In the 2000 U.S. Census, 4,319,232 people claimed Scottish heritage and 4,890,581 people claimed Scotch-Irish heritage. The two groups represent just over 3 percent of the U.S. population. In their early history in America, a good number of Scottish and Scotch-Irish Americans preferred to be far away from interfering neighbors and governments. Already skilled at dealing with difficult conditions in their homelands of Scotland and Northern Ireland, the Scots and Scotch-Irish gained the reputation of being rugged frontiersmen. Although they were initially looked down upon by the English and German colonists, both Scots and Scotch-Irish assimilated (blended) into the American mainstream easily and did not retain separate social customs.

Historical Background

The Scottish belonged to two distinct groups, Highlanders and Lowlanders. Highlanders came from the north of Scotland, where the land is rugged and remote and the people were less influenced by England...