What Did Scots Wear Before Kilts?

The Scottish kilt is a new fashion of the 21st century which is not only adopted by British and Americans but also people of different countries such as Germany, Switzerland, Australia, Iceland also love this tradition. There is also a question that arises in the mind of many people that “what did scots wear before kilts“? If we all have knowledge about the traditional kilts, we should also know about the history of the kilts and also what Scottish and Irish people wear before the invention of kilts. Every Scottish attire love must want to know the history of the ancient kilt. We are going to discuss this in detail in the next paragraph.

We all know, a kilt is a Scottish attire which is mainly worn by Scottish and Irish people. kilts are the traditional dress that gives advancement in today’s life by adding more designs and types such as modern utility kilts, leather simple and utility kilts, tartan utility kilts, Camouflage utility kilts, denim utility kilts, and hybrid utility kilts. There are also modern pant design kilts that look like a pant but provide more freedom and are more beautiful than ordinary pants and trousers.

What Did Scots Wear Before Kilts?

Well, the study shows, in the past, there was a whole piece of unstitched tartan used by the Scottish and Irish people. There was no concept of leather, utility, and other types of kilts at that time. Like in today’s life we used blankets to cover from winter, these people used tartan to cover the body. These people not only used tartan as a blanket but also it was a complete dress.

In ancient times, the full length of unstitched tartan was worn on the shoulder, waist, and below the waist area to the top of the knee. This big dress at that time shows poverty. Only poor Scottish and Irish people wear that dress because they don’t have money for a good dress. There are few tartan colors available at that ancient time but there was no concept of color likeness as in this century.

As we have discussed above, this full-length tartan dress was worn before the invention of the kilts, so the military or army men of Scotland and Ireland region also wear this dress. Their military dress was different than that of full-length unstitched tartan cloth. This tartan dress was a uniform for the military or army men in the war.

The full-length cloth is still worn in military duties. The father of the kilt i.e, the great kilt is popular in the urban areas. There was government banned on the use of tartan plaids in the 17th century which was last for only three and a half decades. We will discuss in detail about this banned in the next paragraph.

Government Ban

In the mid of the 17th century, the government imposes punishment on every Scottish who wears tartan plaids. The ban on wearing kilts remained in effect for 35 years. There were six months imprisonment and a heavy fine imposed on the culprit. The ban not only tartan plaid but also everything which is made on tartans such as blankets, cushions, shirts, and other garments that involve tartan.

Evaluation Of Belt Loops

As we have discussed above what did scots wear before kilts? You should also know how this tradition reaches us. In this paragraph, we are going to discuss the evaluation of belt loops. Belt loops as you know are the best way to fit the body around the waist.

The belt loops are attached to almost every bottom wear which includes pants, shorts, trousers, and kilts. In the 18th century, the plaids were worn with belts. At that time, belt loops are attached with every tartan cloth so anyone can easily fasten the tartan plaid with the belt. The belted plaids concept gives the evaluation to the shorter kilts which is simply called a kilt in today’s life.

Evaluation Of Shorter Kilts

In the 19th century, there is a boost in the evaluation of today’s tartan kilt. At that time, it was treated as a national Scottish and Irish dress. The people of these countries wear this dress without any restrictions. In this 19th century, there was only a traditional tartan kilt available for the kilt lover with few tartan colors. The tartan color in the 19th century wore people according to their clans. There were also universal tartans discovered which were not only designed for the Scottish people, but these tartans were widely appreciated by many non-Scottish people. At that time, the tartan kilts were treated as luxury dresses. The mini kilts were also discovered at that time.

As you know the Scottish tartan kilts are designed for men but it was also accepted as bottom wear for women at that time. The concept of mini kilts was discovered in the view of the need of the women. Scottish women and also non-Scottish women prefer tartan mini kilts or skirts over traditional design skirts. We can say that the major progress in the field of the Scottish kilts was started in the 19th century.

Evaluation Of Modern Kilts

In the mid of the 19th century, there was a concept of other kilts such as tartan utility kilts, leather kilts, cotton kilts, denim kilts, and other types of kilts. Now in today’s life, there is a more beautiful design of kilts available for kilt lovers. Now the choices of colors and designs are not limited.

Final Words

In this article, we have discussed the past and present of the kilt. You can now easily understand what did scots wear before kilts?. The Scottish kilts are the heart of this culture. Without the Scottish kilts, you cannot differentiate between Scottish and non-Scottish people. In today’s life, it is treated as a modern fashion like other fashion garments. This beautiful cultural dress has a bright future and in upcoming years, this will be casual fashion in the USA and Canada. If you like this article, then share with your friends and family.