Quote Originally Posted by Farlander View Post
Thanks all, this is great! I would love to hear more stories of where various clans got their name. As I suspected, this is a really interesting and varied topic.

Is it correct to say that traditionally, official clans were formed by royal charter? I wonder if the clan name was typically part of the charter?

What about today? Is it correct that there are no longer royal clan charters? Still, I assume that there is an official way to register a clan (and its name and who the chief is and such). Is this done by the college of heralds through the Lord Lyon?
The clans of the highlands and islands pre-date feudalism, and existed before the king's writ ran there. Hence, they were not formed by royal charter.

How to recognize a chief, and hence a clan, is set out here: http://www.lyon-court.com/lordlyon/241.html