The kilt a "pan-celtic" garment?

Some comments recently on the X Marks the Scot kilt forum have led me to wonder -- when and why did the kilt begin to be seen as a "celtic" garment rather than a specifically Scottish garment? I'm not trying to say that non-Scots should not wear the kilt, I'm just wondering about when and how the notion started that the kilt was something generally "celtic."

Some history. As we all know, the kilt developed in the Gaelic Scottish Highlands in the end of the sixteenth century. In fact, the first reference we have to the feileadh-mhor (the first type of kilt) is an Irish document from 1594 saying that you could tell the Hebridean soliders from the Irish soldiers specifically from the way they were dressed. Their kilts marked them as Scottish and not Irish. Over the next two hundred years, the kilt evolved, in Scotland, from the feileadh-mhor to the feileadh-beag and finally, at the end of the eighteenth century, into the tailored kilt. All the while this was seen as a specifically Highland mode of dress. Even in the lowlands, the kilt was seen as "barbaric" and was not worn.

Now, this begins to change somewhat after the Union of the Parliaments in 1707. Now, some Scottish lowlanders who were against the Union would wear the kilt as a sign of Scottish unity -- they would rather be identified with those barbaric Highlanders to the north than with the English. But this wasn't really common until the nineteenth century, when being Scottish was made popular, and the kilt had ceased to be worn as a daily garment and was instead used mostly for ceremonial occasions. Now lowland families began to wear tartans and all of that.

So we have the kilt change from a garment that is specifically worn in the Scottish Highlands to a pan-Scottish garment, identifying Scots, at home and abroad, whether Highland or Lowland in origin.

So why then do we today have the Irish, Welsh, Cornish, and Manx wearing the kilt, and speaking of it as a "celtic" garment? It was never worn by any other celtic group. I think the origin must lie somewhere in the twentieth century. When H. F. McClintock wrote his Old Irish & Highland Dress, published in 1954, he was already dispelling myths about the kilt being part of the Irish national costume. But these myths were being put forth, not by the Irish, but by Scots who wanted to claim an ancient date of origin for the kilt and so believed it to have been worn by their Irish ansestors who crossed over some 1500 years ago. The only kilt wearers in Ireland at the time were members of pipe bands and military regiments, based largely in Northern Ireland and of Scottish descent.

Keep in mind, as well, that until the latter nineteenth century, no one thought of themselves as "celtic." One was a Scot, and Irishman, a Welshman, etc. There was no sense of belonging to some overarchign "celtic culture" at the time.

Today, though, we have kilts being worn by people of Cornish, Breton, Manx, Welsh, and Irish descent, who see the kilt as part of their "celtic heritage" -- despite the fact that none of these groups ever wore the kilt before modern times. But now they all have tartans and other regalia. When people see me in the kilt, I'm asked just as often if I am Irish than if I am Scottish.

So why the change? When did the kilt become a "pan-celtic" garment? Again, I'm not saying here that non-Scots should not wear the kilt. But when did this shift occur?

What is a "Plaid?"

Keep in mind that the word plaid comes from the Gaelic for "blanket." The original plaid was simply that -- a large woolen blanket worn wrapped around the shoulders in a cloak-like fashion to keep warm and dry. At the very end of the sixteenth century, the plaid began to be worn belted by the men. At this time, they were made from two lengths of cloth, some 4 or 5 yards long and 25" to 30" wide, seamed together to make one peice that was 50" to 60" wide. The length was gathered into folds and belted around the waist. The part that hung from the waist to the knee would later develop into the kilt. The upper portion was worn draped in various ways about the shoulders. This garment was called the feileadh-mhor (large wrap) or "belted plaid."

At some point in the late seventeenth century, or early eighteenth century, the two peices of the belted plaid began to be worn seperately. That is, the lower part was a 4 yard (on average) length of tartan some 25" wide, still worn gathered up and belted at the waist -- the feileadh-beag. The upper length of cloth was still worn around the shoulders in a plaid-like fashion, though it could now be easily removed indoors with the wearer remaining dressed from the waist down.

In the era of the modern, tailored kilt, we have come up with various styles of plaids that are meant to emulate the upper portion of the old belted plaid. The simplest, and most appropriate for general day wear, is not often seen today any longer. And this is just a pure and simply plaid -- that is, blanket -- sometimes called a shoulder plaid. Get a length of tartan cloth -- the exact deminsions don't really matter, but keep in mind that plaid means "blanket" so you will want a couple of yards at least. If you like the ends can be finished with a fringe of some sort. This is just worn folded up and draped across one shoulder, like you would carry a blanket to a picnic. If you want, to keep warm in cold weather, it can be unfolded and worn as a cloak, like the original plaids were.

What is more commonly seen is the "fly plaid." This is usually reserved for formal wear. There are a few different styles of this, but it is basically a peice of tartan cloth some 54" square (or something around that size). The edges are usually fringed. Often one corner is tailored into pleats, and it is this corner that you wear pinned to one shoulder with a large brooch. The remainder is left to hang free in back. One style of this has a tie at the lower end of the plaid that attaches it to your waist, making the garment, when worn, look more like the upper part of the old belted plaid.

And then we have the pipers and drummers plaids. These garments are essentially the same except one has more cloth than the other. Basically this is a length of tartan cloth some 3 to 5 yards long, with the width of the cloth pleated up and tailored down to something like 12 to 16". The two ends are fringed. This is worn over the doublet and all, across the chest and down the back, usually only by those in bands, sometimes just the pipe major and drum major.

What you want to avoid is a lady's sash. Sometimes those unfamiliar with Highland Dress will have this vague notion that something tartan should be seen on the man's shoulder and they buy a woman's sash for the purpose. But as women's sashes are only some 10" to 12" wide and usually 90" long, and most always made from a lighter weight cloth than a kilt would be, you can see how they would not compare to any of the garments described above.

Now, to confuse the issue even more, some retailers have of late introduced items, for men, called things like "mini-fly plaids" or "fun plaids" that are touted as fly plaids for men, but for more casual wear. These that I have seen have roughtly the same deminsions as a woman's sash, and in my opinion fall in the same category and should be avoided.

As a final note abbout the lady's sash -- the old adage about what shoulder she wears it on denoting rank in the clan is a myth. If you are right handed, it should be worn on the left shoulder, and vice versa. Why? Because it's more practical that way!

Those Embarassing Questions

It's bound to happen to anyone who wears a kilt. Eventually you will be asked THE QUESTION. "What do you wear under the kilt?"

Usually, those asking this question will be of the female variety -- in my experience the older women are usually more forthcoming with the curiosity (or less hindered by embarassment, I suppose). There are a few pat answers, such as "Nothing is worn, it's all in working order." Some border on the crude, such as, "Lipstick," or "Do you have cold hands? You are welcome to check." My favorite is simply "socks and shoes."

However, the more you wear your kilt, the more you get asked this question, the less "cute" it becomes. I wear the kilt nearly every day. To me, the kilt is not some "fun costume." It is my clothing. I don't go up to strange women and ask them what they are wearing under their skirts or pants. So why do people think it is appropriate to ask me this question?

But then I remind myself that these people are not used to seeing a man in a kilt, they think they are being cute and funny, and mean no offense. And I just suffer through it.



(Photo from the X Marks the Scot forum)

But that's not actually the topic I want to address in this post. Because there is another type of person who asks this question. It's the man who just bought his first kilt. I see it all the time. A gentleman decides he wants to enter the world of kilt wearing. He talks to me for over an hour about all the details. He's been measured, selected his tartan, picked out all the accessories. He's all paid up and ready to go, and then he leans in, lowers his voice, and somewhat sheepishly, asks the question. "So, what do you guys wear under the kilt...? Really?" He's not trying to be funny, he just wants to know what is proper. "I know that traditionally nothing is supposed to be worn," he says, "but really, what do most people wear?"

My answer to that is -- whatever you want to wear. I have a strict "don't ask, don't tell" policy. It's none of your business what I'm wearing under my kilt, and I really don't care what you wear under your kilt. I don't care whether you wear underwear with your blue jeans, and your kilt is no different.

So, wear nothing if you like -- it is the most traditional. Or wear boxer shorts. Or jockeys. Or spandex. Really, if you maintain proper decorum and take care to sit "like a lady" in your kilt, no one should ever know what you are or are not wearing.

Also keep in mind the situation. I wear the kilt all the time to educational programs. If I am going kilted to a school, or to a church, then I always take care to wear proper under garments -- just in case of a slip -- to avoid scandal. At other times? Well, you'd need to ask my wife, and I don't think she's telling.

But I do have it on authority (from a 30-plus year member of the Royal Scottish Country Dance society) that Scottish Country Dancers are encouraged to wear black briefs under their kilts. Why? Well, when dancing, there is the danger of the kilt lifting up as you spin. You don't want to flash the audience. On the other hand, you also don't want to show off your "tighty-whiteys" and spoil the myth that keeps young women's eyes on the men in kilts. So black briefs are worn, to both hide the goods and to maintain the mystery. In the brief moment that the kilt may twirl up in the dance, the black briefs are hidden in the shadows and the eye is never quite sure what it did or did not see!

It's all in the mystery!

Was the kilt invented in Austria???

Recall my post from last week on the "historical" information from the Welsh Tartan Centre? Well, the Welsh are not the only non-Scottish group making claims for the kilt. The Austrians are in on the act, as well. Here is a little article I put together last year after discovering some of this ridiculous claims while researching some Austrian district tartans.

A promotional article appearing on the Ananova web site (among other places) claims just that. This strange notion comes from one Mr. Thomas Rettl, who is marketing various tartans found in archaeological digs in Austria. There is nothing wrong with taking old tartans from such finds and reviving them. In fact, should these regions in Austria wish to be represented by a district tartan, adopting one of these old specimens would be a marvelous idea. But any serious historian would have to object to some of the ridiculous claims being made to promote these tartans.

First of all, the article claims that these are the oldest tartans in the world, dating to at least 320 BC. While they are certainly old, much older than any of the popular Scottish clan tartans, they cannot claim to be the oldest in the world. Tartan cloth dating to around 1200 BC has been found in the deserts of Taklamakan, China. Older tartan cloth may yet be discovered.

They also claim that tartan was not woven in Scotland until 1300 AD. This is another false claim. Surviving pieces of tartan have been found in Scotland that date to 250-325 AD (the Falkirk tartan). As the climate in Scotland is not the best for preserving textiles, we do not know how much earlier tartan cloth may have been woven.

That tartan has been found produced outside of Scotland, and from an early date, should surprise no one. Anywhere that people developed the technology to produce woven cloth, they likely also produced some sort of tartan design. After weaving plain cloth, the next logical step to make the cloth more decorative is to weave in stripes. And if the stripes are repeated in both the warp and the weft, you have a simple tartan. But only in Scotland has tartan been taken to such a high art form and imbued with cultural significance.

Mr. Rettl makes the leap of logic that if tartan was early worn in Austria, the kilt must have been worn there, as well. "Ever since we found out that Austria was the true home to tartan we have been doing a roaring trade," he is quoted as saying. "It was found not in Scotland but in a place called Molzbichl in Carinthia in Austria. The Celts who conquered Scotland originally came from Europe, which would back our claim to have had the kilt first."

The problem with his thinking is that tartan does not equal the kilt. One can find paintings of Japanese women in tartan kimonos, but that does not mean that they were wearing the kilt! A quick study into the history of Scottish Highland dress reveals that the kilt, as we know it today, evolved (in Scotland) from the untailored feilidh-beag, which in turn evolved from the feilidh-mhor or belted plaid, first worn in the Scottish Highlands in the late sixteenth century. To imagine invading Celts coming to Scotland from Austria in pre-historic times, wearing tartan kilts, is pure fiction! To make such a claim seriously is embarrassing (and would also contradict his other erroneous claim that tartan was not worn in Scotland until 1300 AD).

So while we applaud the effort to promote a traditional Austrian tartan, and are honored that Austrians would want to wear the Scottish national dress, we implore the promoters of these items to stop making such baseless, unhistorical claims.

This is a kilt I just finished over the weekend -- a Hunting Stewart kilt for a cleint who came in to the Scottish Tartans Museum. He wanted a kilt he could wear casually and selected this tartan for the color scheme. The Hunting Stewart tartan has always been considered appropriate for general use by anyone, regardless of clan. I chose to pleat this to the black lines, which creates the effect that you see here in the picture.

Welsh sporran?

Ok, so back to the Welsh Tartan Centre. They write on their history page:

There is no evidence of the Welsh wearing a sporran. The Welsh used to wear a leather wallet called a 'sgrepan'. A 'sgrepan' is a very important part of the regalia serving to decorate and protect the wearer. It is made from leather, Welsh goat hair, Welsh cob hair and has leather straps.

One thing to keep in mind here is that sporran is simply the Gaelic word for a pouch. So to say that the Welsh did not wear sporrans is like saying they didn't wear pouches. Which only leads one to ask, "Where did they keep their stuff?"

And what of this "Sgrepan" that they are talking about? Well, I don't speak Welsh, but I would suspect that this is simply the Welsh word for a pouch or purse. If you look on their product pages you will find a listing for an Ysgrepan (one has to assume the same item is meant, though I don't know the reason for the different spelling). And what is it? Well, it looks an awful lot like a Scottish sporran... no surprise there.


The verdict. I have nothing against non-Scots, be they Welsh or Irish or Austrian or Iranian, wearing tartans and the kilt. I am flattered that they think highly enough of the Scottish national dress to want to adopt it. And if people want to design new tartans specifically for non-Scottish groups and families, go for it. But please, please, do not debase yourself and insult the intelligence of others by making false historic claims for these new designs.

Welsh Tartans

Ok, so there is this business called the Welsh Tartan Centre in Cardiff. They are designing and producing tartans for various Welsh families. "Tartans for Welsh families?" you might say. "I thought tartans were for Scottish families." And you'd be right.

Not that tartans must only be for Scottish things, mind you. Many US states, all the Canadian provinces, and other places like Ireland, Australia, even Japan have tartans. But these are, of course, all more modern than the traditional Scottish tartans most of us are familiar with.

So what about these Welsh tartans? People have asked me for my opinion and I say they are fine. They look a little non-traditional (the warp is a completely different design from the weft in most cases), but this is probably done to distinguish them from the Scottish tartans. I tell people these are fashion tartans, designed by this business, and have no official standing with any of the Welsh families whose names they bear. In that regard they are merely fashion designs that have been named for those families. If that doesn't both you, then go ahead and wear them. No problem.

Not that there is anything wrong with that. The Irish County tartans that were designed in the mid-90s by the House of Edgar woolen mill likewise are merely fashion tartans with no official standing. They have proven quite popular among Irish ex-pats.

But someone showed me today an article from the Welsh Tartan Centre's page, giving the "history" of Welsh tartans. Boy, oh boy... There are some doozies there, and while I don't object to people designing new tartans, I strongly object to people fabricating a false history for them in order to mislead the consumer and sell more products. Here is what I'm talking about:

The Welsh wore fashion akin to kilts two thousand years ago, probably with a form of leather trousers or leggings...

Er... excuse me, but no. What these people are most likely referring to is a simple knee-length tunic that was common to just about all Celtic peoples (as well as Norse, Germans, you name it) during that time period. A kilt, by definition, is a masculine style of skirt, a pleated garment worn from the waist to the knee. A tunic is a shirt, and by no stretch of the imagination can be called a kilt -- worn knee length or not.

This form of dress remained a feature of Welsh society confirmed by the discovery of a 9th Century stone carving depicting a man wearing a kilt. This evolved through the centuries into the woollen garment we are familiar with today. Initially this would have been made from raw coarse wool and undyed.

Since they don't tell us what stone carving they are talking about here, it is impossible for anyone to take a look at it to see if, in fact, it does show a man wearing a kilt, but I would feel most confidant in saying that it does not. People have attempted to make the same claim regarding early stone carvings found in Scotland and Ireland. Inevitably what the carving actually shows is a man wearing either a tunic belted at the waist, or an acton (a type of quilted shirt worn as armor) that extended to the knee.

The fact of the matter is that the kilt developed, quite organically, in Scotland. The first type of kilted-garment we have is the belted plaid, first found described in the late sixteenth century, that seemingly developed from the large mantle worn as an outer garment in the Gaelic Scottish Highlands. From this evolved the feileadh-beag (the lower half of the belted plaid, or feileadh-mhor), and from this was born (at the end of the eighteenth century) the tailored kilt. But to suggest that the kilt evolved in Wales and has its origins some 2000 years ago is patently absurd! Where they get the idea that the original kilts were undyed is anyone's guess.

The clan designs of Scottish Tartans have a long traditional history, but there is little historic evidence of clan named tartans in Wales.

Finally, some truth! Or is it really... the very next sentence reads:

Wales did however have regional tartans.

Argh! Again, where this information comes from is beyond me. And it is beyond frustrating! People have attempted to show that tartan identity in Scotland was first regional and second familial. But the reality of it is that "district" tartans and "clan" tartans seem to have developed side by side in Scotland. But in Wales? Absolutely not, there is no evidence of this. In fact, the first Welsh tartan on record anywhere is the "Welsh National Tartan" designed in 1967 by D. M. Richards, using the colors of the Welsh flag.

They make some amusing comments regarding a "Welsh sporran" as well, which I will get to in a moment. I'm being paged as we speak. More anon!

The Highland Granite tartan by Lochcarron of Scotland.

Highland Granite tartan

Ok, so I can't let the first day of this blog go by without posting at least one picture of a tartan! This is the new "Highland Granite" tartan just released this year by Lochcarron of Scotland.

I just recieved a sample swatch of it, from which this image is scanned. It's a 16 oz. cloth, perfect for kilting. It's absolutely gorgeous! I would love to have a kilt in it myself, but when would I have the time to make it? I already have some grey Harris Tweed lying in wait for a kilt for me, and just ordered cloth in the modern Armstrong (I decided my wardrobe needs a dark green kilt, and my grandmother's maiden name was Armstrong). So whenever I don't have any kilts lined up to make for other people I'll get on making those two for myself -- who knows when that will be, though!

Anyway, anyone want a kilt in the Highland Granite? I'd love to make a kilt from it, it would look spectacular!

Welcome!

Ok, so this is my first post. Let me lay out the ground work for what I envision this blog to be. As many of you may know, I have a monthly column in the Scottish Banner newspaper dealing with issues of Highland Dress. I also contribute frequently to the discussion going on at the X Marks the Scot kilt wearer's forum. And, I have my own web site, albanach.org, where I publish many articles dealing with Scottish Dress, as well as the web site of the Scottish Tartans Museum.

So, why on earth would I want a blog to post my thoughts on tartan issues? Good question, and one I'm still trying to figure out!

Seriously, on the "front lines" of the tartan world, I often have comments, thoughts, and opinions that would be of interest to others that are interested in Highland dress that simply may not be sufficient fodder for a full blown article. Something like, "Hey, Lochcarron jsut designed this neat new tartan that would like great in a kilt!" Or perhaps, "Can you believe what this idiot said on the radio about Tartan Day?"

Also, many of you may know that I recently took up kilt making, and I thought this forum might be a good place to talk about that some without looking like I was promoting myself too much in some of these other forums.

So look for a hodge podge of opinions and information from me here. I'm not saying I'm going to update this every day, or even every week. But feel free to email me with questions, or even add your own comments. This should be fun, if nothing else!