The Kilt's use in Irish Nationalism

[CMcG]

CMDcg I also appreciate you comments.

I assume you meant me... sláinte!

I always felt that the Scottish and Irish diaspora have their own culture and traditions, which may have some roots in the original countries their ancestors may have come from.
But in my experience, a lot of them have little interest in the actual customs of modern day Scotland or Ireland. Many would prefer to hold on to their own idea of the culture, whether right or wrong. And fair play to them, a lot of ther families have been living somewhere else for entries now, so it is only natural tat they have developed their own traditions and distanced themselves from the natives of Scotland and Ireland.

Some people have more immediate connections or struggle harder to reconnect to the homeland than others and will try to follow the current customs of the old country. After a longer separation though, you're right that diasporas tend to go in one of two directions: preserving things that the native land has discarded or developing their own traditions that evolve in relation to their new location. Kilt wearing can be viewed as an example of the former, while St. Pat's parades and drinking would be the latter.

As another, non-kilt example, people still practice bataireacht in Canada, which has apparently long-since ceased in Ireland. My teacher is Glen Doyle, whose family brought their style over to Newfoundland in the 1800s. He is the first in his line to teach outside the family and there has actually been some interest from folks in Ireland to bring Irish stick-fighting back over.

Despite the differences between those at home and abroad, the Irish President's St. Pat's message is wonderfully inclusive of Irishness in all its manifestations. He specifically includes the diaspora and doesn't mention their confounding propensity for kilt wearing
http://www.president.ie/index.php?se...=1082&lang=eng

As for kilts, I just read John Hart's nicely balanced statement on the subject. He is the proprietor of Keltoi, which is one of our sponsors and is also a Canadian who was born in Ireland:
http://www.gaelicclothing.com/irishkilts.htm