National anthem of Scotland
A number of songs are used as Scottish anthems, most notably "Flower of Scotland" and "Scotland the Brave".
In 2004, lawyers for the devolved Scottish Parliament advised that it was within the legal competence of the Scottish Parliament to choose a national anthem for Scotland, countering the suggestion that it would be a matter reserved to the Parliament of the United Kingdom. This ruling prompted some interest in the idea, and a petition to the Scottish Parliament's petitions committee supported by the Scottish Green Party was referred without recommendation to the Scottish Executive, but they decided to take no action, considering the issue not to be a political priority. There have been subsequent attempts to re-open the debate on a national anthem for Scotland.
Current use
At most international sporting events Scotland uses "Flower of Scotland" as its national anthem. These events include matches of the Scottish national football team and the Scottish rugby union team. The song has also been used as the victory anthem of Scotland at the Commonwealth Games since 2010, replacing "Scotland the Brave".Possible candidates
In June 2006 the Royal Scottish National Orchestra conducted an online opinion poll on their website, asking visitors to choose a favourite to be Scotland's national anthem. With over 10,000 votes cast, Flower of Scotland came first with 41% of the votes, followed by Scotland the Brave with 29%.| Tune | Votes |
| Flower of Scotland | 41% |
| Scotland the Brave | 29% |
| Highland Cathedral | 16% |
| A Man's A Man for A' That | 7% |
| Scots Wha Hae | 6% |
Other songs which have been suggested include Robert Burns' Auld Lang Syne, and Hamish Henderson's Freedom Come-All-Ye. Both of these songs, from the 18th and 20th centuries respectively, are written in Lowland Scots. Another suggestion is The Thistle o' Scotland published in 1902. It was originally written in Scottish Gaelic but translated into Lowland Scots.