Irish
County Offaly Tartans & Clan
County Offaly, formally known as King's County, is found in the midland region of Ireland just west of the city of Dublin. It was anciently part of the Kingdom of Ui Failghe, which is where it gets it present name from, and was largely inhabited and ruled by the O'Connor and the O'Carroll clans. Discover more about the county below.
Who Wears County Offaly Tartan? - Associated Names
First of all to explain why there are so many tartans, way over 2000 in fact. There are an awful lot of Scottish clans to start with and on top of this each clan can have many different tartans and names associated with it.
- Adair
- Allen
- Bannan
- Beary
- Behan
- Bergin
- Brehan
- Brophy
- Carey
- Coghlan
- Colgan
- Collier
- Conlon
- Curry
- Delahunt
- Dempsey
- Dunn
- Gill
- Kearney
- Mulvany
- O'Carroll
- O'Conor
- O'Flanagan
- Warren
County Offaly Tartans
1 variationsEach tartan can have multiple variations, the most common of which are Ancient, Modern, Weathered, Hunting and Dress
About tartan variations
- Ancient
- Modern
- Weathered
- Hunting
- Dress
Ancient Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans, mossy greens and sky blues, a more orangey red and some would say showing off the pattern to much greater effect as as the contrasts are much brighter than the Modern tartans. The pattern or sett remains the same across all variations of a single tartan, and only the shades or tones vary.
Helpful Advice
Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Modern Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer colours typical of the Ancient tartans. Post 1860 chemical dyes replaced the natural animal and vegetable dyes and the Modern Tartans were born with their stronger and bolder colours. The soft greens and blues become bottle green and navy blue, reds are scarlet.
Helpful Advice
The Modern tartans are often the more subtle combinations such as the classic Black Watch Modern
Weathered Tartan
Before 1860 fabrics were coloured using animal and vegetable dyes. This produced the softer, more earthy colours typical of the Weathered tartans, reminiscent of bolder colours subjected to wind, rain and sunshine producing beautiful faded tones, olive greens and browns, and very light blues with reds that are more pink than red.
Helpful Advice
Some mills refer to the Weathered tartans as Muted.
Hunting Tartan
The Hunting Tartans are the camouflage tartans and some clans don't have these variations because they are already predominantly green or brown and don't need amendment to blend in with nature's colours. The Black Watch or Gunn tartans are examples of these, whereas a tartan such as the Fraser is predominantly red and would not provide much cover for men out hunting.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
Dress Tartan
The Dress Tartans were designed as the name suggests for celebrations and highland dance. The sett or pattern of the tartan remains the same and the main colour is changed to white, or extra white is added to the pattern to give it a brighter, more "fancy" appearance. The Scots do like to bend the rules and occasionally instead of white thread, yellow is used and this is where the rather wild MacLeod Dress Modern and Barclay Dress Modern came from.
Helpful Advice
One thing to remember if you are ordering your tartan to match an existing kilt or accessory is that although the sett and colours are the same, there can be a slight difference in colour from one mill to the next. This is purely down to yarn dying so if you need an exact match we suggest you order a swatch to double check.
From the Start
County Offaly Clan Origins & History
Explore the History
How it all started
County Offaly, formally known as King's County, is found in the midland region of Ireland just west of the city of Dublin. It was anciently part of the Kingdom of Ui Failghe, which is where it gets it present name from, and was largely inhabited and ruled by the O'Connor and the O'Carroll clans. However, by the 13th century the British began to occupy the lands and then eventually gained full control until the mid 16th century, when it was named the King's County after King Philip II of Spain and then the King of Ireland. This was only changed to Offaly in the early 20th century during the Irish Wars of Independence.
What's in the tartan?
The County Offaly tartan is mainly a dark blue with black, green red and gold accents throughout.
Birr Castle
Birr Castle was built during the Anglo-Norman invasion on the mound the with the gate of the tower leading into the courtyard. It was reoccupied by the O'Carroll's who stayed at the castle until the late 16th century until it was granted to the English Sir Lawrence Parsons. Parson established the construction of a new castle on the site of the original gatehouse. In 1642, Parson's son was in charge of the castle and during the Irish Rebellion the fortress was surrounded by Catholic forces, but once the war was over he proceeded to completely refurbish the castle. Today, the magnificent Birr Castle remains as a rare gem in the heart of Ireland and is still home to the Parson family. The castle gardens are rich in wonderous wildlife with various walks along the peaceful rivers and welcomes visitors from across the world every year allowing tourists to explore this secluded Irish treasure!
The name Offaly comes from the Irish 'Uíbh Fhailí', which comes from the ancient Irish kingdom of 'Ui Failghe'.
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