Burns Night quiz questions for your Scottish celebration

Burns Night falls on 25th January each year, marking the birthday of Scotland's national poet, Robert Burns. If you're hosting a Burns Supper with haggis, neeps and tatties, why not add a Scottish-themed quiz round? Here are nine questions mixing Burns trivia with general Scotland knowledge.

The questions

Q1: Robert Burns wrote "Address to a Haggis," the poem traditionally recited before the haggis is cut. In the poem, what does Burns call the haggis?

Ans: "Great chieftain o' the puddin-race"

The full line is "Fair fa' your honest, sonsie face, Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!" Burns was clearly a fan.

Q2: Which Burns song, originally a Scots poem set to a traditional tune, has become an anthem sung at New Year celebrations worldwide?

Ans: Auld Lang Syne

Burns sent it to the Scots Musical Museum in 1788, noting that he'd collected it from an old man's singing rather than writing it himself. The tune we know today was added later.

Q3: What is the best-selling Scottish whisky brand in the world?

Ans: Johnnie Walker

Johnnie Walker has been the world's top-selling Scotch whisky for decades, selling over 200 million bottles annually. The brand was founded in Kilmarnock in 1820 by grocer John Walker, and is now owned by Diageo.

Q4: What is Scotland's national animal?

Ans: The unicorn

Scotland has used the unicorn as a national symbol since the 12th century. When James VI of Scotland became James I of England in 1603, the Scottish unicorn was added alongside the English lion on the royal coat of arms.

Q5: Which Scottish island is famous for dramatic landscapes including the Old Man of Storr rock formation and the Fairy Pools?

Ans: Isle of Skye

Skye is the largest island in the Inner Hebrides and one of Scotland's most visited destinations, known for its rugged scenery and medieval castles.

Q6: Which remote Scottish island group, lying closer to Norway than to Edinburgh, is famous for its miniature ponies?

Ans: Shetland Islands

The Shetland pony originated here, bred small to survive the harsh conditions. Shetland is Britain's most northerly point and has strong Norse heritage from centuries of Viking rule.

Q7: What is the largest city in Scotland?

Ans: Glasgow

With a population of around 630,000, Glasgow is nearly twice the size of Edinburgh. It was once the "Second City of the British Empire" thanks to its shipbuilding and manufacturing industries.

Q8: In which Scottish city can you find a row of penguin statues on the waterfront?

Ans: Dundee

The bronze penguins on Dundee's waterfront commemorate the RRS Discovery, the ship built in Dundee that carried Scott and Shackleton on their first Antarctic expedition in 1901. The ship is now a museum there.

Q9: What is the name of the two giant horse head sculptures near Falkirk?

Ans: The Kelpies

Standing 30 metres tall, The Kelpies are the largest equine sculptures in the world. They're named after the shape-shifting water spirits from Scottish folklore, and were completed in 2013 as part of the Helix parkland project.

---

Slàinte mhath! These questions work well between courses or while the whisky is being poured.