Beaton Personal tartan

[rtc872]

I just have a quick follow up question. Does the "(personal)" mean that I cannot use this tartan?

[M. A. C. Newsome]

I just have a quick follow up question. Does the "(personal)" mean that I cannot use this tartan?

Sometimes yes and sometimes no. It depends on whether the tartan has any copyright restrictiosn on it.

What "personal" means in the case of most of these tartans is that it is a tartan designed by/for an individual of that name and doesn't have any official recognition by a clan chief or some other authorizing agent (like a town council for a town tartan, or a CEO for a corporate tartan).

If I wanted to design a tartan and call it "Newsome" I'd of course be free to do so, but it wouldn't be the Newsome tartan because I don't have the authority to make that kind of decision on behalf of all Newsomes everywhere. The chief of Clan Donald, however, does have the authority to say what is and is not an official tartan for the MacDonalds.