--- ---  # Google Doodle Celebrates St. Andrew's Day With a Parade of Scottish Pride by [Eli Meixler](https://time.com/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Nov 30, 2017 5:41 AM UTC  Google by [Eli Meixler](https://time.com/author/eli/) ## Eli Meixler Nov 30, 2017 5:41 AM UTC Nov. 30 is St. Andrew’s Day, the official Scottish national holiday celebrating the patron saint of Scotland. The day is marked with traditional Scottish food, music, dance, and cultural events, though the day was not recognized as an official bank holiday until 2006\. This year, [Google is commemorating](https://www.google.com/doodles/st-andrews-day-2017) St. Andrew with a Doodle that incorporates a parade of Scottish symbols, “each with a special link to the country’s rich heritage and mythology.” The Doodle’s procession is led by the noble unicorn, [Scotland’s national animal](http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-39501892) — perhaps not found in the Highlands, but a [heraldic symbol](https://www.scotsman.com/lifestyle/scottish-fact-of-the-week-scotland-s-official-animal-the-unicorn-1-2564399) in Scotland since the 12th Century, when it graced William I’s coat of arms, according to _The Scotsman._ The unicorn is wreathed in purple thistle, [Scotland’s national flower](http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/The-Thistle-National-Emblem-of-Scotland/), a prickly weed that can to grow five-feet in height. The Doodle is bookended by the Scottish flag, also known as [the Saltire](http://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofScotland/The-two-flags-of-Scotland/) or the Cross of St. Andrews. Behind the unicorn and rising out of the picturesque Highlands is another Scottish icon — the [Loch Ness Monster](http://time.com/3830798/loch-ness-monster-google-maps-street-view/), known as Nessie, whose popular mythology was spread by a [1934 photograph](http://100photos.time.com/photos/loch-ness-monster) that appeared to capture a mysterious creature rising from Scotland’s most famous lake. Nessie is followed by the [red deer](https://scottishwildlifetrust.org.uk/species/red-deer/), Scotland’s largest land mammal, which is native to its moors and mountainsides. Next is a trio of [bluebells](https://www.woodlandtrust.org.uk/visiting-woods/things-to-do/walking/bluebell-woods/bluebell-woods-scotland/), flowers that explode with carpets of color in Scotland’s ancient bluebell woods every Spring. The Doodle, which can be downloaded and colored-in, was drawn by Scottish artist [Johanna Basford](https://www.johannabasford.com/). St. Andrew's Day Google Doodle Is Full of Scottish Symbols ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/5042567/st-andrews-day-google-doodle-scotland/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/5042567/st-andrews-day-google-doodle-scotland/"},"headline":"Google Doodle Celebrates St. Andrew's Day With a Parade of Scottish Pride","datePublished":"2017-11-30T05:41:44.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:48:58.354Z","description":"The Doodle is a parade of famous Scottish symbols, including the unicorn, Scotland's national animal, and the Saltire, the Scottish flag.","url":"https://time.com/5042567/st-andrews-day-google-doodle-scotland/","keywords":["Newsfeed","Google Doodle","onetime","overnight"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltba783c5965530932/6988f32adb2987c3a425de82/st-andrews-day-2017-5715562192699392-2x.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Eli Meixler","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/eli/"}],"articleSection":"","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltba783c5965530932/6988f32adb2987c3a425de82/st-andrews-day-2017-5715562192699392-2x.png?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"st-andrews-day-2017-5715562192699392-2x","caption":"","creditText":"Google","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/tag/time-section-newsfeed/","name":"Newsfeed"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/5042567/st-andrews-day-google-doodle-scotland/","name":"Google Doodle Celebrates St. Andrew's Day With a Parade of Scottish Pride"}}]}] ```