 In the 1320 Declaration of Abroth, which was a letter signed by the Scottish nobility and sent to the Pope, asking him to recognise Scotland's independence and Robert the Bruce as king, there is a curious reference to Greater Scythia. The declaration states that the Scot sailed from Greater Scythia by way of the Terranian Sea and the Pillars of Heracles, and well for a long course of time in Spain. Thence it came twelve hundred years after the people of Israel crossed the Red Sea to his home in the west where it still lives today. This is a subject I previously covered but I wanted to revisit it as it's so interesting. Please let me know your thoughts in the comments below. The Scythians after all, who were known for their equestrian skills, occupied the region stretching from the Black Sea area of modern Ukraine through the Russian steep area and ended the parts of Afghanistan and other central Asian republics today. Crimea was thought to be a historical centre, a power centre, of the Scythians at various points through history. The Greeks refer to Scythia as the region that is northeast of the Black Sea, and various groups in nomadic tribes emerge from the Scythian culture in general. Herodotus, the Greek historian, says that the Scythians refer to themselves as the Scolote. They existed in various forms from around the 8th century BC to around the 2nd or 3rd centuries AD, but they came under increasing pressure from the summations around the 3rd century BC, and they gradually eroded the Scythians along with various other cultures that kind of slavs the Goths, who came in and took most of the territory of the Scythians and they eventually disappeared from the records of history. Some interesting features to note about the Scythians is that some of the women apparently had red hair and blue eyes, something that is very common in Scotland today, and some of the men also had red hair. Other sources note that some Scythians also had white hair, and they were referred to as the Albini. It is interesting to note that Scotland and Gaelic is spelt Alba in English and pronounced Alipa in Scottish Gaelic, which is at least interesting to note. The Scythians were also known to have a strong tradition of tattoos, but can we give any credence to the notion that there is any real connection between Scythia and Scotland? Why would a people of the Black Sea region of Ukraine-Russian territory today have anything to do with the origins of the Scots and the Picts? Like I say, please let me know your thoughts in the comments below and I might do a follow-up video if there's some more interesting connections to explore. One interesting feature to note up front that I came across when I was reading that article in preparation for this video is that apparently in a version of an old Germanic language, Scythia and Scotland had the same name, were referred to by the same name, Scutin. Although I've not been able to fully verify this potential fact, please let me know if you have any information in the comments below. Although that is an interesting element, if it is, does bear out to be true that Scythia and Scotland were referred to by the same word for some cultures at least, for certain cultures at least. One potential reason why there is often a connection made between Scythia and Scotland relates to St Andrew, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus according to the New Testament. St Andrew preached in Scythia and he was said, according to some sources, to have been martyred in Scythia. An oldy Slavic chronicle states that St Andrew preached along the Black Sea and all the way along the Donaver River to Kiev, travelling as far as Novgorod, hence he is a patron saint in countries such as Ukraine, Romania and Russia. Yet the connections between Scotland and Scythia go far beyond St Andrew. According to numerous traditions, both the Scots and the Picts, the two initial groups that unified to form the Kingdom of Scotland in 843 AD, the embryo of the modern country of Scotland, had origin stories that relate to Scythia. Bede, an ancient English monk from the Northumberland region, says that the Picts initially came from Scythia and travelled via Ireland to reach eventually Scotland. The story goes that the Picts initially sailed from Scythia to Ireland, but when they reached Ireland they were told there was not enough room for them to settle there, but the Irish told them of a land nearby. You guessed it, Scotland. The Picts then took many Irish wives with them and promised in exchange to promote the female line of kings through the female line, a tradition that the Picts did abide by from our records at least. The Picts then travelled from Ireland and settled in Scotland. One interesting element when you look at the timelines of the Picts and Scythia is that the Picts entered the historical record around the 3rd century AD. This happens to be the time where the Scythians essentially disappear from the records of history. Is this just coincidental or was it the case that some Scythians sailed from the Black Sea area through the Mediterranean to eventually settle in Scotland? It's hard to say, but it's certainly a possibility in relation to the Scots. One origin story is that the Scots are descended from the daughter of Egyptian pharaoh called Scota. After leaving Egypt, the story goes that Scota and her people lived in Spain for a period, then on to Ireland and eventually settled in Scotland. Certain sources argue that Scota was married to a Scythian prince, who himself was the son-in-law of Egyptian pharaoh. Whether there is any credence to the notion that the Scots are descended from the Scythians and connected to the Scythians in some way is obviously hard to say. Hopefully I've went through some of the key points that the potential explains some connections between Scythia and Scotland. But like I say, what's your thoughts? Please let me know in the comments below. I know Scythia in general or Scythia, I know people pronounce it different ways. It's quite a hot topic as far as history is concerned. But again, I would be interested to see if you yourself have any interesting theories or any opinions on why crops up in so many aspects of Scottish history this constant reference to Scythia. Please let me know in the comments below. Speaking of the origins of the Scots, what is the genetic history of Scotland? To find out, please click here. Thanks for watching. Please subscribe and hit the bell and tell your friends and family about this channel. 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