W. F. (William Forbes) Skene

Born in 1809, William Forbes Skene was a Scottish lawyer, historian, and antiquary with a deep interest in Celtic philology, literature, and early Scottish history. He studied at Edinburgh High School, spent time in Germany, attended the University of St Andrews, and went on to work in law in Edinburgh while building a parallel reputation as a serious scholar.

Skene is chiefly remembered for major historical works including The Highlanders of Scotland, The Four Ancient Books of Wales, and his influential multi-volume Celtic Scotland. His writing played an important part in the 19th-century study of Scotland's early kingdoms, Highland traditions, and Gaelic sources, and he became one of the best-known Scottish historical scholars of his day.

He was also recognized in public and learned life, becoming Historiographer Royal in Scotland. Skene died in Edinburgh in 1892, but his work remained important for later historians interested in medieval Scotland, Celtic studies, and the historical traditions of the Highlands.