Highland Village Museum Launches the Cape Breton Céilidh

Students at Rankin School in Iona, Victoria Co., got an electronic taste of Gaelic culture today, Sept. 29, thanks to a new virtual exhibit launched by Highland Village Museum/An Clachan Gàidhealach.

The Cape Breton Céilidh website, www.capebretonceilidh.com, celebrates Cape Breton's Gaelic heritage and allows students and visitors to experience the Gaelic culture as it has been passed on through generations. The website was developed in partnership with the Virtual Museum of Canada.

"Cape Breton's Gaelic culture is one of the richest oral traditions on the planet," said Rodney Chaission, director, Highland Village. "We are pleased to be able to showcase our living culture in this unique exhibit."

Until recently, teachers and parents in and around Gaelic communities have had few meaningful resources to help them pass on traditions and of this historic culture.

"Whenever I meet with other teachers who are interested in Gaelic culture, I send them to the Cape Breton Ceilidh website," said Dawn MacDonald-Gillis, Gaelic teacher at Rankin School. "It is also a great resource for students. Now, students can meet the Gaels of Cape Breton Island and explore their ancient language and its traditions of storytelling, song, music and dance."

The virtual exhibit -- which features videos, a learning centre, and English to Gaelic translations -- offers insight into the legacy settlers brought from the Highlands and Islands of Scotland, and preserved in Nova Scotia.

The website is being launched on St. Michael's Day. St. Michael was a Scottish and Irish patron saint of horses, travel, sea and seafarers. St. Michael's Day was celebrated enthusiastically in the Hebrides, where many of the people who settled along the Bras d'Or Lakes originated.

The Virtual Museum of Canada, an initiative of the Department of Canadian Heritage, was established in partnership with more than 1,200 Canadian heritage institutions. Virtualmuseum.ca is a portal to the stories and treasures held in trust by Canada's museums, and is part of the government of Canada's strategy to nurture and promote Canada's culture online.