Quote Originally Posted by Jimmy Carbomb
I want to wear a kilt but there doesn’t seem to be a tartan for my surname.

There are probably still some purists around who say that you can only wear a clan tartan if you have the clan’s name as a surname. If you have some Scottish heritage and want to celebrate it by wearing the kilt then there’s nothing to stop you. Look at the surnames of your grandparents and then your great grandparents on both sides of the family and see if any of them give you a genuine link to a tartan, either by being a clan name or a sept of a clan. If you come up with nothing then you can always fall back on what we call an "Area Tartan". This is one that has been designated as being suitable for people from a particular area - a city or locality in Scotland. Some area tartans are 18th century and some are 21st century!
If you don’t fancy that idea then, then there are quite a few general tartans that can be worn by anyone plus a growing number of ‘Fashion’ tartans.

At the end of the day you can actually wear any clan tartan that you like even if you don’t have a connection, but most people like to feel their use of a tartan is 'genetically' justified - even if it was only that their Great Granny was frightened by a MacDonald!

From The Authority
Hmmmm...I've been known to eat at McDonald's once in awhile. Does that count?