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What is a Scottish Clan and which names belong to which clans?There are a lot of misconceptions around Scottish Clans. Much of this was built up in the nineteenth century when a romanticised view of Scotland's past was made popular; including the clan system and the wearing of tartan. The main misconception is that the Highland clan was made up of a chief and his followers, who all bore his name and were related to him by ties of blood. Actually, they were made up of three distinct groups:
For those of the second group it would depend on how closely related they were to the chief as to whether they had permanent or temporary possession of land. In the latter case they would be referred to as "tacksmen". They may have a different surname to the chief. The third group, the followers, would often be sub-tenents of the tacksmen. Although they had no kinship ties, they may well have taken on the surname of the clan for protection. What bound these groups together was loyalty to the chief and interdependency in the occupation and working of the land. It was also a case of safety in numbers. Bearing all this in mind, however, knowing where a clan's territories lay can help in genealogy. For example, knowing that the McNeill's came from Barra and Gigha can help, but the likelihood that any one McNeill was related in any way to either of the two chiefs or to any other McNeill, is remote. Another point worth mentioning is the use of the term "sept". The second group above, where they have a different surname to that of the clan, could correctly be termed a sept. However, it could also be used to refer to ancient local families that were too weak to stand alone. They would become affiliated with a clan for protection, but have no kinship with the clan. It is also true that some clan historians have been guilty of "sept-snatching", according to Sir Thomas Innes of Learney, Lord Lyon King or Arms. So sometimes sept families are related to the clan chief and his family, but, more likely, they would not be.
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