The Scottish Thistle Meaning

The Scottish thistle is the national emblem of Scotland for more than 500 years.

Legend of the Scottish thistle tells us that long ago when the Danes invaded Scotland by surprise, wearing no shoes and in the dark, one of them stepped on a thistle, cried out and alerted the Scots and prevented a terrible slaughter. The grateful Scots adopted the thistle as a symbol of their nation, and it became known as “The Guardian Thistle”. Sadly, there is no historical evidence to back up the tale.

Whatever its origins, the thistle is one of the most important Scottish symbols.