Mall question: Are You Scottish?

[Blu (Ontario)]

... Not until the protest generation of the '60's did they achieve the ubiquitousness they have today. Not so different from the track kilts are on today, is it?

Is it?... I don't particularly see a kilts rebellion or protest going on anywhere.

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[Barclay]

Is it?... I don't particularly see a kilts rebellion or protest going on anywhere.

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Except maybe the malls in Phoenix.

I say lighten up and politely explain how you feel. Stop being so DAMN SENSITIVE. If you like a kilt, wear one, but stop all this boo hooing about someone elses view.

Aye. Well said.

Like it or not, there is an affiliation between kilts and Scotland in the minds of most people.

[macwilkin]

We can declare victory when kilts are seen as not just a Scottish thing, as jeans are no longer seen as just cowboy attire.

Of course, there are those of us who wear the kilt because it is a "Scottish thing", and are proud of the history and tradition behind it.

Regards,

Todd

[An t-Ileach]

Surely there were enough Scots who built America, and contributed to its culture (psalm singing, for example, or Gaelic in North Carolina) for the kilt to qualify as an American garb that was there before denim jeans were invented?

[Kilted KT]

Surely there were enough Scots who built America, and contributed to its culture (psalm singing, for example, or Gaelic in North Carolina) for the kilt to qualify as an American garb that was there before denim jeans were invented?

I'd have to agree. While kilts have been around for a good long time, Jeans weren't worn for must else besides work until the last hundred years or so.

here is a link: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jeans

[jfellrath]

I get this question almost more than any other. Or, I'm also asked "are you Irish," and usually by people who are obviously trying to do one of two things:

1. Place my kilt-wearing into a portion of their brain that has been, through previous experience with kilts and such, conditioned for their understanding of my wearing it.
2. Show off that they know that kilts are Scottish (or show off that they "know" kilts are Irish - quotes are intentional).

I can usually pick out which they are by the look on their faces - if they look quizzical, it's #1. If they look smug, it's #2.

My answer to the asker is generally "yes, but I'd wear it even if I wasn't because it's so darned comfortable." If I get the "Irish" comment, I look at them strangely while I say "Well, kilts aren't Irish. I just wear this because I like it."

Perhaps it's a bit immature, but I really get a private kick out of deflating the egos of people who are smug about having bad information. For more on this, please see my sig. ;)

[keepoffgrass]

Of course, there are those of us who wear the kilt because it is a "Scottish thing", and are proud of the history and tradition behind it.

Regards,

Todd

Yeah, I doubt I would have ever considered buying a kilt if not for my Scottish ancestry. I love my kilt and my heritage. I myself hope they dont ever become all to popular, or just another fad. If every other guy in town wore a kilt would this group be here? Or for those of us with Scottish ancestry, wear our kilts and say, "This is my heritage, I wear it proudly" if someone asks about it.

Face it, if you wear a kilt, it is something thats out of the "norm". People are going to look and ask questions. "Are you Scottish?" is going to be a common question thats asked. A kilt is a peice of ethnic clothing. Would you walk around in lederhosen and not expect someone to ask if you were German?

[ScottEPooh]

Would you walk around in lederhosen and not expect someone to ask if you were German?[/QUOTE]

I do have a lot of German heritage, and I would NEVER walk around in lederhosen. Give me my kilt any day!!!

[Sindarius]

Yeah, I doubt I would have ever considered buying a kilt if not for my Scottish ancestry. I love my kilt and my heritage. I myself hope they dont ever become all to popular, or just another fad. If every other guy in town wore a kilt would this group be here? Or for those of us with Scottish ancestry, wear our kilts and say, "This is my heritage, I wear it proudly" if someone asks about it.

I could not have said it better myself. I'm not trying to make a fashion statement and while I certainly enjoy the freedom of the kilt, it is not the reason I wear it. For me it all comes down to heritage.

[Hamish]

I very much doubt if I have been asked, "Are you Scottish?" more than a dozen times in all my 56 years of kilt wearing! Most of those occasions will have been whilst I was 'on show' doing my stewarding work for The National Trust at Petworth House in the past five years. One is somewhat a target in situations like that, where visitors are coming up to ask questions about the house and its contents anyway. Any questions about the kilt, and they are very few really, are usually thrown in as little extras before the questioner goes on his or her way.

I am still convinced that this has a lot to do with the 'British reserve', for which we are known. As a nation, we are shy of asking such direct questions of strangers. Similarly, compliments are not given as freely as they appear to be in the USA and, even when they are, more often than not, they are remarks made in passing so that one has to turn around to offer thanks!

Strange as it may seem (!), I am a victim of this myself. At the Harpenden Highland Gathering last month, I noticed a chap wearing a very smart-looking navy kilt with the Saltire emblazoned across the front apron - it was the kilt itself that looked so good. Several times during the day I was going to ask him where he bought the kilt but felt too embarrassed to do so. Eventually, I did summon up the courage to approach him to compliment him on his fine kilt, but it took me a while to prepare myself.

Do any of my United Kingdom brethren have similar opinions - or problems?