A Newbie Question

**JohntheBiker** · 26th August 15, 08:29 AM

Four per cent of the Scottish population are from visible minorities and while they may or may not have been born in Scotland, they are Scots (certainly by Jock Scot's definition) and are arguably "entitled" to be kilted. One should not make assumptions based on appearance, so go ahead and wear a kilt and enjoy it as much as the rest of us do!

**freddie** · 26th August 15, 11:58 PM

Ctbuchanan is spot on and many black people have Scottish surnames which must hark back to the old days of the plantations. A great many young Scotsmen were transplanted there during the various uprisings and almost certainly married local black girls. Check your own surname, you may be surprised! As far as wearing The Kilt is concerned it's now regarded as a worldwide practice wether your Scots born or not (in fact I know Scots who wouldn't be seen dead in one) so go ahead and enjoy it, but you have been warned - it's addictive!

**MacGumerait** · 27th August 15, 12:45 AM

Bluethunder90 , welcome aboard this ship of kilt wearers !

Best wishes to you on your journey of selecting a first tartan . Notice I say " first " .

As I am sure you are aware , there are many tartans from which to choose for many different reasons .

Just thought I would offer you another option just to add to the choices ( which can sometimes add to indecision ) .

USA Kilts offers exclusive tartans based on State Seals . One can always select a tartan based on a particular state for personal reasons .

Here's a link .

http://www.usakilts.com/exclusive-tartans.html

Cheers , Mike

**Kylahullu** · 27th August 15, 03:27 AM

Hi!

Greetings from an other member having no connection to Scotland at all.

I bought my first kilt a bit less than two yeas ago. It was a black "8yd budget kilt" from buyakilt.com. I choose it because I thought it would be a decent choice not disturbing anyone thinking "clan-wise" and cheap one to start kilting. After that I have bought some second-hand woollen kilts (See, this is addictive

) mostly from eBay and at last one bespoke one.

What I now think and feel about the tartans.

I have, and shall, wear those clan tartans freely in Finland. If someone asks I hope the explanation: "inexpensive find, nice tartan and kilt" will be enough and for the question about my connection to Scotland I have usually said: "Village foolness, shall visit it one day" (Well, the expression "village fool" might be a bit more positive in Finnish than in English, maybe...). If that is not enough, the problem will be one of the beholders. I have been travelling in Europe and Cuba using the black one and one district tartan one. No problem, reactions have been anything between "nice kilt, I admire your courage and a handshake" to "Hi you pretty girl". I think I am represented in pretty many picture collections...

Now I am going to Scotland for a tourist trip in four weeks, for some 2 and half weeks trip. We shall start from Inverness where my companion will take part to Loch Ness Marathon and we shall (hopefully) proceed from there to Outer Hebrides. I feel it would not be appropriate for me to wear clan tartan during that trip. I could use the district tartan but never even visiting that area I do not feel good doing that. I am, however, planning to take my Scottish Wildcat tartan box pleated kilt along and to use it pretty casually, not even owning anything to upgrade it, when feeling so. I hope that will not disturb anyone, but right now I think (and hope) that the choice of that tartan should show my respect to Scotland and kilting. I feel that tartan is more for the Mother Nature than only for something Scottish.

**Father Bill** · 27th August 15, 04:51 AM

Originally Posted by freddie

Ctbuchanan is spot on and many black people have Scottish surnames which must hark back to the old days of the plantations. A great many young Scotsmen were transplanted there during the various uprisings and almost certainly married local black girls. *snip*

My friend Aubrey Buchanan is from Jamaica and is as black as coal and a good looking chap too. Since he and I are comfortable enough to tease about the difference in our hues, I asked him once how a fellow with a "factory-installed" suntan like his got a good Scottish name like "Buchanan." With his beautiful Jamaican lilt he told me, "You see Bill, it is like this: There was a Scotsman in the woodpile." I still smile at that one.

**Jock Scot** · 27th August 15, 05:05 AM

What a lovely way of putting it!

But that does not necessarily a Scot make.

**ctbuchanan** · 27th August 15, 05:08 AM

Originally Posted by Father Bill

My friend Aubrey Buchanan is from Jamaica and is as black as coal and actually a good looking chap too. Since he and I are comfortable enough to tease about the difference in our hues, I asked him once how a fellow with a "factory-installed" suntan like his got a good Scottish name like "Buchanan." With his beautiful Jamaican lilt he told me, "You see Bill, it is like this: There was a Scotsman in the woodpile." I still smile at that one.

Why the surprise? Don't you know ALL Buchanan men are actually good looking?
One of my "cousins" in Canada is also from Jamaica.

**Jock Scot** · 27th August 15, 08:04 AM

Slightly off topic, but where did this "cousin" thing come from? Is it a North American thing? It is certainly a term that would not be appreciated in the UK, unless you were actually a genuine cousin, even then, it is little used. Just wondering.

**ctbuchanan** · 27th August 15, 08:26 AM

It is probably more a USA thing. We use the term cousin quite often outside of the strict definition. In terms of the Clan it reflects our different view of clanship from the strict interpretation back in Scotland which has been discussed many times on this forum. It is more a term of fraternity rather than relation but we all understand that when we use the word. No harm intended.

**Jock Scot** · 27th August 15, 08:31 AM

Originally Posted by ctbuchanan

It is probably more a USA thing. We use the term cousin quite often outside of the strict definition. In terms of the Clan it reflects our different view of clanship from the strict interpretation back in Scotland which has been discussed many times on this forum. It is more a term of fraternity rather than relation but we all understand that when we use the word. No harm intended.

Thank you for that. I first heard the expression being used in, I think a John Wayne western and have often wondered about it. The term could well get you a black eye over here!