Shinty

Shinty is the national sport of the Highlands. Also known as camanachd, it is to Scotland what baseball is to America. It is a fast and fun game and because of that has gained popularity in the rest of the UK and now even overseas in the Western USA.

Shinty or camanachd is one of the oldest known sports. An historical oral passage from Northern Ireland tells of the famous Irish hero Cu’ Chulainn going to the Isle of Skye in Scotland where, to hone his warriors skills, he played a game using a curved stick. The Greeks tell of a game they observed when visiting the Celts near Greece using a curved stick. This ancient game of camanachd is where the modern games of golf and hockey ended up from years later.

Historically shinty has been a winter sport, but now visitors to Scotland have the opportunity to see in summer, too. The game is played by teams of twelve players on a field with goals at each end. Each player swings a caman, a curved hockey-like stick, hitting a ball on the ground or up in the air, toward reaching the goal. Shinty is fast and exciting both to play and to watch.

Oregon Shinty is a new club built on the knowledge, experience and fun attitude of the Scottish culture. Based in metro Portland they are always looking for new players to come out and play a game of high intensity and fun. Expanding out to the rest of Oregon the club is getting larger by the month. It involves speed and power but most of all enjoyment to play Scotland’s traditional and oldest known game.

Portland Highland Games is proud to present a game of Shinty, the traditional game of the Highlands!