Scottish outlook on kilted Americans?

[Fortiter Et Recte]

I am curious to how folks from Scotland perceive kilt wearing Americans? My family line on my fathers side moved to America in the late 1700's and the late 1800's from Scotland, Ireland and Nova Scotia. My mothers line from Switzerland, Germany and England in the 1800's. Do Scots look down on someone like me that wears a Kilt for occasions and is not 100% Scottish and/or not born and raised in the UK?

[cessna152towser]

There is a saying here in Scotland that a kilt is a garment worn by Scots only while in North America and only worn by North Americans in Scotland.
Not strictly true, you will see plenty of Scots wearing kilts at weekends when there are weddings and sporting fixtures taking place, but during the working day a kilt stands out from the crowd and the wearer is often assumed to be an American visitor. I can say this from first hand experience as a Scot who frequently wears a kilt here in Scotland.
To answer your question, no we certainly don't look down on North Americans or any other non-Scots wearing the kilt. On the contrary, almost all Scots are proud to see their culture being celebrated, whether as part of the vistor's personal heritage or whether the visitor simply likes Scotland.

[Jock Scot]

If you look through my old Threads you will see what SOME Scots think in "Food for thought" and "Food for thought 2(F4T2)". Not necessarily a general opinion in Scotland and certainly not singling Americans out in particular, but a prevailing opinion of some nonetheless.

[Domehead]

Cessna152towser & Jock Scot,
Having read many of your opinions on this matter, I do have a couple of questions. Feel free not to have an answer. It's more curiosity.
Scotland's Higher Education speaks for itself, be it Edinburgh or Glasgow Universities during the Enlightenment; the legacies of legendary moderates like William Robertson or conservative "practical" thinkers like Lord Kames. Considering this learned history, I'd think many Scotsmen would at least be familiar with Sir Walter Scott's romantic notion of National Dress.

Jock Scot's made his feelings well known about being kilted. I believe he'd be fine with any Scotsman choosing smart Daywear for an early meal with their lady friend, as it were. Why isn't a variant on Daywear chosen more often for attending a Play or Musical in any town or city? Why don't more University Professors tend their classes in Daywear when it fancies them? Why don't parishioners attend services in Daywear more often, other than Weddings?

I can'nae imagine Cessna152towser would be sore under any of these scenarios. In fact, one might feel that regular "kilting" under usual circumstance (those that call for coat and tie) would make the wearing of highland attire less an overt act and more, dare I say, "normal".

None of my questions are intended as a judgement. Please do'nae be offended. They are actual questions.

[Jock Scot]

I think I can answer your question "Why". The answer is, very broadly speaking, that kilt-wearers from all over the world---including Scotland these days-----do not have the kilt wearing background thus they are lacking the knowledge of what is required and in consequence lack the confidence to make their kilt attire decisions correctly.

[Domehead]

That makes sense. That would explain why the "Wedding" scenario plays out...an homage to historic culture, but the nuance of appropriateness is handled by the Kilt Hire.
In effect, Daywear is treated much the same as hooped skirts (gowns). Once, they were the only evening attire for a Victorian woman. Now they are rarely seen, and only when on a gown (Bridal?) of that style - for formal occasions. Thanks for your thoughts.

[OC Richard]

There is a saying here in Scotland that a kilt is a garment worn by Scots only while in North America and only worn by North Americans in Scotland.

Ha! That's brilliant!

Things like that are why I didn't, for a moment, consider bringing a kilt when I've travelled in Scotland. That, and all that stuff takes up valuable suitcase space. (I'm a notoriously "light packer" when I travel, two weeks' worth of clothes in a single small carryon is how I go.)

And on the flipside, yes, Scots here tend to "fly the flag" a bit. There's a Scottish pastor here who often preaches in kilts. Not sure if he would do so back home.

My exception is that when our Pipe Band goes to Scotland to compete, obviously we need to bring our band uniform, but none of us wear it at any time other than when the band is competing or performing.

About Scots doing "American" things such as performing Country music, I'll admit I was quite taken aback, during by first trip to Scotland in 1986, when my wife and I, in Oban, went to a bar upstairs to see a local group perform. They had a fiddle, accordion, and keyboard and played lovely Scottish reels, strathspeys, and jigs. BUT when the young lady keyboardist sang Scottish songs she did so in a bizarre fake Southern US accent! We shook our heads thinking "why oh why?"

That kind of thing has been around a long time. People don't even pay attention to it, but The Beatles for example sung many of their songs in a mild fake Southern US accent rather than their own. Being raised in a community where everyone spoke in broad Appalachian accents, I have a radar that goes off whenever "outsiders" do fake accents.

About "Country Roads", something of a Sacred Anthem in my native West Virginia, I was talking to an older couple one day from rural Ireland who said that that song is strongly sentimental to them. Oh the power of music to transcend time and place!

[CMcG]

I am curious to how folks from Scotland perceive kilt wearing Americans?
<snip>
Do Scots look down on someone like me that wears a Kilt for occasions and is not 100% Scottish and/or not born and raised in the UK?

As this thread has already shown, different Scots look at this in different ways.

There are Scots who are pro-kilt and would like to see more kilt wearing, in the broadest terms. For some, this is pride in their national attire, for others it is business. The Highland attire industry in Scotland certainly makes good money off kilting-up the Americans (and Canadians, Australians, etc)...

Other Scots do look askance at non-Scots wearing the kilt. I'm still trying to wrap my head around this, but I've encountered at least three different positions held on this one. First and strangest to me is the "dog in the manger" attitude, where Scots who might only rent a kilt once in a blue moon, don't want non-Scots wearing the kilt at all i.e. like the proverbial dog, they don't want others to enjoy/use something that they themselves have little use for

Second, there is the nationalist position, that holds the kilt to be national attire, which should only be worn by Scots (regardless of their ethnic ground). This one puzzles me because Scotland is not actually a sovereign nation, but rather is part of the United Kingdom, ergo the kilt is a regional attire within the UK as a nation. Nonetheless, Scots who hold this position see themselves as having a nation, so I try to understand their conception, rather than the political situation. A further narrowed take on this that the kilt is Highland attire and should only be worn in Scotland, north of Perth, by people who are residents of that area and probably ethnically Highland-Scottish.

Third is the protective feeling that the kilt should be worn with respect. These Scots see the kilt as a symbol of identity and don't take kindly to people, Americans or otherwise, wearing it as a costume or a joke. Furthermore, they don't like seeing people wearing the kilt badly, and would like people to look smart and appropriate to the event. This protective stance could extend to consternation over utility kilts, non-wool tartan kilts, etc.

Finally, there are Scots who really don't give a fig, as in they don't wear the kilt and couldn't care less if other people do or not.

Scots are people and, as such, have their own individual takes on this, or any other, matter. I think it is therefore impossible to say how Scots, as a whole, perceive kilt-wearing Americans. The short list of positions I just gave is incomplete and there is also the possibility of overlap between different attitudes. To complicate the other side, Americans (or other non-Scots) wearing the kilt are a heterogeneous bunch, with many different approaches, and there is also the issues of context and location that could bring out different reactions based on which Scot is perceiving which kilted American in which place.

To go one step further, even the category "Scot" is contestable as the term has ethnic, cultural, social, and political implications. Imagine a group of lads getting together for bit of kilted pubbing in Inverness: a 1st generation Invernesser (is that the right term?), who came over from Pakistan in his teens and now holds only a UK passport; a native Gaelic-speaker from Cape Breton, Nova Scotia, whose family has been in Canada for generations, but is ethnically and culturally still very Gaelic; and a professor of Scottish history, who was born and raised in Oban of English, Norman, and Viking stock, but now lives in the USA and has only an American passport. Who is the Scot?

[Phil]

Second, there is the nationalist position, that holds the kilt to be national attire, which should only be worn by Scots (regardless of their ethnic ground). This one puzzles me because Scotland is not actually a sovereign nation, but rather is part of the United Kingdom, ergo the kilt is a regional attire within the UK as a nation.

So does the same logic mean that Canada, for instance, is a region of the United Kingdom? I mean it shares a sovereign, a system of law and government and no doubt much else. Casting one's mind back to 1607, you could even say that England became a region of Scotland when its sovereign was crowned king of England as well as Scotland. Scotland was and is to this day a separate nation in its own right, with its own distinctive system of laws, education, religion, language, customs, music etc. and to infer otherwise is to completely misunderstand the unique nature of the United Kingdom.
As to Scots and kilt-wearing, well there are indeed many who couldn't care less, who look on it as an anachronism and an affront to a nation that aspires to be a modern society, not some "Brigadoonish" backwater. What you cannot deny, however, is that the kilt is a Scottish symbol and one which so many others covet and aspire to. If this causes you problems, perhaps because it is something you will never genuinely achieve yourself, then so be it. It is not a reason, however, for you to try to diminish Scotland and the Scots.

[mookien]

So does the same logic mean that Canada, for instance, is a region of the United Kingdom? ...

... What you cannot deny, however, is that the kilt is a Scottish symbol and one which so many others covet and aspire to. If this causes you problems, perhaps because it is something you will never genuinely achieve yourself, then so be it. It is not a reason, however, for you to try to diminish Scotland and the Scots.

Phil: Canada is a distinct country from the UK, whereas Scotland is part and parcel of the UK. So, I did not take Colin's comment as applicable to Canada.

By "you" in your comment, I'm reading "any generic unidentified person", not Colin per se. I didn't take any of his descriptions as how he personally feels about the subject. He may feel that way, or he may not. I read his excellent post as a taxonomy of feelings he has identified/encountered. While, perhaps not collectively exhaustive, his descriptions do cover a lot of territory.

John