Cullen Skink

Scottish Country Dance Instruction

CULLEN SKINK (S4x32) 4C set John Drewry Greenburn Book 2
3s and 4s start on opposite sides

1- 4 1s+2s also 3s+4s set and link ending with 1s+4s passing RSh to order 2(4)1(3)
5- 8 4s+1s dance RH across and end with 4M+1L also 4L+1M in prom hold facing out
9-12 4M+1L and 4L+1M dance ½ diagonal reel of 4 with 2M and 3M (1st corners) and end turning inwards to face down/up
13-16 4M+1L and 4L+1M dance ½ diagonal reel of 4 with 2L+3L (4th corners) and end turning inwards to face out
17-20 4M+1L and 4L+1M dance ½ diagonal reel of 4 with 3M and 2M (3rd corners) and end turning inwards to face up/down
21-24 4M+1L and 4L+1M dance ½ diagonal reel of 4 with 3L+2L (2nd corners) and end in order 2(4)1(3)
25-28 4s lead up, cross and cast to 2nd place while 1s lead down, cross and cast up to 3rd place
29-32 2s+4s also 1s+3s circle 4H round to left. 24(1)(3)

(MINICRIB. Dance crib compiled by Charles Upton, Deeside Caledonian Society, and his successors)

Cullen Skink
John Drewry Greenburn Book 2
Strathspey 4 x 32 bars 4 Couple Repeat 4 Couple Set Longwise Set

3s 4s cross on second chord.

1-4 1s2s 3s4s dance a variation of set and link for 2 on the sides:

1-2 1s2s 3s4s set on the sides;

3-4 2M cast up WHILE 3M cast down WHILE 2L dance up WHILE 3L dance down WHILE 1L cast down 2 places WHILE 4L cast up 2 places WHILE 1M dance down 2 places WHILE 4M dance up 2 places, finishing 2s4s1s3s, 4s 3s on opposite sides;

5-8 4s1s right hands across, finishing with 4L1M 4M1L retaining right hands and joining left hands to finish in promenade hold, 4L1M facing out on the Mn's side, 4M1L on the Ls' side;

9-12 2M(4L1M)(4M1L)3M half reel of 4 on first corners' diagonal, finishing corners normally, 4L1M 4M1L (without passing) retaining promenade hold and facing about (Ls now on Mn's left) to face 4L1M up, 4M1L down;

13-16 2L(4L1M)(4M1L)3L repeat bars 9-12 on second corners' diagonal, finishing with Ls now on Mn's right, 1M4L facing out on Ls' side, 1L4M on Mn's side;

17-20 3M(1L4M)(1M4L)2M repeat bars 9-12, finishing with 1L4M facing up, 1M4L down;

21-24 3L(1L4M)(1M4L)2L repeat bars 13-16, finishing with 4L1M 4M1L dropping promenade hold and taking right hands with partners, 4s facing up, 1s down;

25-28 4s cross up into half figures of 8 round 2s WHILE 1s cross down into half figures of 8 round 3s;

29-32 2s4s 1s3s four hands round to the left, finishing 2s4s1s3s, 1s 3s on opposite sides.

(MAXICRIB. Scottish country dancing instructions compiled by Reuben Freemantle)

Dance Notes

-12 As 4L1M 4M1L meet facing each other up and down, 1M 4M pull right hands back to turn "partner" about without releasing promenade hold, Ls now on Mn's left, 4L1M 4M1L back-to-back.

-16 As 1L4M 1M4L meet facing each other across the set, 4M 1M pull left hands back to turn "partner" about without releasing promenade hold, Ls now on Mn's right, 4M1L 4L1M back-to-back.

-20 Repeat the turning about movement of bar 12.

(Dance notes by Reuben Freemantle)

Keith Rose's Crib Diagrams

Cullen Skink - Full Size And Key To Symbols

Dance Instruction Videos

Cullen Skink - Scottish Country Dancing Instruction Video

Dance Information

This strathspey, Cullen Skink, was devised for a weekend of dancing in October 1999 at the Banff Springs Hotel, Banffshire, Scotland, where Cullen Skink is a speciality.

Cullen Skink is a thick Scottish soup made of smoked Finnan haddie (smoked haddock), potatoes and onions. Lacking the traditional ingredient, any other undyed smoked haddock will suffice.

This soup is a local speciality, from the town of Cullen in Moray, on the north-east coast of Scotland. The soup is often served as a starter at formal Scottish dinners.

The name is not derived from Gaelic. The first element refers to the town of Cullen in Moray, skink is a Scots word for a shin, knuckle or hough of beef which has developed the secondary meaning of a soup, especially one made from these. The word skink is ultimately derived from Middle Dutch schenke "shin, hough", also the root of the English word shank.

Cullen Skink appears in many traditional Scottish cookery books and appears on a large number of menus across Scotland. The soup is extremely easy and quick to make.

A Bowl Of Cullen Skink, Served With Bread

This page uses content under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License, along with original copyrighted content and excerpts from Wikipedia and other sources.
Text from this original Cullen Skink article on Wikipedia.
Image copyright Metukkalihis, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons.

Back to the top of this Scottish Country Dancing Instructions 'Cullen Skink' page