Anne Lorne Gillies to adjudicate at 2016 US National Mòd

Dr. Anne Lorne Gillies, photo courtesy Kevin Bree

Scottish Gaelic singer, writer and activist Dr. Anne Lorne Gillies will judge the song, poetry and storytelling competitions at next year’s U.S. National Mòd in Ligonier, Pennsylvania.

This will be Dr. Gillies first time as adjudicator at the U.S. National Mòd. An Comunn Gàidhealach Ameireaganach/The American Scottish Gaelic Society is delighted to welcome her to our 29th annual Mòd, a series of competitions and events held three days in September.

Anna Latharna NicGillìosa grew up on a croft in Argyll and attended Oban High School. She won the Women’s Gold Medal at the Royal National Mòd in Scotland at the age of 17 in 1962 and went on to perform at many venues and events. She received an MA in Celtic and English from the University of Edinburgh in 1965, and then trained as a classical musician.

She has been an educator, actress and performer, appearing on stage and on television since the 1960s. She is also a writer of children’s books and television programs, including documentaries. One of her best-known books is the anthology “Songs of Gaelic Scotland,” a 550-page collection of 175 songs.

Gillies is also a life-long advocate for Gaelic. In 1983, she became the patron of Comhairle nan Sgoiltean Àraich, the Gaelic playgroup organization. She is a former National Education Development Officer with Comann na Gàidhlig, and in 2009 the Scottish Government named her Tosgair na Gàidhlig, a “Gaelic language ambassador.”

We look forward to welcoming Gillies to Washington, DC, and Ligonier next year, and we hope you can join us for the 29th U.S. National Mòd!