Tartan evolving into plaid

[figheadair]

Morning all,

Got a couple questions actually. How did tartans become known as plaids when plaid is the length of fabric?

Also how did some of the tartans leave the kilt world and become so popular in normal wear? Blackwatch is the first that comes to mind but there is also a red and yellow tartan that is REALLY common among flannel shirts.

Jim

Firstly, the word tartan is not Scottish (Gaelic) in origin. You may be surprised to learn that there is no specific Gaelic word for the pattern and it was historically called breacan meaning, amongst other things, speckled or multi-coloured. The use of plaid to mean tartan is an American practice and probably arose when non-Gaelic speakers misunderstood Highlanders referring to their plaid i.e. their clothing, and thought that they meant the pattern. Plaide (pro plaj-a) is the Gaelic spelling and literally means blanket.

In simple terms, the rise of tartan as a fashion cloth/pattern outside Scotland was the result of its popularity during late Georgian and early Victorian times which coincided with the industrial revolution and the beginnings of mass production. There are more complex aspects concerning the development of the tartan trade and the use of tartan as decoration but there is not space here to go into that.