Hebrides Tartan

[MacGumerait]

Greetings Rabble .

I have question regarding the Hebrides Tartan . Before I ask the question , I will preface with a bit of information .

I have been kilted for 45 years and have always worn 2 different Montgomery tartans and the Black Watch tartan ( several family members served in the regiment ) .

Recently I have decided to expand my kilt wearing options ... yes I know , after only 45 years I'm probably rushing into a rash decision .

All kidding aside , my Grandmother's family on my Father's side were from the Hebrides , so I started to look into the Hebrides tartan .

I've discovered that Dalgliesh offers 19 different Hebrides tartans all with 3 color variations - modern , ancient , weathered .

I have also noticed that 7 of these tartans represent certain areas of the Hebrides - North Uist , South Uist , Inner and Outer , which is perfectly understandable .

On the other hand , 12 of the Hebrides tartans are simply identified as Hebrides 1 thru 12 .

This brings me to my question . Can someone educate me on the Hebrides 1 thru 12 tartans ? They are quite a bit different from one another . Any info is appreciated , below is a link for a visual example .

http://www.scotweb.co.uk/tartan/Hebr...hterm=hebrides


Cheers , Mike

[figheadair]

Greetings Rabble .

I have question regarding the Hebrides Tartan . Before I ask the question , I will preface with a bit of information .

I have been kilted for 45 years and have always worn 2 different Montgomery tartans and the Black Watch tartan ( several family members served in the regiment ) .

Recently I have decided to expand my kilt wearing options ... yes I know , after only 45 years I'm probably rushing into a rash decision .

All kidding aside , my Grandmother's family on my Father's side were from the Hebrides , so I started to look into the Hebrides tartan .

I've discovered that Dalgliesh offers 19 different Hebrides tartans all with 3 color variations - modern , ancient , weathered .

I have also noticed that 7 of these tartans represent certain areas of the Hebrides - North Uist , South Uist , Inner and Outer , which is perfectly understandable .

On the other hand , 12 of the Hebrides tartans are simply identified as Hebrides 1 thru 12 .

This brings me to my question . Can someone educate me on the Hebrides 1 thru 12 tartans ? They are quite a bit different from one another . Any info is appreciated , below is a link for a visual example .

http://www.scotweb.co.uk/tartan/Hebr...hterm=hebrides


Cheers , Mike

Mike,

This is a can of worms and starts with the naming of the designs as Hebridies which is an error on the part of the National Archives which is what Scotweb (D. C. Dalgliesh) have followed. Nearly all these tartans are based on 18th century fragments collected by Alexander Carmichael. You can see examples of many of the original specimens here. Unfortunately Carmichael's referencing was almost non-existent and what he did write was often incorrect or incomplete. He made assumptions about the origins of various specimens which may have been correct but we simply don't know because his geographic locator and dating was so imprecise.

I’m afraid I don’t have time to discuss each sett but as an example of the vagaries have a look at this one and then read my paper on the MacGregor of Glengyle .

In summary, many of these patterns are old and connected with the west coast/isles but if you are thinking about getting something woven (none are stock patterns) then you might want to discuss with me first as I've actually examined several of them and can provide accurate copies (the STR info is not necessarily correct).

Peter

[MacGumerait]

Peter ,

Thank you !! You have fully answered my question . I suspicioned something was amiss when viewing all the varying tartans examples . If I move forward with any of the " so called " Hebrides tartans , I will definitely contact you first and discuss .

Thanks again , Mike

[duke_19_62]

And then there are the clan tartans of clans based in the Hebrides. I refer you to my avatar for MacNeil of Barra tartan and badge.

[OC Richard]

So Peter would it be more suitable nomenclature if these were designated something like "unknown 18th century specimen #1" etc or "specimen from the Carmichael collection #2"?

It would be nice if misleading labels were avoided.

[figheadair]

So Peter would it be more suitable nomenclature if these were designated something like "unknown 18th century specimen #1" etc or "specimen from the Carmichael collection #2"?

It would be nice if misleading labels were avoided.

We, the STA, have been going through our Db (not the online one which has a long refresh time-lag) re-naming all such setts as either:

Unnamed C18th - blar, blar, blar

or

Unidentified C18th - blar, blar, blar

Unnamed and Unidentified might at first sight appear to mean the smame thing bit I make the distinction:

Unnamed - we know roughly where it came from and how old it is but not to whom it belonged (any clan or family association).

Unidentified - we know something is of a given age: 18th, 19th, 20th century etc., but little else about it. The more recent ones will often has suffices such as US Website, Skirt sent for identification etc.

[Mike_Oettle]

Peter, having spent a fair amount of time wading through the SRT website (going through for the third time, and still not done with it), I have noticed a lot of anomalies. I am sure you have picked up a great many more.
It is good to know that the revision of the database is going ahead.
It will be wonderful to be able to see that revision online, but I will have to be patient.
I don’t have your knowledge of tartan, but I have a knack for finding connections between disparate categories, and have been fascinated at what can be picked out of the register, especially with regard to relatively recent designs and their applications.
Regards,
Mike

[figheadair]

Mike,

If you mean the STR, rather that the STA, Db the I fear it will be a long wait. As you can see, there're hours and hours of work required to correct the STR online Db, the trouble is they don't want to pay for the work to be done. There is another option but that's subject to negotiation so I can't go into detail.

Peter