Question for those who only wear tartans in their bloodline

**frank_a** · 2nd November 12, 02:14 AM

What a great thread. Once again, my Wallace ancestry has the answer! The Clan Wallace Society - Worldwide (CWS) represents all Scots of any Clan and all others who wish they were Scots. Not only that, they have a cool red tartan. Check them out here: http://www.clanwallace.org/index-2.html

Good luck!

Frank

**duffy794** · 2nd November 12, 08:38 AM

thanks! Sorry I am not very good at expressing myself

It seems to me that there are 3 basic attitudes on the board as to what tartan is acceptable to wear:
1. One man, one clan, one tartan
2. Any tartan which you have ties to
3. Any tartan you want

I fall under the 2nd category because I do not have a strong claim to any one clan. (Surname is Gunn but my Wilson is Swedish)(Colquhoun is the most ancient via the paternal rule, but that is on my mothers side and is several generations removed from Scotland) (other name and blood ties)

I am going to probably do the dna testing to try to ascertain whether Gunn or Colquhoun would be more appropriate, and then get a really nice kilt in that tartan. Both of those societies said I am welcome.

I was looking at the usakilts pv's as a knockaround kilt and wanted a red one to provide a contrast to the blue/green of the Gunn/Colquhoun.
Since I fall in category 2 of above I was examining the pv's that I had a name tie to.
Since I had previously looked at the clan associations of a few of those ie MacLean and they had a 3 generation rule, that I do not fufill, I was trying to ask other people of category 2 if they would wear a tartan if the association (which to me meant clan) would not have them as a member.

I kind of botched my logic.

Sorry and thanks for the help!

**BCAC** · 2nd November 12, 09:07 AM

You have to remember, duffy, that a clan association is NOT (and never will be) a clan. Also that a clan association does not always speak for the clan in question. Lastly, that there is no "3 generation rule" for belonging to a clan, and you don't have to have the permission of anybody to be a clan member (you either are or you are not) nor to wear the tartan that has been accepted by the chief as the "clan" tartan.

**Tobus** · 2nd November 12, 09:16 AM

I fall under the 2nd category because I do not have a strong claim to any one clan. (Surname is Gunn but my Wilson is Swedish)(Colquhoun is the most ancient via the paternal rule, but that is on my mothers side and is several generations removed from Scotland) (other name and blood ties)

I am going to probably do the dna testing to try to ascertain whether Gunn or Colquhoun would be more appropriate, and then get a really nice kilt in that tartan. Both of those societies said I am welcome.

OK, so if your surname is Gunn, and the Gunn clan association says you're welcome, then I'm afraid I don't understand your dilemma. How is this not a "strong claim to any one clan"?

I mean, if you want to choose to identify with another clan, that's your business, but I'm not sure why Gunn wouldn't be your default. Is it just that you don't like their tartan or something?

**duffy794** · 2nd November 12, 09:36 AM

Thank you bcac! that helps

Tobus,

Part of me wants to be sure that is where I belong. Wilson is a very common name and I think the dna testing has showed many different familys. I am not positive that my Wilson were part of the Gunn Wilsons. If that makes sense. My Wilson is swedish and since the Gunn's were viking there is a possiblity that they are related. (also the same rational as for the Innes)

I can trace the Colquhoun tie to the shores of Loch Lomond and that person has a name that is an accepted sept of Colquhoun, so I feel fairly confident that there is a tie there, but that tie is maternal.

It may be partly the romantic american in me that thinks if I join a clan society my ancestors were actually there and were part of the history of that clan.

If I had not traced my genealogy to a person that I could "prove" was part of the Colquhoun clan then Gunn would be my choice.

I started in genealogy and came to the clans after.

Originally Posted by Tobus

OK, so if your surname is Gunn, and the Gunn clan association says you're welcome, then I'm afraid I don't understand your dilemma. How is this not a "strong claim to any one clan"?

I mean, if you want to choose to identify with another clan, that's your business, but I'm not sure why Gunn wouldn't be your default. Is it just that you don't like their tartan or something?

**duffy794** · 2nd November 12, 09:43 AM

I am looking at doing the national genographic project dna test for genealogy purposes anyway. So I figured I could wait on a really nice kilt until then. That would hopefully tell me if the Wilson line was Norse or Gaelic or English or what.

**Grizzly** · 2nd November 12, 09:45 AM

Ray i think you are over thinking this. You surname is Wilson therefore you can rightly wear any Wilson tartan or any tartan of the clan to which the sept of Wilson belongs too. If that is more than one clan then great you have an even wider choice. You don't have to belong to any clan association to wear it either.

As others have said it's up to you what you want to wear and no one can tell you any different.

**duffy794** · 2nd November 12, 09:48 AM

lol I think you are right. I appreciate all the input and I think I will just go with it.

**Tobus** · 2nd November 12, 09:56 AM

Originally Posted by duffy794

Tobus,

Part of me wants to be sure that is where I belong. Wilson is a very common name and I think the dna testing has showed many different familys. I am not positive that my Wilson were part of the Gunn Wilsons. If that makes sense. My Wilson is swedish and since the Gunn's were viking there is a possiblity that they are related. (also the same rational as for the Innes)

Ah, I guess I misread your previous reply. I thought you were stating that your surname was actually Gunn. If it's Wilson, but you have reason to doubt that it's from a Scottish Wilson, then I understand.

I can trace the Colquhoun tie to the shores of Loch Lomond and that person has a name that is an accepted sept of Colquhoun, so I feel fairly confident that there is a tie there, but that tie is maternal.

If you have no provable paternal tie, then there's nothing wrong with choosing the provable maternal tie. Even in Scottish tradition, as I understand it, this is the norm. Whichever tie you have that is closest and/or strongest is the one to choose.

I am looking at doing the national genographic project dna test for genealogy purposes anyway. So I figured I could wait on a really nice kilt until then. That would hopefully tell me if the Wilson line was Norse or Gaelic or English or what.

That sounds like an interesting thing to take part in, but from what I've seen of it, it isn't necessarily going to give you rock-solid answers. Especially considering that many of these bloodlines were all mixed in. There are no such thing as separate Norse, Gaelic, and English DNA strains. A DNA test could tell you that you have Norse background, but that won't tell you whether your ancestors made it through Scotland or not.

**MacGumerait** · 2nd November 12, 10:44 PM

Duffy , please forgive me , but after reading these latest posts , I am still a bit confused about your surname ( which means your current last name ) , is it Gunn or is it Wilson ?

If you want to do the DNA testing , there are many levels of this testing . There are many members here on this forum that are quite knowledgable on DNA testing and could possibly help shed some light . MacSpadger and Dram ( memebers here ) first come to my mind , but there are several .

Here is a link from the XMarks forum discussing DNA testing , be patient when reading as it is 11 pages long, but it is informative .

http://www.xmarksthescot.com/forum/f...nealogy-69584/

Hope this helps you in your DNA search .

By the way , if your last name is Gunn , I really like the Gunn Modern tartan ! I know it's blue / green based rather than the red based that you were wanting , but it is a handsome tartan .

Best of luck to you on your search !

Regards , Mike