Dundee has been announced as a host city for World Gaelic Week

The event will be hosted throughout Scotland including Dundee (Picture: Supplied)

Dundee is set to take part once again in Seachdain na Gàidhlig (World Gaelic Week) as the nationwide celebration of Scottish Gaelic returns from 23 February to 1 March 2026.

The week-long programme continues to grow year on year, with organisers confirming a record number of funded events across Scotland and activities planned in communities including Dundee.

Now in its fifth consecutive year of expansion, the 2026 programme is supporting 63 projects and events through its Small Grants Scheme, with hundreds more community-led activities expected to take place throughout the week.

Demand for funding reached new highs, with applications rising by almost 20% compared to 2025, showing increasing interest in celebrating Gaelic at a local level.

Events in Dundee will form part of a wider national programme designed to highlight Gaelic as a living, evolving language with a place in modern Scottish life.

The theme for 2026, “Use It or Lose It” (Cleachd i no caill i), focuses on encouraging people to actively use Gaelic, whether they are fluent speakers, learners, or simply curious about the language and its heritage.

This year’s celebrations carry added significance, as it is the first World Gaelic Week to take place since Gaelic became an official language of Scotland in law.

Organisers say this milestone underlines the importance of protecting and promoting the language, while also recognising its cultural value in cities such as Dundee as well as traditional Gaelic heartlands.

Dundonians of all backgrounds are being encouraged to get involved by hosting events, workshops or informal activities that promote Gaelic in everyday life.

Community groups, individuals and organisations can add their own events to the official World Gaelic Week programme, helping to make the language more visible across the city during the week.

A key date in the calendar will be Say a Gaelic Phrase Day, which returns on Thursday 26 February 2026. The online initiative has previously reached thousands of people and aims to get as many voices as possible using Gaelic words and phrases, both in Dundee and further afield.

World Gaelic Week has continued to grow in scale and reach, with 170 events and around 40,000 participants recorded in 2025. School participation also rose significantly last year, engaging more than 16,700 pupils.

While rooted in Scotland, the celebration has also gained international attention, with events and participation taking place across Europe, North America and beyond, reinforcing Gaelic’s global connections as well as its local presence in cities like Dundee