Reliable Scottish Clan and Tartan information
A family member asked what our Scottish Clan and Tartan pattern was. Does anyone know of any good sources about what the Scottish Tartan is?
I fear that most of the information about tartan patterns really isn't correct and is just there to sell stuff. Some of the patterns were just to sell stuff rather than any historical accuracy. I saw I a Williams tartan but Williams is a Welsh name and not a scottish name.
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I suspect that there is no definitive list. Tartans are both ancient and modern.
However, this shop is the most comprehensive I have found: https://www.scotlandshop.com/tartan-finder
They have this tartan finder and lots more helpful information in their FAQs. I hope this is of use.
Kind regards,
Jill
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by reliable I mean Universities or Genelogical Societies that track tartans. I am suspcious of most commericial websites that sell tartans considering that I saw a tartan for the Williams clan and the Williams is a welsh name.
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At a quick glance the Scottish Register of Tartans on https://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/index seems to look pretty plausible given that it comes from the National Records of Scotland (joint sponsors of ScotlandsPeople). Yes, it has a Williams tartan but I suspect that is a function of the fact that anyone can register a tartan. It includes registration/historical notes - or it does for my Bruce tartan.
Bear in mind that a lot of this Scottish paraphernalia was created to sell stuff to gullible Sassenachs - even the old stuff - so it gets difficult to establish the truth. Whatever that means!
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Googling the History of the Scottish Tartan will get you several good articles. According to this one, the wearing of tartans started in the 3rd century AD. I was surprised by that, but I find the information fascinating. My Bruce line has several plaids attributed to it. That tells me there is some sort of methodology involved there. "
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