Among the maligned and misunderstood foods of the world, haggis (HAG-is), the national dish of Scotland, has a special place.

And yet, all it is is a sort of meatloaf, or more accurately, a meat pudding, devised by the Scots who, like most people with limited resources, had to make the most of every scrap. In their case, it was every scrap of the sheep, their primary meat source. And that included what is politely known as the "pluck" — the heart, liver and other innards. The pluck would be combined with a filling, usually oatmeal, onions and seasonings moistened with suet (white lard) or gravy. The whole mixture would be stuffed into the sheep's stomach and then boiled to form a richly flavored, steaming bundle that would be presented and cut open with great ceremony.

James Redmond, of the Caledonian Society of Hawai'i, said the result is somewhere between a soft meatloaf and stuffing, depending on what meats and fillers are used.

People cringe at the thought of sheep's innards, but is eating them any different than, for example, consuming pig's feet or fish eyes or stockfish treated with lye, as people from other cultures do? And considering them delicacies? Perhaps it's no more than human to make the best of necessary economies by granting these foods a certain cachet. Or perhaps they just taste like home if you grew up eating them, watching Mom or Grandma make them and being told stories about them.

Still, I bet you've never heard a poem written to pig's feet, fish eyes or lutefisk.

Haggis, on the other hand, is the subject of a famous paean written by one of the English-speaking world's best known and most lovingly remembered poets, Robert Burns (1759-1796) — so beloved by Scots that he's often referred to as Robbie Burns, as though the speaker personally knew him.

On Jan. 24, the day before the 250th anniversary of Robbie Burns' birth, the Caledonian Society of Hawaii will celebrate the poet — and a modern-day version of haggis. They've even engaged a professional actor to portray the poet.

Burns suppers, as these events are known, will go on around the world, with a prescribed order (there's actually a whole book about it, "Chambers Companion to the Burns Supper," by Nancy Marshall, W & R Chambers, Ltd., 1992). The suppers invariably include the reading of Burns' poem and, with much fanfare, the presentation of the haggis. In Hawai'i, the menu will include other Scottish dishes, including a chicken-leek-rice soup called cock-a-leekie and a dessert — a sherry trifle — with the delightful name of Tipsy Laird.

Redmond said the entire Scottish world is getting into the act with what is supposed to be a simultaneous toast to Burns (11 a.m. Hawai'i time Jan. 25, in case you wish to lift a glass — neat Scotch whisky only, please).

Burns' "Address to the Haggis" is a bit rough going for those who don't understand 18th century English and Scottish dialect. The poem, eight stanzas long (you can easily find it online by typing "Burns haggis" into any search engine), is a celebration of both the dish and the Scots. In effect, he characterizes haggis as the fuel of a courageous and beleaguered people.

He begins by calling haggis "Great chieftain o' the puddin-race!" and ends "But, if ye wish (Scotland's) gratefu' prayer,/Gie her a Haggis!"

Now, you have to understand what is meant by pudding here. Originally, it did not mean, as it does in America today, a sweet, thickened custard dessert. At first, according to the Oxford English Dictionary, pudding meant the ... well ... the insides of an animal. Then it came to mean a chopped mixture stuffed into the insides of an animal. Then it became any chopped or ground mixture bagged up (whether in an animal part or a square of muslin) and boiled. After that, for some reason, it became the common word for dessert in Britain ("what's for pudding?"). But we digress.

Today, most Scots buy their haggis ready-made and reheat it in the oven. But, since haggis is a bit difficult to find in Hawai'i, former Islander and enthusiastic Caledonian Society member John Murchison devised a version — the one that will be served at the Caledonian Society dinner — that sidesteps all the scary ingredients and can be either steamed or baked.

Redmond says it's not authentic, of course, "but it's not far removed."

The dish is traditionally served with "neeps, tatties and nips" (mashed turnips, mashed potatoes and sips of whisky).

And here it is:

A MODERN HAGGIS