota who married a Greek or Scythian leader named Goídel Glas. Goídel led his people from Egypt to Spain and then to Ireland around 1700 BC. The Scoti or Scots took their name from Scota.
In real history, the Scots were a mix of Gaelic-speaking Celts from Ireland and Picts from Britain who occupied parts of western Scotland and unified under the Kingdom of Dál Riata around 500 AD. Irish Gaelic culture and language spread into western Scotland through this kingdom.
The Coming of Christianity
Ireland peacefully converted to Christianity in the 5th century AD, ahead of much of Europe. This Golden Age of Irish civilization saw the flowering of monasteries, illuminated manuscripts like the Book of Kells, and missionaries who spread Irish Christianity back into Scotland and northern Britain.
Irish monks founded the monastery at Iona off Scotland’s west coast in 563 AD. For centuries, Iona served as the heart of Scottish Christianity and as a bridge between Scottish and Irish culture.
The Viking Invasions
In 795 AD, Vikings from Scandinavia began raiding Irish monasteries and towns for booty. Over the next century, the Vikings founded many coastal settlements in Ireland. Gaelic Irish civilization retreated inland from the Vikings.
The Vikings helped establish modern Dublin as a center of trade. Intermarriage between Vikings and Gaels created a mixed Hiberno-Norse culture along the coasts. Some Vikings converted to Christianity and assimilated into Gaelic society.
The Coming of the Scots to Ireland
Around 500 AD, Scottish Gaels from Dál Riata in Antrim expanded into Argyll on the Scottish mainland. By 600 AD, Dál Riata spanned both sides of the North Channel. The kingdom helped bring Gaelic language and culture from the northeast of Ireland into Scotland.
In the late 6th century, Áedán mac Gabráin became the first Scottish king to rule over Dál Riata on both sides of the sea. His eventual successors moved their seat entirely to Scotland around 750 AD.
Dál Riata set the stage for future Scottish migrations and invasions into Ireland. From 500-1000 AD, the lines between Gaelic Ireland and Scotland blurred, with close cultural ties in language, art, and religion.
Scotia – A Name for Ireland
Around 600 AD, Irish writers first used the Latin term Scotia to refer to Ireland. Up to this point, ancient Romans had used Hibernia to refer to the island.
Scotia was derived from the Latin Scoti, meaning land of the Scots. Irish writers used Scotia for Ireland alongside the older name Hibernia. By 700 AD, Scotia had become the common Latin term for Ireland.
Scotia Major and Scotia Minor
As the Scots established themselves in Scotland, writers needed to distinguish between Ireland and Scotland. Ireland began to be called Scotia Major or Greater Scotia, while Scotland was called Scotia Minor or Lesser Scotia.
For example, the Irish scholar Dicuil wrote in 825 AD of Scotia Minor as the home of the Picts across the sea from Scotia Major. Scotia Minor referred specifically to Scotland, while Scotia Major remained Ireland.
The Viking Age
The Viking Age, from around 800-1000 AD, saw an intensification of ties between Vikings, Gaels, Picts, Britons, and Angles across Ireland and Britain. Intermarriage and cultural blending accelerated.
In 839 AD, the Vikings seized Dublin and established a Viking kingdom that spanned much of Ireland and part of Britain. Gaelic Irish kingdoms retreated but remained intact, adopting elements of Viking culture.
During this time, Scandinavians joined the mix of Gaels and Picts in Scotland. Across the Irish Sea, the culture that would form medieval Scotland began to take shape through the mixing of diverse groups.
The Kingdom of Scotland Emerges
In 900 AD, the Kingdom of Alba emerged in eastern Scotland from the mixing of Picts, Gaels, Britons, Angles, and Scandinavians. Alba expanded west over the next century to form the Kingdom of Scotland.
Scotland unified under a single monarch for the first time by 1034 AD. As Scotland emerged as its own political entity, Scotia increasingly referred just to Ireland and not to Scotland.
The Coming of the Normans
Starting in 1169 AD, Anglo-Norman invaders from England partly conquered Ireland and established their own towns, fortifications, and feudal system. Gaelic Irish kingdoms remained in the west of Ireland.
Now clearly divided between Gaelic and Norman factions, Ireland saw the decline of its ancient Gaelic civilization. As Norman culture took hold in Ireland and Scotland aligned itself more with England politically, the use of Scotia for Ireland gradually faded away.
English Rule in Ireland
Over the following centuries, English control slowly expanded across all of Ireland. After harsh crackdowns and plantations under Elizabeth I and Cromwell in the 16th-17th centuries, Gaelic Ireland was reduced to a few remote areas.
With Ancient Gaelic civilization largely submerged by English administration and settlers, Scotia faded from use as a name for Ireland, replaced definitively by Hibernia or Ireland.
Conclusion
In summary, Ireland was called Scotia in Latin writings from around 600-1100 AD because of the shared Gaelic identity and close ties between Ireland and Scotland. As Scotland and Ireland gradually diverged over the second millennium AD, the name Scotia came to refer specifically to Scotland.
The Latin name Scotia originated with the Scots, invaders and settlers from Ireland who established Dál Riata on both sides of the North Channel in the 6th century AD. Their descendants ultimately consolidated Scotland, while Ireland remained a patchwork of warring Gaelic kingdoms.
During the Middle Ages, before English political control united Ireland, Scotia referred to Ireland, the perceived heartland of ancient Gaelic and Celtic civilization. But as England expanded control over all of Ireland, Scotia became obsolete as a Latin name for the island.
Key Points on Why Ireland was Called Scotia
- Scotia originated as the Latin name for the Scoti or Scots, who came from Ireland to establish Dál Riata in western Scotland around 500 AD.
- Irish writers began using Scotia for Ireland around 600 AD, alongside the older Roman name Hibernia.
- Scotia Major referred to Ireland and Scotia Minor to Scotland from around 700-1100 AD.
- Scotia reflected the shared Gaelic identity and cultural world of early medieval Ireland and Scotland.
- As Scotland consolidated politically separate from Ireland, Scotia came to refer just to Scotland.
- English conquest of Ireland erased the ancient Gaelic order tied to the name Scotia.
Understanding the complex layers of history helps explain why Ireland was known as Scotia for several centuries during the Middle Ages. The story of Scotia reflects the interwoven cultures of Ireland and Scotland and their ultimate divergence.
Frequently Asked Questions
When did Scotia become a name for Ireland?
Irish writers began using the Latin term Scotia for Ireland around 600 AD. By 700 AD it had become the common Latin name, used alongside Hibernia.
Why did Ireland start being called Scotia?
Scotia originated from the Latin name for the Scoti or Scots, invaders from Ireland who colonized western Scotland in the 6th century AD. As these Scots gave their name to Scotland, Scotia was used for Ireland as the perceived place of origin of the Scots.
When did Scotia stop referring to Ireland?
From around 1100-1200 AD, Scotia gradually came to refer just to Scotland as Scotland emerged as a unified kingdom separate from Ireland. English colonization of Ireland from the 12th century onward erased the Gaelic cultural world associated with Scotia.
Was Scotia ever used for Scotland?
Yes, between around 700-1100 AD writers distinguished between Scotia Major or Greater Scotia for Ireland and Scotia Minor or Lesser Scotia for Scotland. But as the kingdoms diverged, Scotia became used just for Scotland.
Why is Ireland not called Scotia today?
The decline of Gaelic culture and civilization in Ireland after the Norman invasions meant Scotia became obsolete as a Latin name for Ireland. As Gaelic identity faded, Hibernia and then Ireland became the common names used for the island.
References and Sources
Bardon, Jonathan. A History of Ireland in 250 Episodes. Dublin: Gill Books, 2008.
Duffy, Seán. Ireland in the Middle Ages. New York: St. Martin’s Press, 1997.
Fitzpatrick, Elizabeth. Royal Inauguration in Gaelic Ireland c. 1100-1600: A Cultural Landscape Study. Rochester: Boydell Press, 2004.
Foster, Sally M. Picts, Gaels and Scots: Early Historic Scotland. Edinburgh: Birlinn, 2014.
Moody, Theodore William. Martin, Francis X. The Course of Irish History. Cork: Mercier Press, 1994.
Ó Cróinín, Dáibhí. Early Medieval Ireland: 400-1200. New York: Routledge, 2017.
Woolf, Alex. From Pictland to Alba: 789 – 1070. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press, 2007.