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Scoti or Scotti is a Latin name for the
Gaels. An early use of the word can be found in the Nomina Provinciarum
Omnium (Names of All the Provinces), which dates to about AD 312. This
is a short list of the names and provinces of the Roman Empire. At the
end of this list is a brief list of tribes deemed to be a growing threat
to the Empire, which included the Scoti, as a new term for the Irish.[2]
There is also a reference to the word in St Prosper's chronicle of AD
431 where he describes Pope Celestine sending St Palladius to Ireland to
preach "ad Scotti in Christum" ("to the Scots who believed in Christ").
Thereafter, periodic raids by Scoti are reported by several later
4th and early 5th century Latin writers, namely Pacatus, Ammianus
Marcellinus, Claudian and the Chronica Gallica of 452. Two references to
Scoti have recently been identified in Greek literature (as Σκόττοι), in
the works of Epiphanius, Bishop of Salamis, writing in the 370s. The
fragmentary evidence suggests an intensification of Scoti raiding from
the early 360s, culminating in the so-called "barbarian conspiracy" of
367–368, and continuing up to and beyond the end of Roman rule c. 410.
The location and frequency of attacks by Scoti remain unclear, as do the
origin and identity of the Gaelic population-groups who participated in
these raids.
By the 5th century, the Gaelic or Scottish kingdom
of Dál Riata had emerged in the area of modern Scotland that is now
Argyll. Although this kingdom was destroyed and subjugated by the
Pictish kingdom of the 8th century under Angus I, the convergence of
Pictish and Gaelic languages over several centuries resulted in the
English labelling Pictland under Constantine II as Scottish in the early
10th century, first attested in AD 920, viewing the Picts as speaking a
Gaelic tongue. The growing influence of the English and Scots languages
from the 12th century with the introduction of Anglo-French knights and
southerly expansion of Scotland's borders by David I saw the terms Scot,
Scottish and Scotland also begin to be used commonly by natives of that
country first attested in the late 3rd century. At first it referred to
all Gaels, whether in Ireland or Great Britain, but later it came to
refer only to Gaels in northern Britain. The kingdom to which their
culture spread became known as Scotia or Scotland, and eventually all
its inhabitants came to be known as Scots.
The origins of the Douglas Scotti and Scoti Douglas families are said to
stem from Sholto
Douglas the
(mythical) progenitor of Clan Douglas, 'a powerful and warlike family in
medieval Scotland'. This apparently mythical man apparently took part in
a mythical battle, where he was given a surname.
A (mythical) battle took place: "in 767, between King Solvathius
rightful king of Scotland and a pretender Donald Bane. The victory was
so nearly Donald's when a certain noble man, disdaining to see so bad a
cause have good successe, struck in for the king and turned the fortunes
of the day. When the king inquired about the knight who had done such
valuable service, somebody exclaimed 'Sholto du glasse!'...'Behold the
black gray man!'."
The (mythical?) Sholto had two (mythical?) sons, William and Marius
(Mario).
The story continues
here>>>
Extracts from The History of the House and Race of Douglas, by David
Hume, 1820
Open as a pdf
Note:
Entries for the Douglas family in Italy have grown beyond
expectations and require collation, which will take some time.
See also:
• Douglas Scotti origins
• Italian members of the
Douglas family
• How
the Scotto came to Piacenza (Slideshow)
Downloads:
•
Restoration of Piacentini Palaces: Palazzo Douglas Scotti, Scala of
St. George (Pdf; in Italian)
•
Footprints of the Douglas Scotti; A Scottish Warrior Journeys to
Piacenza in Northern Italy in 794 - The Douglas castles (Pdf; in
English)
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