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WHY WE WEAR THE KILT
©2007 Matthew A. C. Newsome, FSA Scot., GTS
published in the Scottish Banner, December
2007
In my
profession I talk to a lot of people about their kilt wearing habits. Some
are brand new to wearing the kilt. Others have worn the kilt for decades.
Some wear the kilt on a very regular basis; others for only special
occasions. It has been my observation that there are various reasons why
someone may decide to wear the kilt, and those reasons will affect our habits
and attitudes towards Highland dress.
I
normally try to avoid sweeping generalizations, but there are some major
categories that I believe most kilt wearers fall into. People tend to wear
the kilt as a uniform, as heritage dress, as a costume, or as clothing. Most
kilt wearers I have met fall into at least one category, and some will
identify with more than one.
The
first category is that of uniform. These people wear the kilt because it is
part of the uniform of a group or activity in which they are involved. The
most obvious example would be the military uniform of a Highland regiment.
Another would be a pipe band. But the kilt could also be a uniform in a less
structured sense. If one is involved in Scottish Country Dancing, the kilt is
part of the outfit that men are expected to wear. The reason that people in
this category wear the kilt is because it is part and parcel of the activity
they participate in, be it dancing, piping, or some other endeavor.
If you
wear the kilt as a uniform you are more than likely going to have a more rigid
attitude towards Highland dress. This may actually be imposed upon you by
certain dress requirements for competition and performance. This tends to
limit the extent of your Highland wardrobe. If the kilt is part of a uniform
that you put on while participating in a certain activity, you only need to be
flexible within the confines of your uniform requirements.
The
second category I have named is that of “heritage clothing.” By this I mean
those who wear the kilt first and foremost as a mark of their Scottish
ethnicity. The attitude here is that I come from a Scottish background, I am
proud of my heritage, and I am going to showcase and celebrate that heritage
by wearing the Scottish national dress. People in this category will tend to
wear the kilt mainly within the context of Scottish cultural events. They
will wear the kilt when they attend the Highland Games, or St. Andrews Society
functions, Robert Burns dinners, and the like. They may wear the kilt as
formal wear for special events such as weddings, but by and large it is
reserved for cultural events.
If you
wear the kilt as heritage clothing, then you are likely to wear your clan
tartan almost exclusively. Your attitude towards the kilt will be very
respectful, as you are wearing it to honor your ancestors. The extent of your
Highland wardrobe will depend greatly upon the number of cultural events you
attend during the year. If you only attend one or two local Highland Games,
then all you need is a casual daywear outfit. If you only attend formal Burns
suppers, then you likely only have one formal evening outfit. If you are
heavily involved in cultural activities, attending many different functions
throughout the year, you may have acquired quite an extensive range of
Highland wear.
Then
there are those who wear the kilt as a costume. By this I don’t necessarily
mean as “dress-up” clothes at costume parties (though that would certainly
apply), but “costume” in a looser sense. You wear the kilt to get “dressed up
as a Scotsman.” Maybe you are a college student who thinks it might be fun to
wear a kilt on your next pub crawl. Maybe you enjoy wearing the kilt at
Renaissance Fairs. But you wear the kilt because you think it is fun,
attention getting, and different.
Folks
in this category might lean more towards the less expensive off-the-peg
options for their kilts. Since they are mainly wearing the kilt for fun, they
are less likely to invest the money in a hand tailored custom kilt. They
might be inspired to wear the kilt while attending a local Scottish festival
and decide to get a cheap acrylic kilt from one of the vendors just to have
something fun to wear while there that afternoon. People who wear the kilt as
a costume will have a very different attitude towards the garment than those
who are wearing it as a means to show their cultural pride.
Lastly,
there are those for whom the kilt is simply an article of clothing. It is
recognized as a garment of rich cultural significance and with much history,
but it is treated primarily as a mode of dress, not a uniform or a folk
costume. People in this category are more likely to wear the kilt on a
regular basis – frequently, if not daily. Their Highland dress wardrobe will
be very extensive, as they tend to wear the kilt often in both casual and
formal settings, and not necessarily within a Scottish cultural context.
People
in this latter category are much less inclined to have a rigorist attitude
towards the kilt. They likely have several kilts, in many different tartans,
not all of which relate directly to their heritage. They are not as concerned
with doing things “properly” (according to the purists) as they are with doing
things reasonably. Common sense is the order of the day. They do not scoff
at wearing the kilt with sandals in the summer time, or with a heavy coat in
the winter (even if it is not a “proper kilt cut”).
Of
course, as I said at the opening, these are generalizations and many kilt
wearers will fall into more than one category. For instance, the Neo-Jacobite
style that I described in last month’s column tends to appeal to those who
wear the kilt as heritage clothing, but who think of it more as a costume. I
know several people who wear the kilt primarily as clothing, but who also
happen to belong to a pipe band or dance group that requires them to wear the
kilt as a uniform. Their attitude towards wearing the kilt will be different
depending on whether they are “in uniform” or not.
Why
outline these categories, then? It is commonplace for some kilt wearers to
look down upon those who don’t necessarily share their point of view when it
comes to Highland dress. It is good to remember that not all of us wear the
kilt for the same reasons. A gentleman who wears the kilt only when he takes
his wife to the opera is going to have a different attitude towards the kilt
than the man who wears his to hike in. We shouldn’t expect otherwise.
