Julie Fowlis
Julie Fowlis FRSE (born 20 June 1979) is a Scottish folk singer and multi-instrumentalist who sings primarily in Scottish Gaelic.[1][2]
Julie Fowlis
20 June 1979
North Uist, Outer Hebrides, Scotland
- Musician
- broadcaster
2005–present
- Macmeanmna
- Shoeshine
- Machair
Early life[edit]
Fowlis was born and grew up on North Uist, an island in the Outer Hebrides, in a Gaelic-speaking community. Her mother was a Gaelic-speaking islander from a family of fishermen and crofters which originated on the remote island of Heisgeir,[3] while her father was originally from Pitlochry on mainland Scotland. Her parents ran a hotel for many years on North Uist. She moved with her parents to Ross-shire on the mainland when she was 15 years old after her father took a new job. The family lived in Strathpeffer and Fowlis finished her secondary education at Dingwall Academy.[4][5][6] She attended the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow and studied the oboe and the English horn. She graduated in 2000 with a BA in Applied Music in 2000. After university Fowlis attended the Gaelic-language college Sabhal Mòr Ostaig on the Isle of Skye to improve her Gaelic and formally study traditional Scottish music. After completing her studies on Skye she returned to Ross-shire, taking a job with the organisation Fèis Rois in Dingwall as music development officer between 2001 and 2004.[4][7][8]
Personal life[edit]
Fowlis lives in Dingwall, Scotland with husband Éamon Doorley, a regular member of her group as well as of the Irish traditional group Danú. The couple married in May 2007[25] and have two daughters, Aoibhe (b. 2010) and Niamh (b. 2012).
Fowlis campaigned for independence in the 2014 Scottish independence referendum.[26]