A Brief History of Tartans + Unique Official Tartans
Tartan (often mistakenly called “plaid”) refers to woven pattern with interlocking stripes, and there have been archeological finds of it that dates back to the 3-4th century BCE.
Seeing as certain color dyes were only found in certain areas, historically, you might have been able to tell where someone was from in Scotland by the color of their tartan, but it was a bit later in history that they became associated with clans.
“Many stem from the weaving industry formed by the Wilsons of Bannockburn, who scoured the Highlands for ‘old patterns’, as well as the pseudo clan histories put together by the Sobieski Stuart brothers during the 1830s and 1840s. These English brothers had taken on new identities in Scotland and falsified their claim to descent from a royal line, but wrote two fantastical – and inaccurate – histories that were later widely used as source material for the Scottish tartan industry.” historyextra.com
For example, the Jacobite pattern was designed in 1713, and became a silent — and legally safe — way to show support to the uprising. This caused the use of tartan to be banned in 1746 and would stay that way for 26 years.
As the years went on, the tartan became a symbol of Scottish pride, and there was pressure for every clan to have their own version.
Now, every clan has their own tartan, but it does not just stop at clans. There are several organizations and groups that have submitted their own patterns to the registry to make them official tartans.
Here are some unique tartans that you might not know:
Irn Bru
Hello Kitty:
Sherlock Holmes
Shrek
Black Raven
Out & Proud (LGBTQIA+)
Grim of Helsingland
Nessie
The Joker
Royal Pumpkin Spice
The Witches Blood
All the images are from tartanregister.gov.uk, and there are far more options on there.
Still can't find a tartan that speaks to you? You can design your own on this site.