ALBA

What Does ALBA Mean in a Text?

The Quick Answer

ALBA means "Scotland."

More Observations...

ALBA is the Scottish-Gaelic name for Scotland. It first appeared in Ancient Greek and Latin texts as "Albion," which actually referred to the whole of Britain. Over the course of time, Gaelic speakers changed Albion to Alba. They used the name to refer to the former kingdom of the Picts, a group of Celtic-speaking people who lived in eastern and northern Scotland until the 10th century CE. ALBA is still used regularly to refer to Scotland. For example:

• The Scottish Government and Parliament also use their Gaelic names "Riaghaltas na h-Alba" and "Pàrlamaid na h-Alba" (respectively).
• The BBC's Scottish-Gaelic television channel is called BBC Alba.
• In February 2021, a new political party "The Alba Party" was launched to fight upcoming elections to the Scottish parliament on a policy of independence from the UK.

In the 1995 film Braveheart, William Wallace (portrayed by Mel Gibson) shouts "Alba gu bràth" ("Scotland Forever") to his assembled troops before the battle of Stirling Bridge.

Braveheart Freedom

Image for ALBA

When I write ALBA, I mean this:

The logo of the Scottish Government includes its Gaelic title.

Summary of Key Points

"Scotland" is the definition for ALBA in modern usage, including on messaging apps like Instagram.

ALBA
Definition:	Scotland
Type:	Word
Guessability:	4: Difficult to guess
Typical Users:	Adults and Teenagers

An Academic Look at ALBA

ALBA is a Gaelic word used as a proper noun. A proper noun is the name given to a specific person, place or thing (e.g., Europe, Bolivia, New York, Monday, Sam). Proper nouns are written with capital letters regardless of where they appear in a sentence.

Example of ALBA Used in a Text

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