Food For Thought Two(F4T2)

[Sir William]

----so wearing your kilt wherever in the world you may be, with respect, would be a super compliment to Scotland.

AA and others, wear your kilt in Scotland! You are a free man to choose what you wear and Scotland is fortunate enough to have the freedom to allow people to choose. You and others on this website have the cumption to be sensitive to local opinion and I have no doubts that local opinion has the sense(they have for the last umpteen decades anyway)to indulge other people's views. Hospitality does after all run very deep in Scots culture.

The kilt is probably the most single positive advertisement for Scotland. People worldwide instantly think of Scotland when they see a kilt, more so than Scotch, tartan, tweed, shortbread, haggis, basket-hilted broadswords, Nessie, and even the bagpipes.

For the most part many non-Scots (born or raised) who wear a kilt are showing their respect, admiration, heritage, and pride in Scotland. What greater compliment can there be? Perhaps the native Scots should be encouraged to wear their kilt more often, both in and outwith Scotland, which can only reinforce that positive perspective of Scotland.

I will certainly continue to wear a kilt when I visit Scotland. My experience has generally, been very positive. Yes, I'm immediately identified as a tourist, but I've also received compliments (but never an insult) from many Scots which tells me they are proud of the kilt and like seeing it worn (and that I'm probably wearing it properly and respectfully).

[ForresterModern]

Jeff, for goodness sake get a move on, my whisky supply is running low!

Dear friend Jock, I understood you to have a mountainous cache of Talisker tucked away that would tide you through the next world war. If I am wrong then I will quickly organize a "rescue and resupply" mission at once, including of course myself in the return to personally "oversee" the operation properly completed. And repeated, as often as is necessary. Good God, man, a highlander without his dram, never in my lifetime. I doubt that I would be able to bring my own stocks so I would have to fill the "red cross" package with locally acquired high quality native stocks, perhaps even a cask or two (you can never have too many you know), and maybe a few extra to bring home to fill my cellar as well. Oh, a whisky rescue it shall be as my next excuse to cross the pond, kilts, tweed and "appropriate" headgear in tow.

I agree with Sir William that with the education I have recieved and absorbed here I will no doubt return to Scotland kilted for the entire trip, as I did for the golf oddyssey of 2010, albeit a might better turned out with more tweed and sans golf clubs this time. Although he and I may be readily recognized as outlanders, foreign poseurs, for wearing the kilt in all the wrong places and at all the wrong times, I hope we would be taken in as friends of the kilt and of Scotland for our honest attempt at appropriate and respectful and honorable wearing of what quite obviously (from F4T1 and F4T2 data) is seen as an important item of very personal self recognized Highland and Scotland pride. I can only hope to do them proud, as I hope I have thus far in my previous albeit further down the learning curve trips of 2008 and 2010, a total of 21 days with 20 of them kilted (not counting the "unkilting" needed to play that Royal Tookus, uhhh Troon, golf course in 2010).

jeff

[Brett]

"so wearing your kilt wherever in the world you may be, with respect, would be a super compliment to Scotland."


As someone who just recently received my first kilt and accessories, I will make sure to keep this in the forfront of my intention anytime I have the opportunity to wear the kilt.

Thanks again

[John McQuillen]

A very interesting survey thanks Jock

In a future survey I would be most interested in finding out what the same people think defines a Scot or a Highlander. These days with so much freedom of movement it becomes difficult to define in a meaningful way

For example, if someone born in Scotland of a Scottish family moves to England at a young age do they remain a Scot? If so, how does that apply should they move to the States instead? And how is that affected down the generations. In reverse, how is the person regarded who was born in England of an English family but moves to Scotland at an early age?

I know what I believe but what do others think?

Jock's post and your question raises some interesting points. As a psychologist I'd suggest that identity depends on the individual and their point of view but belonging to a culture or community also requires acceptance by said community. I'd be interested to see a broader survey....

For my part, I live in Australia and have only recently set up my own set of highland dress, because in more recent years I joined my local clan association and eventually decided to wear the appropriate attire - now I get asked to wear it to friend's weddings and formal events.

I have scots (and irish) heritage on both sides of the family and many family members have worn tartan all their lives, are they going to stop wearing it cause they moved country - no. Ultimately for me tartan is about family, I think of family especially those no longer with us when I put on my kilt, its a part of who I am and it kind of found me regardless of where I lived through family influence. I still have family in the highlands and lowlands of scotland, they are encouraging me to wear it and even have offered to go shopping for me locally when needed.

Having said all that, I only wear it for certain occasions such as clan association events, formal events, weddings etc....

Whats the old saying? home is where the heart is......

As a funny aside, at the one wedding (out of 7 in 2011.....) I decided not to wear a kilt, as I knew I'd be the only person in a kilt and didn't wish to offend, I actually ended up disappointing the bride who was looking forward to a hug with her kilted friend...... you can't please everyone!

[Jock Scot]

Jock's post and your question raises some interesting points. As a psychologist I'd suggest that identity depends on the individual and their point of view but belonging to a culture or community also requires acceptance by said community. I'd be interested to see a broader survey....

A broader survey? Count me out!

[Joshua]

Dear friend Jock, I understood you to have a mountainous cache of Talisker tucked away that would tide you through the next world war. If I am wrong then I will quickly organize a "rescue and resupply" mission at once, including of course myself in the return to personally "oversee" the operation properly completed.

jeff

Must remember that upon my own trip to Scotland, I bring a bottle of American Bourbon to open Jock's palate and worldview. Now, what to bring?

[Tartan Tess]

For the younger crowd here in the USA (not the family ties Scottish heritage type) the kilt is a form of either a girl magnet or opinion.
I would be interested in the same poll from the US kilt wearers.

[Phil]

Any survey will probably throw up responses according to the questions asked, how the questions are posed and the demographic of the population surveyed. In other words leading questions to a particular sector of the population will provide the answers required.
Of course you will always get a few 'bolshies' who will do anything to slew the answers but by and large, if the questions are what you expect to receive the answers you expect then that is what will happen. People generally tend to follow the herd, understand the innuendo, and respond accordingly.
An interesting exercise, nevertheless, and thanks Jock for your efforts.

[Woodsheal]

Well it's clear from this and the "diaspora" thread, that a certain percentage (of unknown size) of native-born Scots resent, frown upon, or at best grudgingly tolerate the wearing of the kilt by "outlanders."
Taking this mindset to its logical extent, Highlanders should resent the wearing of their native garb by Lowland and Border-region Scots. It is, after all, "Highland Dress" and for centuries leading up to the early 1800s, the latter two groups disliked and mistrusted the wild Highlanders with their strange tongue and outlandish clothing - and none would have been caught dead in a kilt!
Since the mid-1800s, as we all know, the Highlanders' distinctive garb has been co-opted by these same Scots who previously despised it - and we are now witness to Lindsays, Scotts, Bruces, Hamiltons, Cummings, Armstrongs, and so forth strutting about in kilts in their "clan" tartans, when these folks are no more members of Highland clans than my maternal ancestors from Sardinia are!
My point: a unique dress that evolved in a limited space and time - the Scottish Highlands - has long since spread well beyond those narrow confines, travelling by leaps and bounds to many other locations around the world, clung to mostly by those of Scottish descent, but not exclusively. The horse has left the barn! Kilts - like bluejeans - are global, and native-born Scots should accept the fact....

[Spartan Tartan]

For the younger crowd here in the USA (not the family ties Scottish heritage type) the kilt is a form of either a girl magnet or opinion.
I would be interested in the same poll from the US kilt wearers.

Is it within the forum rules (with Jock's permisson of course) to do a survey monkey version of the survey questions? We could link to the survey in another thread and compare the results.

Whereas, previous F4T threads were limited in geography, this would give us a chance to survey ourselves at XMTS at least... just a thought????