Burns Night in the United Kingdom

Burns Night is an observance but it is not a bank holiday in the United Kingdom.

The Scottish flag is often displayed at Burns Night celebrations. It is known as the Saltire and consists of a rectangular blue background with thick white bars on the diagonals. The diagonals form a cross that represents Saint Andrew, the patron saint of Scotland.

At Burns Night events, many men wear kilts and women may wear shawls, skirts or dresses made from their family tartan. A tartan was originally a woolen cloth with a distinctive pattern made by using colors of weft and warp when weaving. Particular patterns and combinations of colors were associated with different areas, clans and families. Tartan patterns are now printed on various materials.

Many types of food are associated with Burns Night.

 These include: 

cock-a-leekie soup (chicken and leek soup);

haggis; neeps (mashed turnips or swedes) and tatties (mashed potatoes);

cranachan (whipped cream mixed with raspberries and served with sweet oat wafers); 

and bannocks (a kind of bread cooked on a griddle).

 Whisky is the traditional drink.