Tartan Etiquette

[Jock Scot]

Ooops, dual post.

[SorenMacTavish]

Not "bad form..." You're in the U.S. From comments here online, t's apparent to me that nobody there knows or cares. In the U.K. they'd possibly think you were weird & perhaps thoughtless. In Canada, folks either wouldn't know, or if they did, they'd just roll their eyes and snicker to themselves.

The question then, becomes not whether others care, but do you care about them?

Bad form? Etiquette? Consideration? Thoughtfulness? Your call; which of those is important to you?

For example, in my own case, I have clergy & hunting Sinclair. Tomorrow I'm being measured for a Sinclair modern. I'm a priest with Sinclair heritage, so I'm connected to all three. Nobody here asks much, but were I travelling to the U.K. I'd only take one lest people thought oddly of me.

Here's the thing: nobody would ever say anything but I for one care about what others think even more than what they say, after all, if they say something to me, I have a chance to explain it. When they say nothing, they leave with heaven knows what opinion of me, and yes, I do care what opinions folks have of me or if they're offended.

Do you care?

Thank you Father Bill. I personally wouldn't wear all tartans representative of my lineage as that it would feel to me like I was playing "dress up". I would wear what pertains to me personally, which would be the MacTavish as that it is the closest clan I am descended from. I just figured I'd ask so that I had a more "community" perspective. Thanks again for your perspective Father Bill.

[MacLowlife]

McTavish,

When you speak of direct descent from multiple clans, I assume you mean that six of your great great grandfathers all came from different clans- or possibly that six of your great grandfathers and great grandmothers all came from different clans. I believe, strictly speaking, that you would wear the tartan of the clan with a direct male line- your father's father's, etc.

We have gotten pretty egalitarian in the US about matrilineal descent and that is a fine thing- after all, matrilineal descent is more easily verified than patrilineal, absent a DNA test. But clan tartans and "the right to wear them" (assuming you believe such a right exists) are inherited in the male line.

Like primogeniture, the old rules are strict, but simple. Either your father and his father and his father hail from Clan X or you don't really have a claim to that tartan. Not your grandmother, not your grandfather's mother, not the name of your dog, favorite eatery, or the play you were in back in college. As has been said above, you may wear what you like. I believe Father bill has said it nicely, as have others, here and elsewhere. You may affiliate with clan associations or ask permission of chiefs or just stare down people who question you. But if you want to follow the rule, the rule is simple. Grafting other ideas onto the rule is what complicates things.

Now there is a distinct possibility that your father's father's father is not among those six lines that you can claim. While the strict interpretation says "No Tartan for you, Mac," I believe the liberal interpretation would be to choose the tartan next closest, that is, the one with the most recent male ancestor. If you can't make that work, then go with the one that matches your eyes.

[Jock Scot]

Great topic. Now I pose a question to the rabble...what does one do when after having traced ancestry/genealogy and has found direct descent from more than 6 clans? Would it be bad form to wear any/all of them individually? Thanks in advance.

In Scotland many of us can choose from 10 or more assorted clan tartans, but usually we wear one tartan only and that is usually our father's. Bad form to wear more? Well yes it is, its also thought of as an unnecessary extravagance.

[Hawk]

The tartan referred to here is another of the tartans which has a muddy clan/profession history, but usage over time has made a more "universal". The Clergy tartans (blue and green) are also for the surname Clark (the modern convention is different shades of the same colors, but the thread count is the same).

See Matt's excellent article about it.

In addition, this is from the STA website concerning the "Priest" tartan:

"Name of Tartan:Priest (Corporate)Alternative Name:Wilsons' Priest, Clark, ClergyITI Number:246Category:CorporateDesigner / Source:Wilsons of BannockburnDate:1830"

Hawk

[SorenMacTavish]

McTavish,

When you speak of direct descent from multiple clans, I assume you mean that six of your great great grandfathers all came from different clans- or possibly that six of your great grandfathers and great grandmothers all came from different clans. I believe, strictly speaking, that you would wear the tartan of the clan with a direct male line- your father's father's, etc.

We have gotten pretty egalitarian in the US about matrilineal descent and that is a fine thing- after all, matrilineal descent is more easily verified than patrilineal, absent a DNA test. But clan tartans and "the right to wear them" (assuming you believe such a right exists) are inherited in the male line.

Like primogeniture, the old rules are strict, but simple. Either your father and his father and his father hail from Clan X or you don't really have a claim to that tartan. Not your grandmother, not your grandfather's mother, not the name of your dog, favorite eatery, or the play you were in back in college. As has been said above, you may wear what you like. I believe Father bill has said it nicely, as have others, here and elsewhere. You may affiliate with clan associations or ask permission of chiefs or just stare down people who question you. But if you want to follow the rule, the rule is simple. Grafting other ideas onto the rule is what complicates things.

Now there is a distinct possibility that your father's father's father is not among those six lines that you can claim. While the strict interpretation says "No Tartan for you, Mac," I believe the liberal interpretation would be to choose the tartan next closest, that is, the one with the most recent male ancestor. If you can't make that work, then go with the one that matches your eyes.

Again, thanks for the feedback MacLowlife. As to the 6 clans+, they are all traced through my father's side of the family (IE, his father and mother, their parents and their parents) I wasn't sure if the lineage for clan tartan is traced through the matrilineal or patrilineal, so many thanks to those of you who have informed me and educated me to tradition. Given my father is a Stephenson (which I believe is a clan sept of MacTavish) that is the clan tartan I "should" wear if I follow tradition. So, Stephenson or MacTavish would be proper is my understanding, however I just wanted to be sure of that fact, hence my posing the question. Thanks again for the feedback MacLowlife.

[SorenMacTavish]

In Scotland many of us can choose from 10 or more assorted clan tartans, but usually we wear one tartan only and that is usually our father's. Bad form to wear more? Well yes it is, its also thought of as an unnecessary extravagance.

Thanks for the answer

[Jock Scot]

Its interesting this "clergy" tartan thing and I am the first to admit that I am no expert on the glergy, or their tartan. However I have bumped into the clergy from time to time, as one does and those that wear the kilt wear their family one. I cannot recall a member of the clergy ever wearing a clergy tartan, in fact it was not until I joined this website did I discover that there was a clergy tartan, or a tartan with connections to the clergy.

[aonghas]

I never realized that clan came from a continuous male lineage. In my culture we claim from our mothers lineage. I will have to rethink my situation.
It is such a nice kilt

[Deirachel]

If I remember correctly, the supposed story goes: the Clergy tartan is supposed to have come about to keep people from accidentally (or intentionally and then claiming accident) attacking/killing the priest, and/or to keep the locally assigned priest from having problems with his flock because of clan rivalry. Alternately, the idea was when one took the cloth, one gives up all formal obligation to a specific family. Thus, the cleric would wear the Clergy tartan to show while he as still Scot, he was beholden to God and all Scots.

Of course, with the knowledge clan tartans are a modern concept, these stories become questionable in their authenticity.