Scottish Clans
Campbell Tartans & Clan
Clan Campbell's Chief is Torquhil Campbell, 13th Duke of Argyll who is well known for playing Elephant Polo.
Who Wears Campbell 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.
- Ballantyne
- Bannatyne
- Burnes
- Burness
- Burns
- Connochie
- Conochie
- Denoon
- Denune
- Donachie
- Donaghy
- Fisher
- Hawes
- Haws
- Hawson
- Isaac
- Isaacs
- Iverson
- Kellar
- Keller
- Kissack
- Kissock
- Lorne
- Louden
- Lowdon
- Lowden
- Loudon
- Maccolm
- Maccombe
- Macconachie
- Macconchie
- Macconnechy
- Maccure
- MacDermid
- MacDermont
- MacDiarmid
- MacDonachie
- Macellar
- Macelvie
- Maceur
- Macever
- MacGibbon
- MacGlasrich
- MacGubbin
- MacIsaac
- Maciver
- Macivor
- MacKellar
- MacKelvie
- MacKerlich
- Mackerlie
- MacKessack
- MacKessock
- MacKissock
- MacKiver
- MacLaws
- Maclehose
- Macliver
- MacNichol
- MacNicol
- MacNiven
- MacNocaird
- Maconachie
- Macoran
- Macphedran
- MacQuaker
- Mactause
- Mactavish
- Macthomas
- Macure
- MacVicar
- Ochiltree
- Orr
- Paterson
- Pinkerton
- Taweson
- Tawse
- Thomas
- Thompson
- Thomson
- Ure
Associated Regiments
Over the last 300 years, tartans have been a part of official dress for some of the most famous regiments throughout the military world! Their respective regimental tartans became undisputedly tied to the very core identity of the soldiers who wear it. Explore the associated regiments below:
- Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders
- Argyll Fencibles
- Breadalbane Fencibles
- Black Watch
- Dogras, 38th. (Punjab)
- Garhwal Rifles, 1st Bt. 39th (Bengal)
Campbell Tartans
22 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
Campbell Clan Origins & History
Explore the history of Clan Campbell
How it all started
Territories
Loch Awe
Clan Chief
The current chief is Torquhil Ian Campbell, 13th Duke of Argyll
Where does the name Campbell come from?
The name Campbell comes from two Gaelic words, Cam which means crooked and Beul meaning mouth.
The surname Campbell is the third most common surname in Northern Ireland, fourth most common in Jamaica, seventh most common in Scotland, 12th most common in Canada, 18th most common in Australia, 41st most common in the United States and 65th most common in England.
Castle Campbell
Set upon a narrow bridge the fortress that is Castle Campbell sits above Dollar Glen and is overlooked by the Ochil Hills. This scenic location was once the Lowland stronghold of the Campbell earls of Argyll. Built in the 1400s the Castle has many unique features including an arched loggia (an open walkway joining 2 storeys that you would expect to find in Italy rather than Scotland), and the John Knox's pulpit where he is said to have made a sermon in 1556. So why the Castle of Glooms? Castle Campbell was built where the Burns of Care and Sorrow join, overlooked by Gloom Hill, hence it's original name Castle Gloom or Castle Glume.
Clan Curiosity
National Argyle Day is held annually on the 8th January and celebrates the pattern said to have derived from the Clan Campbell of Argyll plaid. Argyle patterns comprise of repeated diamonds often featuring overlaid diagonal lines. Argyle Knitwear first became in the 1920's and was popularised by the Duke of Windsor who often wore the pattern as part of a golfing outfit.
Clan Motto: Ne Obliviscaris (Forget Not)
Clan Campbell
Tartan Poll
There are 15 plaid variants available for the Campbell Clan, from Modern and Ancient to even a Dress variant, with gorgeous green and blue plaids, this Clan is truly spoilt for choice. But which is your favourite Campbell Clan Plaid? Vote now!
Clan Campbell
Quiz
How much do you think you know about Clan Campbell? Enough to get all 12 questions correct? Test your Campbell Clan Knowledge now!
Explore Clan Campbell
The Campbells are a family well known in Scottish history as having many a fued with other Scottish Clans, from the MacGregors to the mighty MacDonalds. However, there is so much more to this clan than their fueds, which is why on this episode of On The Sofa, Anna and Monja delve deep into the clan's history. They discuss every part of their insignia and also share a few interesting clan member stories.
Visit Edinburgh with James Campbell Tours
Our friend and proud member of Clan Campbell, James Campbell, joins Anna on the ScotlandShop sofa for this very interesting interview. James runs his own Tour Company, which takes people on trips not just in Edinburgh, but all over Scotland. His guests have the choice of having a really personal and customized experience or they can travel around with fellow Scottish enthusiasts in group tours. Anna asks James all about his tour company and of course his Campbell heritage.
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