Ontario Province Canada Tartan Collection
Ontario Province Canada Tartan Collection
Celebrate Ontario with the province's own tartan — shades of green for the great forests, blue for the lakes and rivers, and white for the wide northern sky.
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About the Ontario Tartan
Ontario was the last province in Canada to adopt an official tartan. A sett called the Ensign of Ontario had been designed in 1965 by the textile firm Rotex Ltd and worn unofficially for decades; the official provincial tartan was drawn from it in 2000, and the Tartan Act received Royal Assent on 23 June that year.
It is a district tartan rather than a clan sett: it belongs to the province and to everyone connected with it, whatever their family name or background.
Ontario Tartan Pattern and Colours
The sett is built on shades of green for the province's forests, from the hardwoods of the south to the boreal north, with blue for its lakes and rivers — Ontario touches four of the five Great Lakes — and white for the sky.
Ontario Heritage
Ontario is a province of extremes: the fruit belt and cities of the south, the Canadian Shield with its rock and lakes across the middle, and boreal forest and muskeg reaching to the shore of Hudson Bay. It holds more fresh water than almost anywhere on earth, and takes its name from an Iroquoian word for the great lake.
Scottish settlement runs deep here: Glengarry County in the east was settled by Highlanders in the eighteenth century and kept Gaelic for generations, and Scottish names, churches, Highland games and pipe bands are found from Ottawa to Windsor. It was fitting that the Tartan Act, when it finally came, was brought forward by a member for Bruce–Grey–Owen Sound, deep in Ontario's Scottish country.
Who Is This Collection For?
This collection is made for Ontarians at home and away, Glengarry and Bruce County families, Scottish-Canadian households, pipers and anyone who wants a tartan that names their own province.
- ✓ Ontarians at home and abroad
- ✓ Glengarry and Bruce County roots
- ✓ Great Lakes and northern connections
- ✓ Pipe bands and Highland games
- ✓ Canadian heritage gifts
- ✓ Forest green tartan style
How to Wear Ontario Tartan
Ontario tartan works well across caps, shirts, hoodies, scarves, ties, jackets, blankets and keepsake gifts. Its green palette is easy to pair for provincial occasions, family gatherings and everyday wear.
Ontario Tartan FAQ
Quick answers about the Ontario provincial tartan, who may wear it and how it came about.
Is the Ontario tartan a clan tartan?
No — it is the official provincial tartan, so anyone with an Ontario connection may wear it.
When was it adopted?
The Tartan Act received Royal Assent on 23 June 2000, making Ontario the last province to adopt an official tartan.
What was the Ensign of Ontario?
An earlier sett designed in 1965 by Rotex Ltd, worn unofficially for decades and the basis of the official design.
What do the colours mean?
Shades of green for the forests, blue for the lakes and rivers, and white for the sky.
Is Ontario a Scottish province?
It has deep Scottish settlement — Glengarry County kept Gaelic for generations, and Highland games are held across the province.
Who can wear it?
Anyone with roots in or affection for Ontario — it belongs to the province, not to a family.
Wear the Ontario Tartan
Discover Ontario tartan clothing, accessories and gifts — forest green and lake blue for the province of great waters.
View Ontario Tartan Clothing