Maybe the definition should be something like 'Tartan is a fabric made by weaving where the single coloured yarns are usually arranged in stripes in both weft and warp threads in such a way that they create a usually symetrical pattern of stripes and squares, dividing and intersecting in a regular squared manner, or a similar fabric which is so termed by common usage'

Nothing which is subject to the whims of chance and error can be set in stone, and it is most likely the errors which drive the creative weaver.

The rhythms of the tartan colours are very like the knitted patterns from the North - both the textured or 'damask' patterns and the Fairisle ones - and some from the Nordic countries.

The stars and flowers are symetrical and square, and although striped in only one direction there does seem to be something fundamentally similar in their designs. There are several patterns which are considered to be related by one being an error in the other - particularly Shetland lace which is so full of interconnecting errors that it is difficult to find a correct description of a particular lace anywhere - particularly as the names change too as several knitters over the years might have made the same error and 'Aunt Fiona's shawl pattern' is also 'Cat's Paw' and 'Cara's Veil' - which I have just made up but that is how it works.