All things Scottish

The Tartan

The tartan is among the most recognized cultural symbols in the world. A tartan identifies a people, a clan or a family. The variety of colors and patterns ranging from simple to extremely complex, represent diversity.

Writers have romanticized the concept of the tartan for centuries.

The most traditional way of displaying a tartan is wearing a kilt (worn by a man) or a kilted skirt (worn by a woman).


The earliest form of kilt is referred to in Gaelic as the feileadh-mor (pronounced filla-more) or great kilt. This is a rather large garment, about six feet wide and anywhere from 18 to 24 feet long. A waist belt holds it in place. The majority of the fabric is above the waist, fastened over the shoulder and can be used as a wrap. The remainder hangs to the knees. A great kilt has the advantage of being able to be used as a blanket at night. This is where the idea for today's tartan blankets came from.

The feileadh-beag, or little kilt, was likely developed in the early 1700s when the garment was divided into upper and lower portions. A little kilt, which today is most commonly worn, can contain as much as 8 yards of fabric which is folded (or "kilted") to create pleats.

The kilt is an extremely comfortable garment to wear--it's cool in summer and warm in winter.

It was once a crime to wear a kilt or tartan of any kind. When the British defeated the Scottish at Culloden in 1746 and thus ended Scotland's independence from Great Britain, the government outlawed the wearing of tartan and kilts as rebellious. Only the government's Highland regiments were allowed to wear the kilt, which explains why so many Scottish men joined the army. This law was finally repealed, and when King George IV of England arrived in Scotland in 1822 wearing a kilt, he re-ignited Clan fever throughout the country.

Besides clan tartans, there are district tartans, US state tartans, corporate tartans and even tartans designed in honor of events and organizations. The US Armed Forces tartan is a good example of this. California has its own state tartan: appropriately, it is a variation of the John Muir clan tartan.

Anyone can wear a tartan. If any of your family members has Scottish blood (and this is highly likely!), it is suitable to wear the tartan of the clan or district of your Scottish ancestor. Yet another reason is explore your family tree!

In 1998, the United States Congress declared April 6th as Tartan Day, in honor of Americans of Scottish heritage and their contributions. April 6 is the anniversary of the Declaration of Arbroath, which is considered the Scottish declaration of independence. This document contains some pretty stirring stuff, including the following:

For as long as a hundred of us are left alive, never we will on any conditions be brought under British rule. It is in truth not for glory, nor riches, nor honors that we are fighting but for freedom--for that alone, which no good man surrenders but with his life.

The Declaration of Arbroath served as a blueprint 456 years later for Thomas Jefferson when he was knocking out a similar document for his own country. Suitably, nearly half of the original signers of the Declaration of Independence were of Scottish blood.

It is perfectly proper to wear the tartan of another clan. Many people have family connections and loyalties encompassing many clans, so wear the tartan closest to your heart!

The Royal Stewart is the official tartan of La Habra High School. Traditionally, this tartan can only be worn by royalty. Our first principal, Walter Pray, received special dispensation from Queen Elizabeth to adopt the Royal Stewart.

Any La Habra Highlander may wear the the Royal Stewart. The wearing of this tartan represents LHHS pride, achievement and excellence of character.

At one time, it was a tradition for faculty and students to wear the Stewart tartan on Fridays.

So here's the ageless question: what do you wear under a kilt? There are many answers. Mike Myers wore his kilt to Sean Connery's AFI Life Achievement Award presentation. "People ask me if anything is worn under my kilt," he said. "I tell them 'No, everything is in fine working order."

But according to tradition, no gentleman wearing a kilt will ever answer this question directly. So don't ask.

The thistle

Scots love the prickly, unlovely thistle. According to legend, when the Norwegian army was attempting to launch a surprise night attack on the Scots in 1263, a Norwegian soldier stepped on a thistle and howled in pain. Thus the entire Scottish army was alerted and successfully repulsed the attack. All hail the thistle!

The Saltire and the Rampant Lion

Scotland has two flags but only one, the Saltire, may be used by the public at large. The Saltire, the national flag of Scotland, is also known as the St. Andrew's Cross. It is the oldest national flag in the world. According to legend, its origins date to 832 AD when King Angus Mac Fergus lead his army against foreign invaders. The night before the battle, Angus prayed to St. Andrew for strength. The next morning, a silvery cross appeared in the sky as the Scots marched onto the field and were victorious. Since then, St. Andrew has been the patron saint of Scotland and his cross or Saltire has symbolized the courage and fortitude of Scots everywhere.

The LHHS colors are royal blue and white, the colors of the Saltire.

It is appropriate that the La Habra Highlanders honor our own with the Saltire Society Honor, presented annually to past and current faculty and staff at LHHS, and with The St. Andrew's Scholarship, presented to graduating seniors to inspire them to achieve their education goals.

The flag of the Rampant Lion, the Royal Arms of Scotland, can only be flown in the presence of royalty. The Rampant Lion was carried into the stadium at LHHS' 50th anniversarty homecoming ceremony in 2004 in honor of the Homecoming court.