How about a skirt? Could a man wear a skirted garment, other than a kilt, without losing his manly identity?
It does not make sense, should a kilt be the only manly alternative to trousers, should it? Also, it shouldn't make sense, should all men, wanting a break from jeans and shorts, embrace the kilt. They don't. Some men consider the traditional kilt too much connected with Scottish culture. They'll simply wear another skirted garment.
Add to that that, no doubt, quite a few, including enthusiastic kilt wearers, will alternate between kilts and skirts according to their current whim.

History

Men have earlier been wearing skirted garments, without being accused of being or appearing femme. In some parts of the world, they still do.
In Ancient Egypt, men were wearing skirts called shendyts. Jesus never wore trousers, Socrates didn’t. When Emperor Augustus declared that the “World” should be counted, Roman men and boys were wearing mini-skirt looking tunics or long dress-like togas. The Roman Empire was built by men in skirts. Trousers were not invented with the purpose of having men look more masculine but because trousers were more practical for a lot of tasks, those being fewer in today’s world.

 

European kings and noble men would up to the French revolution appear in clothing which we today should definitely consider female.

History proves that men can wear skirts - and remain men.
Some men are wearing skirts today, like some are wearing kilts. And no doubt, in future, we shall see more men choosing this most convenient garment.

Men shall wear skirts again

There are several reasons why, eventually, men in skirts shall become common.

1. Society has become liberal

In most of the civilized world, people have become open-minded and tolerant. People can live, look and dress the way they want, to an extend never seen before.

2. Men are already dressing less conservatively

These years, we witness ties disappearing, and the business suit certainly has known better days. In some Western cultures, they since long have had casual Fridays, in others, casual Fridays have become Monday through Friday, and 'Sunday's Best' has since decades been history. Colours are no longer limited to 'manly' blue, green, grey, brown, and black. Sweaters, shorts, and jeans we see in once 'female-only' red, purple, and even pink.

Many items have become unisex, like hoodies, polos, t-shirts, and sneakers.

3. Fashion designers are positive.

In the last 20 years or so, designers have been working on bringing skirts to men, the last 2-3 years, however, harder than ever before.

4. The fashion industry should profit big scale

Men in skirts, like women in trousers, what a new market comprising half the population? As soon as manufacturers see things moving, be sure, they shall show more than willing to follow up.

5. Celebrities are seen in skirts

Names like Harry Styles und Brad Pitt have in 2022 made headlines all over the world, because them wearing skirts or dresses.

6. Fashion magazines are supportive

Vogue, GQ, and many others have recently had men in skirts on their cover pages and have had styling tips for men in skirts.

It should be noted that men and women never dressed identically, something today's men in skirts often seem to forget - or don't know. To have men, except for a small minority, wear skirts again, we need skirts designed for us, sewn for us, positioned for us.
This being also the case when women around 60 years ago started wearing trousers, up till then the monopoly of men. They wanted and got their own trousers, and they didn't mix them with more of men's garments, but kept their own tops, hosiery, and shoes.

1. Man skirts

Man skirts are to buy

Man skirts, sometimes called male skirts, are to buy! Some enterprises are making and marketing them, and no doubt, it is just the start.

International

Amazon, ASOS, and EMP International are now selling man skirts on a regular basis. To see what they are offering, just go to their websites and search for man skirts or male skirts.

Amazon

ASOS

EMP International

Under category Kilts

Europe

France

Le Jupes des Hommes

The company is situated in Nantes. Many skirt styles are available.

Spain

Daves Brand

Outside of Europe

To mention are

USA

SkirtCraft

In 2015 American SkirtCraft launched a skirt. It started out to be a man skirt, but eventually the company decided to position it as a unisex thing.

Mexico

BARON

Prices may at a first glance seem high, but they are in Mexican dollars.

Man skirts can be tailored to your wishes

If you have an idea about how you should like a kilt or a man’s skirt - your skirt - to look like, you could go to a tailor and have one made.

You might design and make your own skirts

It is not for every man to make his own skirts. He must have skills in designing and sewing techniques. But I have an example and a very good one. It's Dirk, a German, living in Rheinland-Westfalen. Looking at his often-colourful skirts you feel that discussing whether they are masculine or feminine or for men or women makes no sense. They are not just unique, they are right.

Sarongs

Outside the western world we find the sarong which has its origin in Sri Lanka and is being worn by many men. It is also known under names like kikoy (South Africa), lamba (Madagascar), longyi (India), malong (Philippines), mundo (Maldives), and pah kao mah (Thailand, the version for men).

Basically the sarong is a big piece of cloth, worn around the waist as a wrap skirt. And often it is a very cheap garment to be primarily worn on the beach. However, Sri Lanka based Lovi Ceylon offers a wide range of more sophisticated sarongs which looks like being more universally wearable and therefore might better appeal to men in our part of the world. LOVI CEYLON.

2. Skirts designed for women?

Fortunately, men can, in most of what we might describe as the civilized world, wear whatever feminine garment they should like to. A good example is a Czech couple, where he, Vlasta, as a natural thing not only wears skirts, but also dresses etc. - completely women's garb, something which seems to be fully accepted by his wife, Michaela. And by society, in the Czech Republic. Gender Blender.

So, should you (and your wife) be ok with someone probably putting you in some LGTBQ+ drawer, because this is what society shall still do, when men are crossing the imaginary border between manly and (too) feminine, you can wear whatever skirt - or dress - you like. It is no crime, and in a still more tolerating world you shouldn't face problems at all. Your choice, simply.

But it is NOT what this site is about.

Manly skirts

You can wear a skirt, even if designed for women, and without sacrificing your manliness. You must, however, be most careful with the skirt and even more about how you accessorize it. With the right skirt, and everything else from your own wardrobe you'll be recognized as being simply a MAN, having for some or another reason chosen to wear a skirt.

The main problem with women's skirts is not that they are designed for women, but that they, these years, tend to be very feminine, thin fabrics, floral motives, either below knee-length or really minis, being accordingly either too long or too short for a man, wanting to appear manly, to wear.
Further, women are most of the time wearing trousers, and when not, they'll wear a dress rather than a skirt. This means that the availability of skirts in general is limited, and those which might look masculine (enough) on a man, therefore, very few. But impossible to find a suitable skirt in the women's section it is in no way.

A dress, just for the sake of good order?

Men and women are shaped differently, men’s upper body being longer than women’s, just being one of the differences, and meaning that most dresses shall fit badly on a man or not fit at all.

Much more important, however, is the perceived difference between a skirt and a dress, the dress being considered the most feminine of all garments.

In a skirt, 2/3 of you can still signalize man, whereas, in a dress, 2/3 of you should look femme and to a degree that hardly can be balanced by means of just heavy shoes and a manly haircut.
Your aura should be more than macho to make you being regarded simply a man having, obviously, on a very hot summer day and for comfort, chosen to wear a dress.
I won't say, it is impossible, but close to.

I myself should never think of wearing a dress.

Conclusion

I will in no way exclude women's skirts; but the fact that "manly" women's skirts have become harder to find, make them be less obvious to me.
Therefore, rather than buying a women's skirt just because you might save a few dollars or euros, you should consider a dedicated man skirt - would be my advice.