 The economy of Scotland in the Middle Ages covers all forms of economic activity in the modern boundaries of Scotland , between the departure of the Romans from Northern Britain in the fifth century , until the advent of the Renaissance in the early sixteenth century , including agriculture , crafts and trade . Having between a fifth or sixth of the arable or good pastoral land and roughly the same amount of coastline as England and Wales , marginal pastoral agriculture and fishing were two of the most important aspects of the Medieval Scottish economy . With poor communications , in the early Middle Ages most settlements needed to achieve a degree of self @-@ sufficiency in agriculture . Most farms were operated by a family unit and used an infield and outfield system . 
