The Scottish Register of Tartans (SRT) is
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...
's official
non-ministerial department
Non-ministerial government departments (NMGDs) are a type of department of the United Kingdom government that deal with matters for which direct political oversight has been judged unnecessary or inappropriate. They are headed by senior civil se ...
for the recording and
registration
Register or registration may refer to:
Arts entertainment, and media Music
* Register (music), the relative "height" or range of a note, melody, part, instrument, etc.
* ''Register'', a 2017 album by Travis Miller
* Registration (organ), th ...
of
tartan
Tartan ( gd, breacan ) is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Sc ...
designs, operating since 5 February 2009. As a governmental body, SRT is headquartered at
HM General Register House in
Edinburgh
Edinburgh ( ; gd, Dùn Èideann ) is the capital city of Scotland and one of its 32 Council areas of Scotland, council areas. Historically part of the county of Midlothian (interchangeably Edinburghshire before 1921), it is located in Lothian ...
and is a division of the
National Records of Scotland
National Records of Scotland ( gd, Clàran Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government. It is responsible for Civil registry, civil registration, the census in Scotland, demography and statistics, family histor ...
(NRS), formerly of the
National Archives of Scotland
The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...
(NAS) before its merger into NRS.
SRT is the centralised agency for the recording of known historical tartans and for paid registration of new tartan designs, which must fulfill fairly stringent criteria. SRT subsumed this registration role from a variety of previous not-for-profit and commercial organisations, most now defunct. Since December 2018, the Keeper of the Scottish Register of Tartans is the head of the NRS (who is also the Keeper of Records and Registrar General for Scotland more broadly). SRT's tartan database itself is also named the ''Scottish Register of Tartans''. It is uncertain how large the database is, but it has absorbed records of at least 7,000 tartans from previous registries, in addition to accepting new entries from 2009 onward.
History
The
government of Scotland had been considering sponsoring an official register of tartans, following a
member's bill
A private member's bill is a bill (proposed law) introduced into a legislature by a legislator who is not acting on behalf of the executive branch. The designation "private member's bill" is used in most Westminster system jurisdictions, in w ...
submitted by
Jamie McGrigor
Sir James Angus Rhoderick Neil McGrigor, 6th Baronet (born 19 October 1949) is a Scottish Conservative Party politician, who is a councillor in Argyll and Bute. He had previously been a Member of the Scottish Parliament (MSP) for the Highlands ...
MSP in February 2007. On 9 October 2008, the
Scottish Parliament
The Scottish Parliament ( gd, Pàrlamaid na h-Alba ; sco, Scots Pairlament) is the devolved, unicameral legislature of Scotland. Located in the Holyrood area of the capital city, Edinburgh, it is frequently referred to by the metonym Holyro ...
passed the "Scottish Register of Tartans Bill". On 13 November 2008, the bill received
royal assent
Royal assent is the method by which a monarch formally approves an act of the legislature, either directly or through an official acting on the monarch's behalf. In some jurisdictions, royal assent is equivalent to promulgation, while in other ...
.
The register's
website
A website (also written as a web site) is a collection of web pages and related content that is identified by a common domain name and published on at least one web server. Examples of notable websites are Google Search, Google, Facebook, Amaz ...
was publicly launched on 5 February 2009.
The Keeper of the Scottish Register of Tartans is the same person as the
Keeper of the Records of Scotland
The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...
and
Registrar General for Scotland
The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) ( gd, Oifis Choitcheann a' Chlàraidh na h-Alba) was a non-ministerial directorate of the Scottish Government that administered the registration of births, deaths, marriages, divorces and adopti ...
– roles that merged with the merger of the
National Archives of Scotland
The National Archives of Scotland (NAS) is the previous name of the National Records of Scotland (NRS), and are the national archives of Scotland, based in Edinburgh. The NAS claims to have one of the most varied collection of archives in Europe ...
(NAS) and
General Register Office for Scotland
The General Register Office for Scotland (GROS) ( gd, Oifis Choitcheann a' Chlàraidh na h-Alba) was a non-ministerial directorate of the Scottish Government that administered the registration of births, deaths, marriages, divorces and adopti ...
(GROS) into the
National Records of Scotland
National Records of Scotland ( gd, Clàran Nàiseanta na h-Alba) is a non-ministerial department of the Scottish Government. It is responsible for Civil registry, civil registration, the census in Scotland, demography and statistics, family histor ...
(NRS) in 2011. Since December 2018, this has been NRS Chief Executive
Paul Lowe
Paul may refer to:
*Paul (given name), a given name (includes a list of people with that name)
* Paul (surname), a list of people
People
Christianity
*Paul the Apostle (AD c.5–c.64/65), also known as Saul of Tarsus or Saint Paul, early Chri ...
.
Database of tartans
SRT's database, also named simply ''Scottish Register of Tartans'' (''SRT''), is accessible without fee via the websit
TartanRegister.gov.uk The purpose of the register is to provide a definitive and accessible resource to preserve specific tartan designs, including their
thread counts. The data set comprises the pre-existing registrations of at least 7,000 tartans from the
Scottish Tartans Authority
The Scottish Tartans Authority (STA) is a Scotland-based organisation dedicated to preserving and promoting knowledge of Scottish tartans and Highland dress. It was formed in 1996 by former members of the Scottish Tartans Society (STS). The orga ...
(STA) ''International Tartan Index'' (''ITI''), which in turn had absorbed those of the
Scottish Tartans Society
The Scottish Tartans Society (STS) was a society committed to the recording and preservation of woven tartan designs from around the world; it maintained the ''Register of All Publicly Known Tartans''. The society was first formed in 1963 and ex ...
(STS) ''Register of All Publicly Known Tartans'' (''RTAS'') and the
IATS–TECA
The Scottish Tartans Authority (STA) is a Scotland-based organisation dedicated to preserving and promoting knowledge of Scottish tartans and Highland dress. It was formed in 1996 by former members of the Scottish Tartans Society (STS). The org ...
''TartanArt Database'' a.k.a. ''International Registry of Tartans'' (''IRT''). The ''SRT'' also includes the records of the self-titled ''
Scottish Tartans World Register
The Scottish Tartans Society (STS) was a society committed to the recording and preservation of woven tartan designs from around the world; it maintained the ''Register of All Publicly Known Tartans''. The society was first formed in 1963 and ex ...
'' (''STWR'') database, which were mostly but not entirely duplicative of the combined ''ITI'' records. From its 5 February 2009 launch date, ''SRT'' includes new registrations not found in any prior collections. Consequently, the ''SRT'' database includes all known records of historical tartans as well as many modern ones, which are often asserted to be
intellectual property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...
of particular individuals and organisations. The SRT database uses its own index-numbering system, while also preserving the ''ITI'' and ''STWR'' numbers when such designations already exist for a particular tartan.
SRT users can register new tartans for a fee via the website or post, search for and request the thread counts of existing tartans (after registering for a free account), and receive notifications of newly registered tartans.
The criteria for a new registration are fairly restrictive, requiring a clearly distinct name following one of several prescribed patterns, which must not confusingly misuse various pre-defined terms; authority to use the name, especially if it implies official recognition and acceptance by a clan, an organisation, or a jurisdiction; a design "sufficiently different" from all previously recorded tartans; and either a woven sample, a photograph thereof, or an accurate digitally rendered picture of the tartan. Thus, a significant amount of research and documentation is required, and the application fee is non-refundable, including upon rejection of an application.
Amendments to SRT-specific records require a fee, but may be declined if they would effectively result in a new design; correction of errors in data imported from ''ITI'' or ''STWR'' do not require fees but generally require documentation.
Between 1951 and 1992, the
Lord Lyon King of Arms
The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grant ...
has recorded (or "noted") 28 distinct tartans in the ''
Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland
The Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, established in 1672, is an official register of Scottish coats of arms maintained by the Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records. As a public register, it can be seen by anyone on application, ...
'' and a further 39 in the ''
Lyon Court
The Court of the Lord Lyon (the Lyon Court) is a standing Courts of Scotland, court of law, based in New Register House in Edinburgh, which regulates heraldry in Scotland. The Lyon Court maintains the register of grants of coat of arms, arms, kno ...
Book'', for a total of 74 including some minor variations. These were recorded for certain specific purposes, usually official designation by
clan
A clan is a group of people united by actual or perceived kinship
and descent. Even if lineage details are unknown, clans may claim descent from founding member or apical ancestor. Clans, in indigenous societies, tend to be endogamous, meaning ...
chiefs and by authorized representatives of organisations (some as far removed from Scotland as Canadian provinces and a United States military academy). The office of the Lord Lyon has ceased direct tartan-recording activities, except in theory by direct petition from a clan chief or from a city or other government as a matter of
heraldry
Heraldry is a discipline relating to the design, display and study of armorial bearings (known as armory), as well as related disciplines, such as vexillology, together with the study of ceremony, rank and pedigree. Armory, the best-known branch ...
.
[ Revised from material originally published in: ] All of these tartans are also included in ''ITI'' and thus in ''STR''.
Intellectual property
Registering with SRT does not automatically confer a
copyright registration
The purpose of copyright registration is to place on record a verifiable account of the date and content of the work in question, so that in the event of a legal claim, or case of infringement or plagiarism, the copyright owner can produce a cop ...
in the usual sense, but the application process provides for the recording of any asserted copyright status, which is sufficient under the
Berne Copyright Convention. Any applicable
trademark
A trademark (also written trade mark or trade-mark) is a type of intellectual property consisting of a recognizable sign, design, or expression that identifies products or services from a particular source and distinguishes them from others ...
assertion can also be recorded with an application. Registry entries for a tartan may show copyright or trademark registration numbers from other bodies, such as the
UK Intellectual Property Office
The Intellectual Property Office of the United Kingdom (often referred to as the UK IPO) is, since 2 April 2007, the operating name of The Patent Office. It is the official government body responsible for intellectual property rights in the UK ...
, if submitted with the application or later in a registry amendment request.
SRT also permits registrants to record usage-restriction preferences in their tartan records (such as use only by family or organisation members),
though there are no actual legal statutes by which such restrictions could be enforced, only an informal sense of
tartan etiquette.
For
intellectual property
Intellectual property (IP) is a category of property that includes intangible creations of the human intellect. There are many types of intellectual property, and some countries recognize more than others. The best-known types are patents, cop ...
purposes, inclusion in the ''Scottish Register of Tartans'' "provides evidence of the existence and date of
hedesign".
References
{{reflist
External links
Scottish Register of Tartansofficial website
Scottish Register of Tartans Act 2008 via Legislation.gov.uk
Heritage registers in Scotland
Online archives of the United Kingdom
Tartan databases
Tartan organisations