Census poll: What is your cultural / historical connection to the kilt?

[BoldHighlander]

Although this is partly moot, not got the confidence up (or the kilt yet) to wear my partner's tartan when I'm on my own even though I've probably got more direct 'familial' (??) right to wear it than most rather than some distant great-great-great etc.

I wasn't aware that any such 'right' to wear any certain clan/family tartan existed -- direct 'familial' or some distant great-great-great etc. or otherwise?

[Mike_Oettle]

While the word Hun drew a bit of flak earlier in this thread, it ought to be pointed out that there is little or no connection between the Huns (who were basically Mongolian) and the Germans.
British propaganda labelled the Germans as Huns during the First World War because of the supposed brutality of German troops. However, east of the Rhine it was seen as a compliment, and many Germans referred to themselves during that war as Hunnen.
Hungary is another country where the Huns are admired. But while the Huns settled in that region about 1700 years ago, and probably left DNA traces in the population, the Hungarians are descended from the Magyar tribes (distantly related to the Finns and Estonians) that invaded Europe in the Middle Ages and raided widely before settling down as a Christian nation.
I am actually quite proud of my German ancestry. Like my French Huguenot ancestors, my German great-grandfather came to South Africa because of his Christian faith. And my father, while also being proud of his German ancestry, volunteered as early as he could to fight against nazi Germany.
Regards,
Mike

[creagdhubh]

My mother is a Gow, with her mother's maiden name of Cattanach, in which the latter is a Clan Chattan surname and is associated with the Clan Macpherson. The surname of Gow is principally associated with the Clan Chattan Confederation of Clans - VERY ironic! However, it doesn't stop there. My father is a Macpherson, with his mother's maiden name of MacKenzie, and naturally, the Clan Macpherson is a sept of the Clan Chattan, and leading members of the confederacy.

It's amazing to contemplate the fact that when my parents were married, had children (my sisters and I), they had no idea that their surnames, and the surnames of their immediate family, were all connected with the Clan Chattan and the Clan Macpherson - my parents were unaware of this until I began my own genealogical research. The only immediate and quite obvious exception is my grandmother's maiden name of MacKenzie, which is a completely different clan in its own right; hailing from Kintail and Ross-shire in the North of Scotland.

With all of these wonderfuly Scottish surnames, specifically the Highland names of Cattanach, Macpherson, and MacKenzie, one would think I have kilts in all of their tartans - this isn't the case. My father's direct line are Macphersons, therefore, I wear the Macpherson tartan. I am a life-long member of the Clan Macpherson; attend Clan Macpherson gatherings, rallies, ceilidhs, annual general meetings, and other social events, and I follow my Chief, Sir William Alan Macpherson of Cluny and Blairgowrie, TD.

I would simply go crazy, and spend entirely too much money (more than I already have, and continue to do, presently) on Highland attire featuring tartans of the Gow (Anglicised as, 'Smith') family and Clan MacKenzie - quite handsome tartans I mgiht add. I think I shall stick with my Macpherson and Chattan setts!

Beannach'd libh,

[creagdhubh]

I wasn't aware that any such 'right' to wear any certain clan/family tartan existed -- direct 'familial' or some distant great-great-great etc. or otherwise?

Most of us are indeed aware (this topic has been thoroughly discussed on XMTS), that this 'right to wear' a particular tartan is complete rubbish. There are only restricted tartans - such as that of a clan chief and his immediate family, and of course, the Balmoral tartan, restricted for use by the Royal Family.

Cheers,

[cryerelizabeth]

On my mothers side of the family I have a great great grandfather by the name of John Cunningham, who migrated over her from Scottland . On my dad's side, he's from Texas, and he says he has like 1% native american, and the rest is cajun

[Bugbear]

Most of us are indeed aware (this topic has been thoroughly discussed on XMTS), that this 'right to wear' a particular tartan is complete rubbish. There are only restricted tartans - such as that of a clan chief and his immediate family, and of course, the Balmoral tartan, restricted for use by the Royal Family.

Cheers,

A while back, CDNSushi objected to me using the term "right" in relation to ethnic clothing, and he's correct, the word "right" is too strong of a word. There are traditions and customs, however, and both kilts and tartan are associated with Scots world wide. Not sure what term to use in place of "right" for those who are Scottish, or can trace their ancestry to Scotland, and don the kilt in a tartan as a consequence.

[Kilted Karl]

I am actually quite proud of my German ancestry. Like my French Huguenot ancestors, my German great-grandfather came to South Africa because of his Christian faith. And my father, while also being proud of his German ancestry, volunteered as early as he could to fight against nazi Germany.
Regards,
Mike

Aye! for your German and Huguenot ancestry!

would your Huguenot ancestors be connected to the Voortrekkers? I know some Huguenots were with them in Africa.

Your Obedient Servant,

Karl

[BoldHighlander]

Most of us are indeed aware (this topic has been thoroughly discussed on XMTS), that this 'right to wear' a particular tartan is complete rubbish. There are only restricted tartans - such as that of a clan chief and his immediate family, and of course, the Balmoral tartan, restricted for use by the Royal Family.

Cheers,

Quite right Kyle, I knew the answer (just as you so correctly wrote in your reply).
Though I debated posting the question (as you so rightly stated the topic has been thoroughly discussed before) in the end I couldn't let this whole fallacy of a "right" pass without exposing it to the light of day.

Thank you again my friend.

[Mike_Oettle]

Hi, Karl – while I have not so far established any direct connection to particular Voortrekkers, my paternal grandmother and my maternal great-grandmother were both of Huguenot descent, and had family who were involved in the Great Trek.
The Trekker leader Piet Retief (whose ancestral surname was Retif) was a cousin to contemporary ancestors of mine on both sides.
Both Retief and my ancestor Jacobus Nicolaas Boshoff wrote manifestoes justifying the Great Trek which were published in the newspaper The Graham’s Town Journal.
But Boshoff (his ancestral surname was Bossau; he was later second president of the Oranje Vrij Staat) was an Agtertrekker, rather than a Voortrekker.
Many kinsmen and -women of mine either served in the Boer commandos or were interned in concentration camps. But my great-grandmother, being the wife of a Scot, was not interned.
Regards,
Mike

[Johnny Selkie]

Being a true Norwegian viking I have no direct Scottish links that I know of, but my paternal lines comes from the lands of Ragnvald Earl of Moeri, known today as the county of Moere og Romsdalen in Western Norway. My surname is at least 400 years (first recorded in a early 17th century tax report) and is connected to a certain place in Moere, Western Norway thats on UNESCOs world heritage list and is also the name of an old parish on Mainland, Orkney.

I can trace my familly history back to a Ragnvald Jarl (Ragnvald Jarl=Rognvald Earl) mentioned in a well known (but somewhat dubious) Norwegian document from the 17th century which is supposed to be written in the 14th century. I'm also a descendant of a nobleman in the 15th century from the island of Vigra (also in Moere and Romsdalen) situated about 257 miles from the coast of the island of Unst, Shetland through another document.

As Shetland and Orkney belonged to Norway until ca 1468 and the fact that Isabella Heiress of Caithness (a descendant or the Norse earls of Orkney) married into the Sinclair familly I feel connected enough to wear tartan (the Sinclair hunting sett and Caithness District) without having any Scottish ancestry.