More on Septs

[CMcG]

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So, where does the "sept" biz come from?

According to the Oxford English Dictionary, sept comes into the English language from French and before that, from Latin. The first documented use was in 1517. Sept refers to a division of a nation, tribe, or clan, and was originally used in reference to Ireland.

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Why have I been wearing a tartan for over 40 years that I might not have any real connection to?

I suppose the question here is what would you call a real connection? If there is a tartan specific to one's surname, that's easy enough. For a sept connection, one could do an extensive genealogy to see whether or not their family name actually came from, or had any association with, the clan that a tartan represents. Or you could skip all that and just join the clan association/society, ask for permission from the chief, etc.

As I understand it though, the history of Scottish tartans being recorded, mass produced, and associated with specific clans goes back only as far as the 19th century. This whole business of different names (septs) being associated with one tartan under the banner of a clan seems fine to me given the constructed nature of the whole system to begin with. On a basic level, just going with what the tartan industry says is your clan/sept sett is actually quite "traditional."

If you want an unassailable link, you can design and register your own, or wear a district tartan