What do Scottish tartans signify?

Tartan is a popular print around the world and appears in many different formats, from socks to tea towels, and of course, fashion items. Did you know that it is possible to even design your own tartan (within a set of defined criteria to meet the guidelines of traditional tartan)? But where did the Scottish tartan originate and what does it signify?

It’s a Clan thing

Many years ago, tartan was the day-to-day dress of Highlanders, yet was different from what we know tartan as today. The wool was spun, dyed, and woven locally, with different Clans from different areas identifying with different colours and patterns. There are over 4,000 different designs of tartan, yet very few of them are still woven or manufactured today.

It’s not a hundred percent certain where the name tartan originated, but it is thought to originate from the Gaelic words tuar and tan, which mean 'colour' and 'district', and this would make sense as each Clan or area had its own distinct patterns, a served as a great way of identifying where someone was from, especially from a distance.

Around the 18th century, tartan became associated with the Jacobites, who were considered rebels and outlaws by the British government. It was banned between 1747 to 1782, and during this period tartan was worn in the Scottish Lowlands, often as a way to make a political statement.

The ban on wearing tartan was lifted in the late 17th century and became popular again in the form of ‘Highland Dress’ as worn by King George IV when he visited Scotland in 1822 and was also promoted by Queen Victoria.

How is it made?

Traditionally tartan was made by using a loom to weave it and is created with a warp (vertical stripes) and a weft (horizontal stripes), and as you can imagine the precision required for weaving had to be pretty spot on, otherwise you would wind up with a rather wonky set of lines.

The base pattern for a tartan is known as a ‘sett’ and this serves as the code or building blocks for the design. This unique combination is what creates the pattern and is repeated over and over to produce the fabric. Typically, a sett measures about 12 – 15 centimeters and uses around 250 threads per sett.

Today the dye colours are all chemical, but back in the day, the Highlanders would have used whatever they had on hand to create the different dye colours – such as plants, trees, charcoal, etc.

The main colours produced were blue, green, black, and red – with different shades being created within those ranges.

Can I wear tartan?

Of course, you can! Anyone can wear any tartan that they like – except for a few specially reserved tartan prints such as that of the Royal Family.

If you have Scottish ancestry, why not look up your surname and see what your Clan wore? Remember to try different possible spellings of your surname as well, as name spelling has changed over the centuries.

And if you don’t have Scottish ancestry? Well, then just pick one that you love and wear it with pride!

Dreaming of visiting Scotland and undertaking a long (or short) walk on the Scottish Highlands? Find out more about our four different long walks – here.

See you on the hills, walkers! The Walkers Club Team