Do Scotsmen REALLY wear the kilt?

[Cavebear58]

Mainly a question to those of you who are resident in Scotland...

I spent a weekend in Edinburgh earlier in the year and was struck by how few men were actually wearing the kilt. In fact, I was and one guy who was busking was. Even the assistants in the kilt shops weren't. To be fair, no-one made any comments (even the kids, who I've tended to find are the most likely to make silly comments), except for two Japanese tourists who got very excited and wanted to have a picture taken with me.

But it did make me wonder just how common kilt wearing actually is in Scotland?

(Other than for formal events - when I've been to one or two of these in Aberdeen you were the odd-man-out if you DIDN'T wear a kilt.)

Any comments/observations, much appreciated.

Best wishes
Graham.

[ForresterModern]

Graham

I had this same experience on my ten day trip to Edinburgh and the Grampian Highlands earlier this summer, where I wore kilts 9 out of ten days, but only saw one "civilian" (regular Scot pedestrian) wearing a kilt, and even he looked like he likely worked for one of the shops on the royal mile. I did see numerous kilts obviously related to wedding parties, a few on kilt shopkeepers, and several on street pipers, or at formal functions. A couple of obvious tourists in the 30gbp kilts and goofy t-shirts were part of a walking tour along the royal mile. I asked a few people at the better kilt shops and they said that Scots generally only wear them at formal events like weddings and special ceremonies, and at highland games, but almost never on a routine day basis. One of them said he only knew of one or two Scots who actually had more than one kilt (except for the piping squads, of course). He said that most of his custom kilt sales were to tourists or for oversees shipping instead of to locals. But the tat shops are sure loaded with the cheap ones, aren't they?

jeff

[Nervous Jock]

Hardly anyone wears a kilt for day to day business in Edinburgh unless it is part of your employment, almost exclusively for international sporting events and special occasions

[staticsan]

... except for two Japanese tourists who got very excited and wanted to have a picture taken with me.

I had a Scottish tourist get quite excited and had his picture taken with me. I was in DC at the time. He then said he now regretted not bringing his kilt with him.

Wade.

[cessna152towser]

Well I'm Scots and I wear a kilt almost every day. A lot can depend on the weather in Edinburgh, on a fine day I have often sighted countless other guys in kilts, while in bad weather the only others I have seen have been wearing them as part of their work uniform, for example the doorman at the Balmoral Hotel in Princes Street. Kilts seem to be more common for casual wear around Glasgow than in Edinburgh, I always spot a few other kilties out and about when I visit Glasgow. Saturday is probably the best day for kilt spotting since guys wear them as formal attire to attend weddings and other functions or as casual attire to attend soccer matches and a few will don the kilt to go to the shops with the wife.
Further north, in Perth or Inverness, kilts are more commonly seen as every day wear.
Most Scots though do only wear their kilts on special occasions. My next door neighbour owns two kilts but usually only wears one for special nights out or when he is piping, or on foreign holidays. Most Scots regard a holiday as a special occasion and I know several men who are never seen in a kilt in Scotland but always take a kilt with them to wear while on holiday.

[Hamish]

I think a lot of this is down to the fact that the kilt is still considered to be a National Costume rather than a garment, as is National Dress in other countries. If one thinks about it, how many German men would wear Lederhosen, or Norwegians their Bunad, on a daily basis or as casual dress?

Fortunately, many traditional retailers of Highland Dress now offer casual outfits alongside the Prince Charlie and Argyll accessories but, these usually consist of the Jacobite style of shirt and Ghillie brogues which do rather carry a 'costumey label'. What is needed is for those retailers to promote the teaming of ordinary, everyday shirts and footwear with their kilts. This would demonstrate to the uninitiated just how good/kewl the kilt can look when worn as a day-to-day garment.

Most of us 'kilties' play our part by dressing in that manner as we go about our daily lives - but that is not quite enough. It's high time the traditional retailers moved up a notch too!

Yes, our kilt IS part of the Scottish National Dress, and rightly so, but it doesn't have to stop there - nor should it.

Take care,
Ham.

[Jock Scot]

Wthout being silly,I would not take too much notice of what you see in Edinburgh. What you see there is not really a "snapshot" of Scotland. Nevertheless even here in the Highlands, considered by some, still, to be a far flung outpost in Scotland,to see the kilt worn as everyday attire is uncommon. On special days though the kilt can turn out in force.

[Scot01always]

We just got back from a "holiday" in Scotland. My 13th time since '98. I can say I've seen 1 man that I can say for certain that was wearing a kilt as a everyday garment. The girlfriend I had at the time was Scotch and she was upset because he had it on at breakfast. "it just isn't done! you don't wear it at the breakfast table!"
I wore one almost everyday while there this time. My girlfriend said people were turning around to stare at me. One couple evened followed us down another isle of the Tescos to see it. :-)
Cheers, Leslie

[Ra Hammer]

... oh, please, please, please don't use the word "scotch" to describe anything except perhaps whisky [and then only if you must!]

[JRB]

... oh, please, please, please don't use the word "scotch" to describe anything except perhaps whisky [and then only if you must!]

But scotch is a type of whisky! There can be no argument there. So, why would you use the term scotch to describe whisky "only if you must"??? What term would you call a Scottish malt spirit other than scotch?