Even more memorable than these, however, is the patterned fabric which has come to symbolize Scottish culture itself: Tartan is the only textile design in the world of which a tiny scrap can evoke such feelings of pride, such identification with the historical struggles of Scots, and identification with those desirable traits associated with being Scottish - honesty, industriousness and bravery in battle.*

Although tartan-style fabrics have a very long history – a good portion of it not Scottish – today these textiles are most famous as badges of identification. Specific colors and their arrangements function as a symbolic language in their own right, representing individuals, families and clans, as well as professional groups, companies, and organizations. To the huge international family of Scots and their descendants - estimated at 40 to 60 million around the globe - tartan represents everything that is admirable and wholesome about the land of their fathers.*

The Afghanistan Memorial tartan was designed to mark, NOT CELEBRATE, the conflict which started in October 2001. The light and dark browns signify the parched and arid countryside of Afghanistan; the blue is representative of the country’s impressive mountain ranges with, with white representing their snow bound peaks; the blood red is the tragedy of the human cost on all sides.**

*http://www.tartansauthority.com/tartan/

**https://www.tartanregister.gov.uk/tartanDetails?ref=10425