Looking down on Loch Lomond from Ben Lomond

Welcome to the Scottish Society for Northern Studies Website (SSNS)

About the Society

The Society is a Scottish-based group having much in common with the Viking Society for Northern Research.

northern studies journal

It was founded in 1968 to explore the inter-relationships between the Scandinavian, Celtic and Scottish cultures and provides a forum in Scotland for specialists and enthusiasts of many disciplines to pursue their common ‘northern’ interests.

Through its seminars, conferences and publications, the Scottish Society for Northern Studies seeks to encourage further exploration and research, locally throughout Scotland and beyond.

Features of the website include information on how to join the Society or renew membership, details of past and future events, entry information on the student essay prize and details of Society publications. There is also a searchable database containing an index of the contents of every volume of the Northern Studies journal.

'Unmasking the Lewis Chessmen' seminar

Society members will be interested in the 'Unmasking the Lewis Chessmen' one-day seminar at the National Museum of Scotland, Chambers Street, Edinburgh on Saturday 11th September. The seminar will take forward the research started by Dr. D H Caldwell and colleagues, which was presented at the Edinburgh SSNS conference in June 2009. There will also be exciting new things to report resulting from new scientific analyses of the pieces. An international audience is anticipated and a lively debate is anticipated on the some of the issues.

Further information is to found on the NMS website:

on the current exhibiton on the chessmen

and on the seminar

Editor for Literature

Dr Kirsty MacDonald, UHI Or1kney Campus, Scottish Cultural Studies.
Kirsty.Macdonald@orkney.uhi.ac.uk

Reviews Editors

for history and archaeology
Dr Andrew Jennings, Post-doctoral Fellow, UHI
Centre for Nordic Studies, NAFC, Port Arthur, Scalloway,Shetland.ZE1 0UN
Andrew.Jennings@nafc.uhi.ac.uk

for literature
Silke Reeploeg, Researcher, UHI Centre for Nordic Studies NAFC, Port Arthur, Scalloway,Shetland.ZE1 0UN
Silke.Reeploeg@uhi.ac.uk

Latest Information

SSNS Review: Member Consultation

All members are invited to complete the QUESTIONAIRE, and copies have also been sent out with the journal, Northern Studies 41 (posted 27 July 2010). Please choose whether to complete and return as an email attachment or by ordinary mail as hard copy. Return-by date: 20 August 2010.

As always, non-members are warmly invited to join the Society. Please select the Membership page for further details.


Day Conference and AGM

Saturday 27 November 2010, at the Augustine Centre, George IV Bridge, Edinburgh. The main theme will be aspects of folklore and folktales from Iceland, Norway and Scotland.

Please select Forthcoming Events for further details and put the date in diaries now! The full programme will be posted and mailed out later.

Latest Publication

barra and skye: two herbridean perspective

Barra and Skye: Two Hebridean Perspectives

Arne Kruse - Editor
Alasdair Ross - Assistant Editor

The Scottish Society for Northern Studies Edinburgh 2006

This new volume which provides an up-to-date account of recent research on a very wide range of topics relating to both islands, derives from two conferences held by the Society in Barra (April 2002) and Skye (April 2003).