An inspiring project has launched to unearth the stories and restoration potential of the Scotland’s forgotten woodland sites.
If Scotland’s trees could talk, what would they say? A pilot initiative called Forgotten Woodlands from NatureScot, Forestry and Land Scotland, and Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba (the national advisory partnership for Gaelic place-names) has set out to map all Scottish place-names with the potential to reveal their historical woodland coverage.
This, in turn, will hopefully inspire landowners and communities to think of the native trees their land once supported and to consider how they might wish to restore its ecological value for the future.
Digital map of 15,000 place names
Rich in environmental and cultural detail, a digital story map has been created from the 15,000 place-names that Ainmean-Àite na h-Alba’s Dr Jake King has gathered during his research.
The map allows the public to view and identify historically, culturally and once-ecologically important woodland sites. Some of the areas with Gaelic names are still wooded, but, of special interest, are the areas of open ground with no records of previous land use beyond the linguistic clues left.
NatureScot Gaelic Officer Robyn Ireland said: “Much of Scotland used to be covered in forest. Today, native woodland covers just four percent of the total land area.
“Forgotten Woodlands shines a light on the strength of connection between Scotland’s natural and cultural diversity.
“The project is full of descriptions about place and, without this knowledge of the language, a place’s features can easily be hidden or, indeed, forgotten.
“The Forgotten Woodlands project demonstrates that there is ecological value in recognising, respecting and understanding the cultural context of Scotland. The longevity of woodlands in Scotland’s landscape speak of an ecological continuity that people recognised as significant and vital in previous centuries.
“There is a connection to be reclaimed and a privilege to be found in knowing what has gone before us, so that we can best take care of nature for the future.”
Dr King added: “This exciting and innovative project was akin to undertaking a PhD in 18 days, These 15,000 place-names, which contain words denoting ‘wood’, specific tree types, or woodland indicator species, are spread throughout mainland Scotland and derive from all languages of Scotland, not just Gaelic and Scots, but Pictish and Old Norse as well.
“When used in tandem with other existing datasets for Scotland’s woodlands, my hope is that the Forgotten Woodlands project will be a starting point for future research ideas and contribute a valuable ecological and cultural dimension to our existing knowledge.”