Is it possible to wear a kilt and not look like you're from Scotland?

[davidlpope]

For Jock and others, who scratch their heads about American wearing kilts and "playing at being Scots", here are a few of my own reflections on the matter:

1. America is a very young nation, relatively speaking.
2. America is a very large and populous nation.
3. America is a very heterogenous nation.
4. America is composed of many folks whose ancestors immigrated within the last three or four generations.

These four elements, when combined, result in a disconnect between ethnicity and nationality. To describe someone as an American tells me little about their ethnic or cultural heritage.

An American might be someone whose ancestors were here in this country before the American Revolution and were English, Scottish, and Scotch-Irish. (Me)

An American might be someone who immigrated from Vietnam in his early childhood. (My fraternity brother whose room was directly across the hall from me in college)

We had loads in common, except for our ethnic and cultural heritage.

I find that many Americans, therefore, tend to want an ethnic or cultural identity that attempts to explain "What was the story of my people before they got to America?" In other words, being simply "American" isn't enough. Our individual stories' didn't start in 1607, or 1776, or 1870, or 1920. We want to understand what came before our ancestors got to these shores. That's our heritage too.

The history and culture of Scotland, albeit highly romanticized, is a cultural and ethnic identity that many feel drawn to. I think much of that culture and ethnic identity for those Americans feeling ethnically or culturally "adrift" is symbolized in the kilt. It's a bit mysterious, that. You don't see the average male attendee at an Oktoberfest celebration wearing lederhosen or guys showing up to the Greek festival in droves wearing fustanellas. Attend a Highland Games here in the South, though, and you're surrounded by men wearing kilts.

For some of these kilt-wearers, they get it naturally. There are members here whose families are recently immigrated and are carrying on an organic tradition of kilt-wearing. For most of us, though, this is a learned behavior (an affectation?). As a result we tend to get it "wrong" to Scottish eyes. Chalk it up to our earnestness and exuberance.

The number of Americans who are into "Scottishness" has mushroomed with the advent of the internet and increased discretionary spending. My grandparents would have little more than a book from the library to feed any interest they had in "Scottish heritage". Americans, now, treat "Scottishness" as a bit of a hobby- a cross between college football tailgating and historical reenacting.

So what do we do with all this? I think that Scots probably just have to grin and bear it a bit. You might think our earnestness and exuberance for a foreign culture quite odd. In a way it is. On the other hand, along with some detriments, there have been practical benefits to American interest in Scottish culture. Tourism dollars and tartan sales are not inconsequential. The two largest Highland Games in the world are in California and North Carolina. That sort of exposure has helped to renew interest in the clans, as evidenced by a number of clans no longer chiefless. And if it allows Scottish culture (the "real" bit) to be a bit stronger, what's the harm?