Is there such thing as a clan outside its clan society?
There are a few Scottish clans who still have a chieftain and a formal organisation, but many clans such as my own have no formal organisation here in Scotland but are now represented by clan societies, often based in the "New World". The clan society for my surname, to which I belong, is now long established, is American based but has worldwide membership, holds regular social events, and has an excellent genealogical database. Such a clan society has no legal status here in Scotland and where there is no chieftain to regulate matters there can sometimes be more than one clan society formed under the same family name, precisely what has happened with my own clan where a more recently formed breakaway group is purporting to represent the family name at the proposed clan pageant in Edinburgh in July of this year.