# Would you wear a kilt if you were not Scottish? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 3, 2012, 8:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287 "2012-01-03T20:15:10Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/21 "2012-01-03T22:43:16Z")
I never understood why the “national garment” [yes, I know it is mostly a romantic Victorian invention] of a cold country like Scotland left the legs bare. How does that work? ---
**Author:** ![Athena](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/35a633/32.png) [@Athena](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Athena)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/22 "2012-01-03T22:52:21Z")
Mr. Athena wears one occasionally, and he’s not Scottish. He is, however, a bagpiper, and it’s pretty much required if you’re going to be playing bagpipe gigs. He’s never worn it other than to play. ---
**Author:** ![elfkin477](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/a9a28c/32.png) [@elfkin477](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elfkin477)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/23 "2012-01-03T22:52:39Z")
I like plaid skirts, but I’m not a man. ---
**Author:** ![UFC\_Is\_Sux](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/u/46a35a/32.png) [@UFC\_Is\_Sux](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/UFC_Is_Sux)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/24 "2012-01-03T22:55:06Z")
I am of Scottish ancestry, and have worn a kilt at Amtgard events and Renfaires. I even researched the correct tartan pattern for authenticity (MacPhie Modern). And most authentic of all, no linens. ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/25 "2012-01-03T23:24:26Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > I never understood why the “national garment” [yes, I know it is mostly a romantic Victorian invention] of a cold country like Scotland left the legs bare. How does that work? There’s really thick socks involved as well, but a proper kilt is warm to wear. I think it traps the warm air. ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [January 3, 2012, 11:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/26 "2012-01-03T23:39:29Z")
> [@Baron\_Greenback](#): > > There’s really thick socks involved as well, but a proper kilt is warm to wear. I think it traps the warm air. I dunno, the scottish kilts I’ve seen show bare legs between the socks and the bottom of the kilt. I can’t imagine that being all that warm on a blustery wet day; but then, I’m used to _Canadian_ winters. 😉 Edit: like these. [http://www.lindaclifford.com/Kilts.html](http://www.lindaclifford.com/Kilts.html) Also, doesn’t Scotland have ferocious midges? In Canada, the mosquitoes would make kilt-wearing outdoors less than optimal … ---
**Author:** ![Dendarii\_Dame](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/bbce88/32.png) [@Dendarii\_Dame](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dendarii_Dame)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 12:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/27 "2012-01-04T00:04:26Z")
I’m a girl, and I wore one when I played field hockey. It was bright yellow. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Gadai](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/d6d6ee/32.png) [@An\_Gadai](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Gadai)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 12:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/28 "2012-01-04T00:25:55Z")
You can sorta wear one if you’re Irish even though it seems pretty makeyuppy to me. If I ever started playing the bagpipes I’d wear one. Otherwise probably not. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 12:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/29 "2012-01-04T00:40:51Z")
> [@Malthus](#): > > I dunno, the scottish kilts I’ve seen show bare legs between the socks and the bottom of the kilt. I can’t imagine that being all that warm on a blustery wet day; but then, I’m used to _Canadian_ winters. 😉 > > Edit: like these. > > [http://www.lindaclifford.com/Kilts.html](http://www.lindaclifford.com/Kilts.html) > > Also, doesn’t Scotland have ferocious midges? In Canada, the mosquitoes would make kilt-wearing outdoors less than optimal … I seriously read that as “ferocious midgets” and thought “yeah, that might be a problem, what with the biting…” ---
**Author:** ![thelabdude](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/dc4da7/32.png) [@thelabdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/thelabdude)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/30 "2012-01-04T00:53:20Z")
We must have made a strange pair some years ago at the robotics openhouse at Carnegie Melon. My son in law with his solid brown utilikilt and ponytail, and me with my guide dog puppy. Of course my son did wear one when he was in the band at CMU. I might wear a Utilikilt. I have both Scotch and Irish ancestors. ---
**Author:** ![Johanna](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johanna/32/8318_2.png) [@Johanna](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johanna)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/31 "2012-01-04T00:58:11Z")
> [@Busy\_Scissors](#): > > ersatz claim to this great Scottish garment\* > \*Albeit introduced by the English IIRC. > [@rhubarbarin](#): > > I’m a girl. But part Scottish, and I wouldn’t because they are really ugly. But I’ve worn other traditional garments in public before, including a sari. > [@Malthus](#): > > the “national garment” [yes, I know it is mostly a romantic Victorian invention] > [@UFC\_Is\_Sux](#): > > I am of Scottish ancestry, and have worn a kilt at Amtgard events and Renfaires. I even researched the correct tartan pattern for authenticity (MacPhie Modern). And most authentic of all, no linens. I’m a girl of part Northern Irish ancestry with a reminder that when it’s a question of authenticity, the actual historical Scots garment is the “great kilt.” The kind all of yous are talking about is the small kilt, which was formed by cutting off the whole top of the great kilt, making it in the form of a skirt. The great kilt was originally, in ancient and medieval times, in the form of a big sheet of thick woolen cloth 5 yards wide and 7 yards long that was draped around the body instead of stitched, similar to the toga and sari. Learning to wear it properly, in a way that protects the wearer against the elements, is a wholly other task from learning to wear the skirt known as the (small) kilt. It would also be your blanket when you lay down to sleep. ---
**Author:** ![Filbert](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/filbert/32/3433_2.png) [@Filbert](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Filbert)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 1:00am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/32 "2012-01-04T01:00:44Z")
If it’s both cold and wet, I’ve been told by a lot of outdoorsy type folks who regularly work in such conditions that bare legs wind up being warmer- because walking through wet stuff gets your legs all soggy, and fabric absorbs water, whereas legs just dry out. Glacier guides often wear shorts, and several have sworn blind to me it’s warmer; though they were all nuts. Never tried it myself. Or a proper kilt; but I’m a girl, so you don’t care. 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Guinastasia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/guinastasia/32/5751_2.png) [@Guinastasia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Guinastasia)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 1:04am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/33 "2012-01-04T01:04:04Z")
> [@An\_Gadai](#): > > You can sorta wear one if you’re Irish even though it seems pretty makeyuppy to me. If I ever started playing the bagpipes I’d wear one. Otherwise probably not. IIRC, Irish tartans are by county rather than by clan, right? ---
**Author:** ![GrizzRich](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/7ba0ec/32.png) [@GrizzRich](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GrizzRich)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/34 "2012-01-04T01:48:08Z")
BMalion and I both wore kilts to the same DopeFest! ---
**Author:** ![Loach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/loach/32/350_2.png) [@Loach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Loach)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/35 "2012-01-04T01:58:07Z")
I do have some Scottish in me. One Great-Grandfather. So not that much. But i the occasion came up I would wear Clan Malcolm tartan. The occasion has not come up. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 2:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/36 "2012-01-04T02:33:26Z")
Scottish (as in born here, lived 3/4 of my 40 years here.) Never have worn a kilt, never will. I’m not into being ostentatiously Scottish - the place isn’t all that great. ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 3:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/37 "2012-01-04T03:02:00Z")
Only if I wanted to feel pretty. ---
**Author:** ![Don\_t\_Panic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/don_t_panic/32/398_2.png) [@Don\_t\_Panic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Don_t_Panic)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/38 "2012-01-04T03:11:29Z")
How would the Scots react if I wore a kilt and they found out that I wasn’t Scottish? Would I be assaulted by an angry mob in the street for spitting on their true Scottish heritage? Don’t you have to belong to a clan to wear a particular kilt anyway? What happens if you are Scottish, but wear a kilt belonging to a clan that isn’t yours? More violent mobs? (I don’t know squat about kilts, except that they can give you problems with dandruff on your shoes…) ---
**Author:** ![Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aji_de_gallina/32/260_2.png) [@Aji\_de\_Gallina](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aji_de_Gallina)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/39 "2012-01-04T04:33:25Z")
No problem if I get to wear underwear. ---
**Author:** ![PaulParkhead](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/7ea924/32.png) [@PaulParkhead](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PaulParkhead)\ **Post date:** [January 4, 2012, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287/40 "2012-01-04T04:40:55Z")
> [@Martian Bigfoot](#): > > How would the Scots react if I wore a kilt and they found out that I wasn’t Scottish? Would I be assaulted by an angry mob in the street for spitting on their true Scottish heritage? Don’t you have to belong to a clan to wear a particular kilt anyway? What happens if you are Scottish, but wear a kilt belonging to a clan that isn’t yours? More violent mobs? > > (I don’t know squat about kilts, except that they can give you problems with dandruff on your shoes…) We’d lob haggis in your general direction, before soaking you in cheap blended whisky and setting you alight. Which would make for an interesting smell. Seriously? No-one would care. Wear a kilt, of whatever tartan you like. If you feel you must. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/would-you-wear-a-kilt-if-you-were-not-scottish/608287.md?page=3)