Scots celebrate birth of 'The Bard'

Dubai: Hundreds of expatriate Scots gathered across the UAE to toast the 250th anniversary of the famous poet and lyricist Robert Burns.

A Burns Supper was held at the Dusit Hotel on Shaikh Zayed Road last night and around 350 guests, many wearing national dress, dined on traditional Scottish fare such as cock-a-leekie soup, beef tenderloin and haggis, neeps and tatties (potatoes and turnips).

The Scottish St Andrew's Society of Abu Dhabi also held a Burns Supper on Thursday evening in the British Embassy Gardens of the UAE capital. Around 280 guests celebrated the special anniversary and the society itself also marked its 40th year.

Burns is a cultural icon in Scotland and among the Scottish diaspora around the world; he is often referred to as Scotland's favourite son or simply as 'The Bard'. His birthday is marked on January 25 every year and is generally more widely observed than the country's national day, St Andrew's Day, which falls on November 30.

Malcolm Thomson, Chieftain of the Dubai Caledonian Society, said this year's Burns Supper was the biggest in the society's history.

He said: "The society started as a social gathering point for Scots living overseas. It has continued to grow every year and we now have over 300 fully paid up members and over 1,000 names on our database. We have a very active committee at the moment and they are doing a great job in attracting new members and sponsorship.

"The society is for Scots, people interested in Scotland and those who generally have Scottish interests at heart. We have tried to broaden our appeal and have come up with new ideas to try and generate interest and support. For example, we are holding a Scottish comedy night next month and we have also been working with the Irish society with a view to holding a ceilidh in the near future."

The Burns Supper in Dubai began with a general welcome from Thomson and a few announcements followed by the Selkirk Grace. The haggis was then piped into the hotel's ballroom and Burns' famous address to a Haggis was read by William Kennedy. The haggis was cut open and the Immortal Memory, an overview of Burns' life and work, was given by former Scottish Football Association referee Willie Young, who also spoke in Abu Dhabi after attending the Caledonian Society of Kenya's Burns Supper in Nairobi last week.

The Scottish Government has unveiled a full programme of events to celebrate the 250th anniversary of Burns' birth called Homecoming Scotland 2009, which has been organised around five main themes - Robert Burns, traditional beverages, golf, great Scottish minds and Scotland's culture and heritage.

The festival, which runs until St Andrew's Day, aims to encourage the Scots diaspora to return home at some point this year and join in the celebrations as well as providing a boost to tourism in an ailing economy.

Andrew Heriot, Chieftain of the Scottish St Andrew's Society of Abu Dhabi, said this year was particularly special for three reasons; Burns' 250th anniversary, the 40th anniversary of the Abu Dhabi society and the proclamation of the Homecoming Year.

He said: "Thursday night was a significant occasion for all Scots and their friends in Abu Dhabi; the 250th anniversary of our national bard is a momentous occasion for many people and in my opinion he is the most significant poet ever born.

"The event was totally sold out and I think that reflects the significance of the event. In terms of our society, we are celebrating our 40th year in Abu Dhabi and we are continually looking for new ways to expand and develop.

"We also want to organise more events that have a strong cultural relationship to what is going on in Scotland at this time. The year of the Homecoming aims to encourage as many exiled Scots as possible to return throughout the course of the year and participate in the various activities on offer."

Thomson added: "This year, despite the global economic gloom, looks like being very special for Scots with Homecoming Scotland 2009 in full swing and hopefully attracting many of us to explore those beautiful nooks and crannies of Scotland we have missed before.

"I went back to visit friends and family in Scotland last year. I bought a kilt and spent a lot of time sitting in the sun on the banks of Loch Lomond. I'll continue to visit every year but I don't think I'll move back to Scotland permanently."

There are an estimated 20,000 Scots living in the UAE working across a wide range of industries including the finance, oil and construction sectors.

His song Auld Lang Syne is sung on New Year's Eve

• Robert Burns was born on January 25, 1759 in Alloway, South Ayrshire, Scotland.
• He is known as Scotland's favourite son and is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement. His death at the young age of 37 on July 21, 1976 became a great source of inspiration to the founders of both liberalism and socialism.
• As well as making original compositions, Burns collected folk songs from across Scotland and often revised or adapted them. His poem (and song) Auld Lang Syne is often sung at weddings and on Hogmanay (New Year's Eve). Other pieces of his work that remain well known across the world include A Red, Red Rose, Tam O'Shanter, A Man's A Man for A' That and Ae Fond Kiss.