3 The Influx: The Scale of Migration of Scots to the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth

Abstract

One of the more debated topics in relation to the Scottish migration to Poland-Lithuania is its size. In spite of this, the figures suggested by contemporaries and by modern historians are often subjective and based on guesswork. To form a more accurate picture of the demographic situation and the chronology of the migration it is important first to acknowledge the gaps in the literature and, second, to investigate and reinterpret a variety of primary documents, including a critical but thus far largely overlooked source - parish records. Parish records are perhaps the most important group of sources that have been largely overlooked in attempts to measure the Scottish presence in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth. It must be accepted that it is impossible to establish a precise number of Scottish immigrants in the Polish-Lithuanian Commonwealth at any given period.Keywords:Parish records; Poland-Lithuania; Polish-Lithuanian commonwealth; Scottish migration; seventeenth century