Here in Germany quilting isn't a traditional craft either, but today we have quite a few quilters here. As far as I know it started to become a hobby in the early 80th and the interest is still increasing. We don't have judged shows here like you have in US but from time to time you can find calls for entries for a competition under a special theme. I have always been very interested in the British quilt history and I have read several books about that.