strathspey@strathspey.org:43998

Richard Goss

Re: Kilts in Scotland (was Scottish Country Dancing VS Scottish Folk Dancing)

Jan. 31, 2006, 8:34 p.m. (Message 43998, in reply to message 43980)

Not quite 20 years ago, was there two summers ago at St Andrews, and
at least a weekend twice a year on family business. While I would
agree that Perth would be a likely place to have seen this, it is just
possible that if you went back to the same store you would have seen
none. For the same reasons probably, one is more likely to see
national dress here in a small town or village instead of Palma.
   
  In either case, it is a matter of dimension, the typical Scottish
  male of today must rent a kilt for a wedding or social event (not
  counting SC or H dancing), this makes it a folk costume and not
  clothes.
   
  BTW, a few years back, I got attacked for the same logic, when I was
  attending an Indian powwow in southern California (none of the
  tribes represented were of California, and Souix were the majority).
  I was told that these were not costume, but native dress. To which I
  asked how many were in attendance compared to all the indians of his
  tribe in Southern California, answer about 1%. To which I suggested
  that if the majority of the other 99% did not own "native dress" or
  wear it in the course of one´s daly life, then it was a costume
  (easier for Amerinds, because, unlike the Scots, the women´s costume
  is more commonly seen than the mens).
   
  The local, Malloruí, equivalent of being Scottish by wearing a bit
  of tratan, is found here with neckerchiefs (boy scout type of
  triangle, with no slide). On some feasts even the priest and altar
  boys wear them during mass, choirs commonly use them as the only
  uniform part of their uniform, as do teams and fans. They are almost
  the equivalent of fan t-shirts in the U.S. Besides around the neck,
  they are used as belts, arm and leg bands, and while girls wear them
  on their head as any scarf, men often wear them as an accessory to
  our local costume (sort of Pirates-of-the-Carribean), for men,
  except the foot wear for dancing groups are two tone brown and white
  golf shoes (socks are such an option here, that at an important
  mass, one can identify the bishop because he is the one with black
  shoes and socks, all the others look like Franciscans..