Wild haggis (given the humorous taxonomic designation ''Haggis scoticus'') is a
fictional creature of
Scottish folklore
Scottish folklore (Scottish Gaelic: ''Beul-aithris na h-Alba'') encompasses the folklore of the Scottish people from their earliest records until today. Folklorists, both academic and amateur, have published a variety of works focused specifically ...
,
[ Jonathan Green, ''Scottish Miscellany: Everything You Always Wanted to Know about Scotland the Brave'']
p. 128
/ref> said to be native to the Scottish Highlands
The Highlands ( sco, the Hielands; gd, a’ Ghàidhealtachd , 'the place of the Gaels') is a historical region of Scotland. Culturally, the Highlands and the Lowlands diverged from the Late Middle Ages into the modern period, when Lowland S ...
.[Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum]
in ''The New York Times
''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...
'', accessed 9 February 2009 ()[ It is comically claimed to be the source of ]haggis
Haggis ( gd, taigeis) is a savoury pudding containing sheep's pluck (heart, liver, and lungs), minced with onion, oatmeal, suet, spices, and salt, mixed with stock, and cooked while traditionally encased in the animal's stomach though n ...
, a traditional Scottish dish that is in fact made from the innards of sheep (including heart, lungs, and liver).[
According to some sources, the wild haggis's left and right legs are of different lengths (cf. Sidehill gouger or Dahu), allowing it to run quickly around the steep mountains and hillsides which make up its natural habitat, but only in one direction.][ It is further claimed that there are two varieties of haggis, one with longer left legs and the other with longer right legs. The former variety can run clockwise around a mountain (as seen from above) while the latter can run anticlockwise. The two varieties coexist peacefully but are unable to interbreed in the wild because in order for the male of one variety to mate with a female of the other, he must turn to face in the same direction as his intended mate, causing him to lose his balance before he can mount her. As a result of this difficulty, differences in leg length among the haggis population are accentuated.][A. M. King, L. Cromarty, C. Paterson, J. S. Boyd,]
Applications of ultrasonography in the reproductive management of Dux magnus gentis venteris saginati
, ''BMUS Bulletin'' (British Medical Ultrasound Society), Vol. 10, no.2, 2002
Haggis abroad
The notion of the wild haggis is widely believed, though not always including the idea of mismatched legs. According to an online survey commissioned by haggis manufacturers Hall's of Broxburn, released on 26 November 2003, one-third of U.S. visitors to Scotland believed the wild haggis to be a real creature.[John Carvel,]
in ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...
'', Thursday 27 November 2003 02.18[US tourists want to hunt wild haggis]
in ''The Sydney Morning Herald
''The Sydney Morning Herald'' (''SMH'') is a daily compact newspaper published in Sydney, New South Wales, Australia, and owned by Nine. Founded in 1831 as the ''Sydney Herald'', the ''Herald'' is the oldest continuously published newspaper ...
'', 27 November 2003
See also
* Sidehill gouger
* Dahu, another fictional animal also said to exist in "clockwise" and "anticlockwise" varieties
*Jackalope
The jackalope is a mythical animal of North American folklore described as a jackrabbit with antelope horns. The word ''jackalope'' is a portmanteau of ''jackrabbit'' and ''antelope''. Many jackalope taxidermy mounts, including the original, ...
*Wolpertinger
In German folklore, a wolpertinger (also called wolperdinger or woiperdinger) is an animal said to inhabit the alpine forests of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany.
Description
It has a body comprising various animal parts – ...
* Drop bear
* Tree octopus
References
{{reflist
Scottish folklore
Haggis
Fictional animals
Scottish legendary creatures