Have We Won Acceptance of Kilts?

[Garth]

I'm kilted every day and have been for a few years now. My wife and I had to pay a visit to the school principal to enrol our 8 and 6-year-old girls. Instead of wearing a kilt I wore smart denim Levi jeans that the wife had bought me. My eldest daughter's comment was 'Dad, you look funny'.

[derosa]

My congregation expects that I'll wear it about once a month from after Easter till Thanksgiving, I wear a robe the rest of the year which is too hot to wear a kilt under. This Sunday we'll be doing an Easter sunrise and the other churches that participate expect me to wear it. Local fire department has been more surprised the times I haven't then the times I have. Still an out of the ordinary item though.

[Mael Coluim]

Ron, I believe what you experienced is not so much acceptance of kilt wearing, but the affect of COVID-19 life. People are more reclusive and stand offish as a result of lock downs and mask wearing. I want to also compliment on your trim figure. You look great, Ron!

[Jock Scot]

Ron, I believe what you experienced is not so much acceptance of kilt wearing, but the affect of COVID-19 life. People are more reclusive and stand offish as a result of lock downs and mask wearing. I want to also compliment on your trim figure. You look great, Ron!

Its seems to be a generational thing too, Mael. The older generation on the whole......there are exceptions........ understandably seem to take the more cautious approach to Covid.

[Riverkilt]

I thought the Covid too - yet at the overlook itself everyone seemed very social - offering to take photos of others with the other person's camera - groups so everyone could be in their photo...and it was at the overlook where the one lady inquired....she was actually searching for the name of the garment...what a kilt is called. When I told her it was called a kilt she then asked for permission to take a photo of me.

I've been walking this tourist trail for 20 years now and never failed to have questions asked and requests for photos when kilted. This last visit seemed unusual to get just one question.

[kingandrew]

To Steve's point: not being noticed is one form of acceptance, but I will gladly settle for getting a few positive comments here and there.

I live in Southern China. As a tall white guy with a beard, I always attract a lot of notice and photos. I try to be friendly and positive with everyone, since for many of them it will be the only encounter they have had with a foreigner (laowai).

The kilt is obviously unusual here (although you do occasionally see someone in traditional Chinese clothes, just as Richard sees folks in Indian attire in California). The questions I get are pretty much the same ones I would get back in America, although sometimes delivered in simplified English. The locals definitely associate the kilt with Scotland, as I can here people saying "Segulan" as I pass, which is Chinese for "Scotland." But people are generally delighted to see the kilt and I have never received anything but compliments. And yes, Chinese women are just as fascinated with a man in a kilt as are women of other nationalities.

At my school, I typically wear the kilt about once a week. So students and staff now hardly notice it, although I still get the occasional compliment (which is always welcome). So that's pretty close to acceptance.

When I visit Hong Kong, the kilt is much more familiar and seems to garner less attention.

Andrew

[Jock Scot]

I must confess that I have difficulty in distinguishing some Oriental Nations from each other, but we see a lot of Chinese, Japanese and South Koreans here in the UK in general and in Scotland in particular. I find them all quietly respectful, polite and interested in their surroundings. I do sometimes wonder if they go to lectures about their chosen Country before they visit? If time allows I don't mind stopping for a chat and a photo shoot. If only I had a £ for every picture of me............. There are usually a couple in the party that speak English well, my first question to them is, "Where are you from?" Their answer helps me then base my discussion on my limited knowledge of the Orient! Almost all have some fair knowledge of the UK, a liking for whisky and a love of tartan, particularly in kilt form.

In all honesty, I wish I could be as complimentary about some individuals and some groups, from other Countries that visit here, but I can't.

[kingandrew]

Jock,

I agree that my experience in China (and visiting other countries in Asia, such as Japan, Thailand, Cambodia, and Malaysia) has been friendly and polite in nearly every case. The few times that seemed less friendly were generally examples of excessive enthusiasm, or very assertive attempts to sell me something. All of which is easy to understand and accept in a positive way. After all, I am the outsider here, and I try to be polite myself. And as you note, not all foreign visitors are very careful in that regard.

The funniest encounter I had was on the subway in Shanghai. I was kilted, en route to my wife's school, which was holding an "International Day" event at which her class was representing Scotland. A couple of college-age women kept looking at me and giggling. Finally one got her courage (and English) together and approached me. "I had to wear one of these for my school uniform," she said, with a charming smile. The three of us enjoyed a good laugh at that.

Andrew

[MichiganKyle]

I wear kilts as just plain 'ol everyday clothes. As such, I get the occasional positive comment or question, which I usually respond to by trying to convince the person that they should be wearing a kilt, too! But outside of family friends, I don't think I've ever had anyone ask for a picture with me. Now maybe that's because I wear it as just normal clothes and don't go for the whole "look at me" kind of thing or flamboyant attention-drawing behavior, but never really had anyone ask - they're always just really polite.

[Spauldrochie]

I now live in Hertfordshire in the south of England and get a lot of double takes when kilted. I have enjoyed some pleasant conversations after someone has stopped me to comment upon my attire. This is often a lady but an increasing number of young lads seem interested enough to comment.

When visiting Scotland I wear a kilt daily and am often told by locals that it's nice to see a kilt being worn. At one time tourists often asked whether they might stand beside me for a photograph and although this still happens it seems that an increasing number of people take photos of me on their phone without enquiring whether I might mind ! Some walk along keeping pace with me whilst doing this and others contort themselves into uncomfortable looking positions apparently attempting to obtain a "selfie" with me in the background. I don't mind this but I do wonder at a certain lack of awareness and good manners which some people display in public.

Although I appear to be the subject of more photography than ever, I imagine that this is largely due the current fad for photographing everything, including selfies and posting images online. The low cost of digital photography and the ubiquitous nature of mobile phones facilitate this trend.

All things considered there seems to be just as much interest in highland dress nowadays as I can recall from my youth.