Meaning

noun a knee-length pleated tartan skirt worn by men as part of the traditional dress in the Highlands of northern Scotland

originFrom Middle English kilten (“to tuck up, gird”), apparently from North Germanic, ultimately from Old Norse kelta, kjalta (“skirt; lap”). Perhaps from Proto-Germanic *kelt-, *kelþǭ, *kilþį̄ (“womb”), from Proto-Indo-European *gelt- (“round body; child”). Cognate with Danish kilte (“to tuck”), Swedish kilta (“to swathe”). Related to English child.

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 3.0