Irish Kilts and Tartans

[MrShoe]

Gentlemen,

Great collection of facts and interpretations of writings. So, now we have the definitive research article to point to and refer the Irish to that they should not wear kilts or have Irish "recognized" tartans.

[macwilkin]

Gentlemen,

Great collection of facts and interpretations of writings. So, now we have the definitive research article to point to and refer the Irish to that they should not wear kilts or have Irish "recognized" tartans.

No, we never said that -- our conclusions only stated that the kilt is not an ancient Irish garment, but rather a product of the late 19th/early 20th century.

T.

[The Thing]

Gentlemen,

Great collection of facts and interpretations of writings. So, now we have the definitive research article to point to and refer the Irish to that they should not wear kilts or have Irish "recognized" tartans.

Personally I find your quote offensive.......!
If that were the case then only Blood Born Scottish and in effect Highlanders should be allowed to wear the Kilt and certainly NO AMERICAN's, as it stand's the Kilt is for everybody to wear and was adopted by the Irish to affirm a link to their rich and glorious past. Irish men have been wearing the Kilt for long enough to claim it as an Irish icon as well.

[macwilkin]

Personally I find your quote offensive.......!
If that were the case then only Blood Born Scottish and in effect Highlanders should be allowed to wear the Kilt and certainly NO AMERICAN's, as it stand's the Kilt is for everybody to wear and was adopted by the Irish to affirm a link to their rich and glorious past. Irish men have been wearing the Kilt for long enough to claim it as an Irish icon as well.

As do I. As Matt stated earlier, neither one of us would dare tell anyone, Irish or otherwise, what to wear. All we were trying to do was tell the very interesting history of Irish kilts & tartans. Mr. Shoe speaks for himself only.

T.

[CMcG]

First of all, thanks to the authors for an enjoyable and well researched article. My favorite part was this:
one William Royce called for the adoption of the kilt by the volunteers, saying that the only objections to such a move would “come from the skinny-legged, knick-kneed type for whose faulty or undeveloped ‘understandings’ the pants as a covering are a veritable Godsend.”

<snip> as it stand's the Kilt is for everybody to wear and was adopted by the Irish to affirm a link to their rich and glorious past. Irish men have been wearing the Kilt for long enough to claim it as an Irish icon as well.

I agree with The Thing. The city I grew up in (and where both my parents were born) was barely more than a fur trading post for the Hudson's Bay Company when the Irish started to wear kilts. That's plenty enough history for me in both cases!

Despite the fact that the kilt is not much worn in contemporary Ireland outside of pipe bands and some traditional dancing, it is worn in the Irish Diaspora. This is a fairly common situation for immigrant communities in multicultural environments: people have to try harder in a new locale to stake out a sense of cultural heritage than they would in the homeland.

What I get out of this is that when one wears a kilt as an Irishman, they should acknowledge their debt to Caledonian origins but try to wear it in a Hibernian fashion. Here is a very apt picture to illustrate the point of style versus origin. Solid saffron kilt with green Kilkenny style jacket, but note the watermark that says scottishkilts.net!

[Woodsman]

First of all, thanks to the authors for an enjoyable and well researched article. My favorite part was this:
one William Royce called for the adoption of the kilt by the volunteers, saying that the only objections to such a move would “come from the skinny-legged, knick-kneed type for whose faulty or undeveloped ‘understandings’ the pants as a covering are a veritable Godsend.”



I agree with The Thing. The city I grew up in (and where both my parents were born) was barely more than a fur trading post for the Hudson's Bay Company when the Irish started to wear kilts. That's plenty enough history for me in both cases!

Despite the fact that the kilt is not much worn in contemporary Ireland outside of pipe bands and some traditional dancing, it is worn in the Irish Diaspora. This is a fairly common situation for immigrant communities in multicultural environments: people have to try harder in a new locale to stake out a sense of cultural heritage than they would in the homeland.

What I get out of this is that when one wears a kilt as an Irishman, they should acknowledge their debt to Caledonian origins but try to wear it in a Hibernian fashion. Here is a very apt picture to illustrate the point of style versus origin. Solid saffron kilt with green Kilkenny style jacket, but note the watermark that says scottishkilts.net!

I agree. Those of us of Irish heritage can certainly recognize the Scottish origin of the kilt yet wear it in a style and decor that is recognizably Irish. The adaptation of this dress should be seen as a form of flattery to the Scots and a profession of our historical separations from British rule. Wouldn't it be nice too if now the rest of the world would come to its' senses and adopt the kilt?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

Gentlemen,

Great collection of facts and interpretations of writings. So, now we have the definitive research article to point to and refer the Irish to that they should not wear kilts or have Irish "recognized" tartans.

Just so that I am not misread, I would never in my wildest dreams tell anyone -- Scottish, Irish, American or Indonesian -- that they "should not" wear the kilt or "should not" wear certain tartans.

After all, this is the quote I chose to grace the footer of every page in my blog.

"The Highland dress is essentially a 'free' dress -- that is to say, a man's taste and circumstances must alone be permitted to decide when and where and how he should wear it... I presume to dictate to no man what he shall eat or drink or wherewithal he shall be clothed." -- The Hon. Stuart Ruaidri Erskine, The Kilt & How to Wear It, 1901.

What I do advocate is that people have correct information about what they are wearing, and then make their own decisions accordingly.

[denmcdough]

"The only tartan that could conceivably be a traditional Irish tartan, the Ulster, was worn by a Scot and was likely woven by a Scot as well. The only reason that the Irish tartans are around in for Scottish weavers and kilt makers to sell to plastic patty's."

MrShoe, what gives? Plastic Patty's???? Your remarks are offensive! I'm Irish and love to wear my kilt, no matter how it evolved into an Irish garment. I hope you have a better explanation!