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22nd July 10, 12:38 PM
#1
 Originally Posted by Cygnus
I think I will probably at very least get a kilt in the MacDonald of Glencoe tartan, ...
That's a beautiful sett and one that I am inclined toward myself.
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22nd July 10, 01:29 PM
#2
 Originally Posted by Cygnus
I understand that - I think the thing that is frustrating to me is that all I really have is my surname and the knowledge my ancestors came from Scotland.
I understand your dilemma. My Scobee's (Scobie/Scoby) are listed as septs to the Mackay's. The name actually originated further south (Perthshire), but a Reverend Scobie moved north to Mackay country & married into the chief's family, hence the connection.
Am I related to that line? Who knows? We can only trace our Scoby's to 1720 "Scotland" 
On the other hand, my Macranald's we can trace with certainty to the Keppoch region at least as far back as the early 1500's, as well as their connection to the Keppoch branch of Clan Donald...
 Originally Posted by Riverkilt
There can be many clans in one's family tree. I like to honor them all.
Indeed! 
 Originally Posted by xman
That's a beautiful sett and one that I am inclined toward myself.
As am I!
And there is also some historical connections between the Macdonalds of Glencoe & those of Keppoch too!
Last edited by BoldHighlander; 23rd July 10 at 12:30 AM.
[SIZE="2"][FONT="Georgia"][COLOR="DarkGreen"][B][I]T. E. ("TERRY") HOLMES[/I][/B][/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]
[SIZE="1"][FONT="Georgia"][COLOR="DarkGreen"][B][I]proud descendant of the McReynolds/MacRanalds of Ulster & Keppoch, Somerled & Robert the Bruce.[/SIZE]
[SIZE="1"]"Ah, here comes the Bold Highlander. No @rse in his breeks but too proud to tug his forelock..." Rob Roy (1995)[/I][/B][/COLOR][/FONT][/SIZE]
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23rd July 10, 08:07 AM
#3
If you cannot trace your ancestry, the custom is to pick one of the Clans that list your surname as a sept. Here is an article that explains the custom:
http://www.electricscotland.com/webc...lies_septs.htm
The Clan Muir/Moore is another Clan that has a lot of sept problems check out the wiki article here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Muir
Good luck.
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23rd July 10, 11:46 AM
#4
 Originally Posted by campbell
Being an educator by trade, the very mention of Wikipedia has a tendency to make my eye twitch, but the article about Clan Muir does make the point that it's really more complicated than just "picking one of the clans that list your surname as a sept." Note that the article discusses a number of Clans that the surname Muir is associated with, and the geographic areas where those clans were dominant. Determining where your ancestors were from in Scotland really determines which clan to affiliate with.
T.
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23rd July 10, 12:28 PM
#5
 Originally Posted by cajunscot
Being an educator by trade, the very mention of Wikipedia has a tendency to make my eye twitch, but the article about Clan Muir does make the point that it's really more complicated than just "picking one of the clans that list your surname as a sept." Note that the article discusses a number of Clans that the surname Muir is associated with, and the geographic areas where those clans were dominant. Determining where your ancestors were from in Scotland really determines which clan to affiliate with.
T.
That's assuming they really were from Scotland. Be prepared for anything if you open the can of ancestors.
I tried to ask my inner curmudgeon before posting, but he sprayed me with the garden hose…
Yes, I have squirrels in my brain…
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23rd July 10, 12:34 PM
#6
Last edited by macwilkin; 23rd July 10 at 12:43 PM.
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23rd July 10, 12:38 PM
#7
 Originally Posted by cajunscot
Being an educator by trade, the very mention of Wikipedia has a tendency to make my eye twitch...
I'm the same way. I work for a university and am often shocked by how often faculty supply me with Wikipedia references for university materials. (Naturally, I send the submission back and request a peer-reviewed source.)
 Originally Posted by cajunscot
...but the article about Clan Muir does make the point that it's really more complicated than just "picking one of the clans that list your surname as a sept." Note that the article discusses a number of Clans that the surname Muir is associated with, and the geographic areas where those clans were dominant. Determining where your ancestors were from in Scotland really determines which clan to affiliate with.
I actually hadn't ventured into the realms of the Wikipedia link before I read your evaluation of it (and apologize to Campbell for my elitism). I found the read very interesting. My Swan ancestors lived almost exclusively in Midlothian (the exception being a brief stint in Ireland from about 1798/9 to 1802 at the latest). Prior to this time in Ireland, the only location I have is "Scotland". I have a lead that shows that maybe the family lived in Edinburgh prior to their few years in Ireland, but Edinburgh was a big city that was already attracting people in search of a "better life" and, to my knowledge, neither the MacQueens nor Gunns held any territory nearby (though I will concede that the MacQueens were a good deal closer to Midlothian than the Gunns).
At very least, I've learned a bit of Scottish geography from this exercise and at this point am leaning strongly toward clan MacQueen; however, I will continue trying to locate the family prior to the Rebellion of 1798 until I find an answer or lose my sanity!
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23rd July 10, 12:49 PM
#8
 Originally Posted by Cygnus
I'm the same way. I work for a university and am often shocked by how often faculty supply me with Wikipedia references for university materials. (Naturally, I send the submission back and request a peer-reviewed source.)
I actually hadn't ventured into the realms of the Wikipedia link before I read your evaluation of it (and apologize to Campbell for my elitism). I found the read very interesting. My Swan ancestors lived almost exclusively in Midlothian (the exception being a brief stint in Ireland from about 1798/9 to 1802 at the latest). Prior to this time in Ireland, the only location I have is "Scotland". I have a lead that shows that maybe the family lived in Edinburgh prior to their few years in Ireland, but Edinburgh was a big city that was already attracting people in search of a "better life" and, to my knowledge, neither the MacQueens nor Gunns held any territory nearby (though I will concede that the MacQueens were a good deal closer to Midlothian than the Gunns).
At very least, I've learned a bit of Scottish geography from this exercise and at this point am leaning strongly toward clan MacQueen; however, I will continue trying to locate the family prior to the Rebellion of 1798 until I find an answer or lose my sanity!
I was in a similar situation years ago while researching my Williamson ancestors; while listed as a sept of the Gunns, Mackays and Macfarlanes, my Williamsons were orginally from Dunfermline in the Kingdom of Fife.
T.
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23rd July 10, 12:54 PM
#9
 Originally Posted by cajunscot
I was in a similar situation years ago while researching my Williamson ancestors; while listed as a sept of the Gunns, Mackays and Macfarlanes, my Williamsons were orginally from Dunfermline in the Kingdom of Fife.
Interesting. Did you ever find a connection to one of those clans?
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25th July 10, 07:28 PM
#10
Welcome...cousin?
My links to Scotland seem to be through Ireland. Me mither's mither's da was a Sweeney. According to some people all Irish Sweenys are descended from clan MacSuibhne which was effectively kicked out of Scotland after the battle of Bannockburn in 1314...and then settled and became quite influential in Ireland. Nevertheless those that remained became clan MacQueen( although you will find MacSweens) in Scotland.
All that said, I know several Swans who wear the MacQueen tartan and I am of the opinion from talking to them and looking at all the variations and the ways the pronunciation has morphed that a good case can be made for Swan being a variant of Suibhne.
The real dilemma for me has always been which tartan...since my putative ancestors came to Argyll from Ireland in the 10th century and returned to Ireland in the 14th and since tartans and kilts were unknown until probably 2 centuries later...I'm not sure the MacQueen tartan is truly mine to claim. The only thing that sustains me is that my earliest ancestors had no surname until they had been in Scotland for some time. But by the time they left for Eire in the 14th century they were definitely macSuibhnes.
DWFII--Traditionalist and Auld Crabbit
In the Highlands of Central Oregon
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