orig. Sc. Also 6–7 tartane, tertane, (6 teartane). [Of uncertain origin: in use early in 16th c.
It has been conjectured to be a. F. tiretaine (1247 in Godef., Compl.) ‘a kind of cloth, half wool, half linen or cotton,’ for which a variant tertaine is quoted by Godefroy of date 1487: cf. the 16th c. Sc. spelling tertane. Another conjecture would identify the cloth with that called tartar or tartarin (q.v.), of which the 16th-c. forms tartarne, tarterne, somewhat approach tartane. But the quots. for TARTAR and TARTARIN point to a richer and more costly stuff.]
1. A kind of woollen cloth woven in stripes of various colors crossing at right angles so as to form a regular pattern; worn chiefly by the Scottish Highlanders, each clan having generally its distinctive pattern. Also, the pattern or design of such cloth. Also applied to silk and other fabrics having a similar pattern. Shepherds’ tartan, shepherds’ plaid: see quot. 1882. In quot. 1810 pl. tartan garments.
a. 1500[?]. Symmye & Bruder, 22, in Sibbald, Chron. Sc. Poetry (1802), I. 360. Syne schupe thame up, to lowp owr leiss, Twa tabartis of the tartane.
1533. Acc. Ld. High Treas. Scotl., VI. 79. For fresing of ane tartane galcot. Ibid., 80. Ane uthir tartane galcoit gevin to the King be the Maister Forbes. Ibid. (1538), 436. Item, for iij elnis of heland tertane to be hois to the Kingis grace, price of the elne iiij s. iiij d.
1546. Aberdeen Regr. (1844), I. 236. Item, ane vob of tartane, contenand x ellis, the price of ell iiij s. Ibid. Ane blankat of tartane. Ibid. (1548–51), XX. (Jam.). Ane gelcoit of quhit tertane.
1630. J. Taylor (Water P.), Pennilesse Pilgr., Wks. I. 135/1. Stockings (which they call short hose) made of a warme stuffe of diuers colours, which they call Tartane.
1806. Gazetteer Scotl. (ed. 2), 395. Of late the greater part of the tartan for the army has been manufactured in this parish [St. Ninians].
1810. Scott, Lady of L., III. xxvii. Their feathers dance, their tartans float,… A wild and warlike groupe they stand.
1855. Macaulay, Hist. Eng., xiii. III. 354. Men wearing the same tartan, and attached to the same lord, were arrayed against each other.
1862. ‘Shirley,’ Nugæ Crit., vi. 239. Dressed in a bodice and kirtle of shepherd tartan.
1882. Ogilvie (Annandale), Shepherd’s … tartan, a kind of small check pattern in cloth, woven with black and white warp and weft; (b) a kind of cloth … woven in this pattern—generally made into shepherd’s plaids.
1891. Cent. Dict., s.v., Silk tartan, a silk material for women’s dresses and men’s waistcoats, woven in the style of the Scottish clan tartans.
1905. Times, 7 Sept., 5/4. Considerable success has followed the bringing out of quite a variety of tartans for next spring.
1906. Athenæum, 2 June, 671/2. The whole question of the date of clan tartans is difficult.
b. transf. Applied to one who wears tartan; a Highlander; collectively, those who wear tartan; the body of Highlanders; the men of a Highland regiment.
1817. Canning, in Hanna, Mem. Chalmers (1849), II. v. 102. The tartan [so runs the speech attributed to him, i.e., Canning, regarding Dr. C.] beats us all.
1859. Colin Campbell, in A. Forbes, Life, v. 127. [Then Sir Colin called to Colonel Ewart,] ‘Ewart! Bring on the tartan!’… [and the seven companies of the Ninety-Third dashed from behind the bank].
2. Angling. Name of an artificial salmon-fly.
1867. F. Francis, Angling, x. 315. The Tartan is a strange looking fly. [Description follows.]
3. Short for tartan-purry: see 4 b. Sc.
1893. Henderson, Old World Scotl., 8. Of oatmeal we have tartan—a pudding made chiefly of chopped kale and oatmeal.
4. attrib. a. Made of tartan; having a chequered pattern like that of tartan.
1533. [see 1].
1549. Fragm. Ayr Burgh Rec. (Gen. Reg. Ho., Edinb.). Item for teartane claith, aucht lib.
1721. Ramsay, Tartana, 78. Who ’midst the snows the best of limbs can fold In Tartan Plaids, and smile at chilling cold.
c. 1750. in Ritson, Sc. Songs (1794), II. 107. O! to see his tartan trouze, Bonnet blue, and laigh-heel’d shoes!
1802. R. L. & Mar. Edgeworth, Irish Bulls, 195. Enters the lists, as he says of himself, in Tartan dress and armour, and throws down the gauntlet to the most prejudiced antagonist.
1853. ‘C. Bede,’ Verdant Green, I. vii. A gentleman clad in tartan-plaid.
1869. E. A. Parkes, Pract. Hygiene (ed. 3), 403. One pair of tartan trousers in rifle regiments.
b. Tartan-purry (Sc. local): see quots.
c. 1746. Forbes, Dominie, II. (1785), 35. Tartan-purry, meal and bree, Or butt’ry brose.
1790. Shirrefs, Poems, Gloss., Tartan purry, a sort of pudding made of red colewort chipped small, and mixed with oatmeal.
1819. W. Tennant, Papistry Storm’d (1827), 52. Some ran to parritch, some to kail;… And some to tartan-purry.
1866. T. Edmondston, Gloss. Sketl. & Orkn., Tart-and-purrie, porridge made with the water in which cabbage has been boiled.
