Interesting email from an Irish fellow about Irish kilts.

[triolamj]

This thread has only touched on half of the story:

In the 1890's the leaders of the Irish political party Sinn Fein of Irish Republican Army fame decided that to speed up Ireland's separation from Britain that they needed to encourage the growth of a distinctly Irish culture. Unfortunately, like lowland Scotland, Irish cultural life was pretty much the same as English cultural life. Sinn Fein established the Gaelic Athletic Association and revived hurling, Irish football, and the Tailllteann Games. They sponsored Irish step-dancing, recitations in Gaelic, and musical competitions along with the Games. They decided on a national dress other than tweed caps or Kilkenny hats and grandad shirts, and wrongly looked to their fellow "Gaels" in the Scottish Highlands rather than the ancient leine and brat. Kilts, even now, are traditional for male Irish step-dancers. Since Irish pipers were really copying the Scottish/English military tradition, Irish pipers wore kilts when playing or competing. According to accounts I've read and photographs I've seen, Irish pipers in 1900s London competed on a regular basis and wore kilts of hodden, a solid color wool tweed, usually a medium grey. Nowadays, the pipers of the Royal Irish Regiment wear solid saffron kilts with a bottle green tunic and caubeen. The Army of the Irish Republic wear solid green kilts and caubeens. The often No. 1 pipe band in the world, Field Marshal Montgomery of Northern Ireland wear traditional tartan kilts with black Argylls and glengarries. NYPD's bagpipers are actually members of an Irish "union", the Emerald Society and wear solid navy kilts with gold piping. The FDNY pipers are also Emerald Society and wear tartan kilts.

Ironically, while the Irish and kilts don't go back a long way, the Irish and tartan do. The oldest known tartan in existance is the Clodagh tartan, a piece of which was used to stuff the neck of clay jar of rubbish found buried near Clodagh in Ireland. Various sources state that weaving tartan wool cloth was a major Irish industry with most, if not all of it destined and especially designed for the Scottish market. Only about 5 Irish families, all with Scottish roots, have their own tartans like Tara Murphy. Other Scots-Irish families can lay claim to clan tartans or Scottish district tartans. The Irish county and province tartans are not District Tartans in the strictest sence, but are more Trade Tartans meant to appeal to the buyer, though most are godawful ugly. Texas Bluebonnet is a district tartan because it was officially adopted by the State of Texas. Houston Bluebonnet was a mistake made by the mill but the Houston Fire Dept. Pipes & Drums bought it anyway. See also McLennium, Braveheart, Flower of Scotland, Scottish Heritage, ad infinitum.

On Irish-American culture vs. Irish culture:

I'm 1/2 Sicilian, 3/8ths Irish, and 1/8th Danish raised in central Oklahoma by a Chicago mom and a Texas dad, both Catholic, neither of whom really taught us anything about Italian or Irish culture, let alone Danish. We were just an American family, eating spaghetti and meatballs occasionally and putting up St. Patrick's Day decorations at parochial school. Once I became involved with the Highland Games, I decided to have a kilt made from material I had bought years before (a different story), but I bought as many Irish accessories as I could: plaid brooch, kilt pin, sgian dhub, waist plate, belts and buckles, and green flashes. Even though my Irish roots are still not very clear, I decided to buy a kilt in an Irish tartan and chose Munster Province because of it's beautiful colors, pattern, and symbolism and to cover my possible bases (Barry of Co. Cork, McMahon of W. Clare, and O'Hooley). If I could I'd buy a new Argyll and replace all the Scottish buttons with round Irish harp ones. I wear the kilt as a member of the Games and I wear an Irish kilt by preference. As a member of the local Irish American Heritage Association, I see the Highland Games as a substitute for the long-gone St Patrick's Day festivals and the Tailltean Games of ancient days. I've become so steeped in the lore of kilts and regalia, that I have to correct all kinds of misconceptions Scots have about Scottish history and traditions which is weird. I have also heard some of the cultural adjustments that people make when they emigrate from America to Ireland, my sister in particular who's now back in the US.

On people who take advantage of Plastic Paddies:

A shining example is Molly's Pub Downtown, formerly Slainte: Built in Ireland, formerly owned by Persians, and the most comfortable, best pub I've ever been in, with a friendly bartender from Ireland who closely resembled Michael Flatley. Another is the wily Ely O'Carroll of Clan Cian and his henchman, McCarthy Mhor, on the Standing Council of IRISH Chiefs who sold fake titles and a beautiful but not authentic tartan to the unwary American cousin.

For the Scots among us and kilt afficianados:

If you have a copy of Scotty Thompson's "So You're Going To Wear The Kilt", you absolutely have to have a copy of Jan-Andrew Hamilton's "The Emperor's New Kilt" just for the chapters on King George III's kilt and William Wallace's alter ego.

Slainte from the "token" Irishman on the Highland Games!

[BEEDEE]

True, true. But remember he is not from Éire, he is from Northern Ireland.

Let's not forget Northern Ireland is a divided country, and the writer did not tell which side of the divide he's from. Knowing that might put a different picture on his rant.

Brian

[davedove]

If I could I'd buy a new Argyll and replace all the Scottish buttons with round Irish harp ones.

Just a quick off topic note. Instead of doing all that, you could just buy a Brian Boru jacket. It's cut very much like the Prince Charlie, but has Irish buttons.

Now that I think about it, there is also the Irish Kilkenny jacket, which is the equivalent to the Argyle.

I know the Scotweb store (top of the page) has these, and I have seen them elsewhere as well.

[macwilkin]

Fellas -- this thread is almost a year old.

T.

[Jock Scot]

I have to admit that I have no idea what the historical truths are when it comes to the Irish and their kilts. No doubt, to some, that truth really matters, to others not one bit, but if the Irish want to wear the kilt than that is fine by me, if their ancestors wore the kilt then thats fine by me too. What is not fine by me, is people being rude or unkind, particularly if they are a guest in someone else's home or country.

[Chase]

Well, The irony of him bashing Irish Americans whilst staying in Ohio is not lost on me, either. Presumably he may himself become an Irish-American one day, or least some of his host relatives already are!

I was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and that's all I care about...I'm not going to say it sucks to not have a 100% background as anything, or to not know your own heritage, but I'm of the mindset, that we're all related one way or another...As a medic, I haven't run across anyone with green blood, yet.

I must say that I'm feeling compelled to wear a kilt to every Irish Pub in Ohio and the first S.O.B. with an Irish accent that calls me plastic anything is gonna get his ears boxed.

Chase

[BEEDEE]

Fellas -- this thread is almost a year old.

T.

Well I read through the whole thread and didn't look at the date! My bad.

Brian

[Chase]

Me too...LOL...I was trying to take a lesson from the Poll on reading all posts...Now I'm all paranoid.

[hospitaller]

The thread may be a year old, but somehow it made it back, and those of us who weren't around originally may have something to say, specially when this topic doesn't really have an expiration date.

This topic is fairly dear to me because well, I am Chilean national, of Scottish-German-Spaniard descent, living in the US, trying to become a US Citizen, willing to change my name to better reflect my Scottish lineage and trying to fit in at the same time.

When I first arrived to the US in 1999, I spent the better part of my first 2 years here learning to adapt, learning about the traditions, customs, even the 'slang' in order to display my pride of being here and my willingness to 'become an american'.

Soon after 9/11 I tried to enlist in the USMC but at the time they would not take me because well...I was not a US citizen and I was 1 year over their age limit (as of since they allow non citizens to join and I think they have upped the age requirements by the time they did I was still older than it).

My point is, I was doing everything I could to 'blend in/fit in' and to honestly, do what I thought was right for this new country I chose to live in and become a contributing member of.

But in the process, the inevitable encounters with people like the original emailer of this post took place, and I've been called everything from a poser, or made fun because in my attempt to use a slang term I would pronounce it incorrectly, or my accent shows, or my political views are not the 'expected' thus I should 'go back to my country', etc.

And the real irony of my situation is, I know more American History than the average natural born US citizen walking on the street, I am more aware of my duties and civil society than your average natural born citizen, etc.

I will always have the other parts of my ancestry and country of birth with me, but the fact that I chose to become part of another country and embrace its culture (even if it is an amalgam of other countries cultures) is of value.

Likewise, if US citizens want to embrace their Irish ancestry, even if their accent is wrong, or even if they only do it once a year for St. Patrick's Day...as someone said above, shouldnt that be celebrated and appreciated instead of laughed at or be called 'plastic'?

Anyway, I'm cutting this one short as I'm already stretching it....

[jbaker42j]

At first glance this post and the original email was pretty discouraging. I thought it was ok to be proud of your heritage, even if it is from a few different origins. My family is Irish, English, Welsh, and Scottish but I am above all American. And all of these cultures melting together is very American.

Part of being proud of being American means being proud of what it means to be American and proud of where we came from. If I want to wear a Scottish Tartan kilt and play the pipes, or go to Saint Patrick's Day in Savannah and drink green beer, or go Downtown in Hometown USA and celebrate the 4th of July does that make me plastic. I think that actually makes me pretty real. I have the freedom to do these things and I'd like to see someone stop me. (I have a fire ax and a halligan tool in reach at most times) Ha!

I'm a man that carries the name Baker, given to me by my father and my grandfathers. They were hard working Soldiers, Policemen, and Firefighters. I'm a Scottish Irish English Welsh American and a sad man working in a pub in Ohio can't take that away from me.

Wow, I think I just went on a rant, forgive me but I'm feelin better already.