Internal migration, sport and the Scottish diaspora in England

Abstract

Sport has been argued to play an important role for members of diasporic groups of various origins and in various locations. However, little attention has been paid to the role sport plays for ‘internal migrants’ who migrate to contrasting locations within a nation-state, despite the potential for significant contrasts in the prevailing sporting cultures found in different regions of the same nation-state. This article therefore aims to make a contribution towards understanding this relationship by reflecting upon the role sport plays for members of the Scottish diaspora living in England, drawing upon interviews and personal reflections from a number of Scottish ‘internal migrants’ located within the United Kingdom. In particular, discussion attempts to draw attention to the central role sport plays for these individuals in order to maintain a cultural attachment with their Scottish birthplace, given the relative lack of other cultural practices or associations which could be used to achieve this goal. Comparisons are also drawn with studies of the Scottish diaspora in more distant geographic contexts, as well as similar diasporic groups in the English context such as the Irish diaspora. These comparisons allow for a consideration of the impact of geographic proximity and cultural proximity on the relative importance of sport and other cultural practices for Scots living in England, identifying a number of important issues for those studying the role played by sport in the maintenance of a cultural attachment with ‘home’ for various diasporic groups.

Keywords:

• sport
• Scotland
• Scottish diaspora
• England
• internal migration
• national identity

Acknowledgements

I would like to take this opportunity to thank Professor Alan Bairner for his helpful comments on an earlier draft of this article, and for his continued support and advice. I would also like to thank my colleague Jason Arday for his useful feedback on the final version. Finally, I would like to thank the two anonymous reviewers who provided supportive and constructive feedback on a previous version of this article; the insightful comments provided have ensured an improved final draft.