 The Scottish clan system was a defining feature of political and social organisation in Scotland for centuries, with feuds and warfare between clans pretty common down through Scottish history. The word clan itself means children or family in Gaelic, and clan chiefs historically were almost as powerful with kings down through history. In my video on the origins of Scottish clans, I ask you to comment down below on your clan origins and any relevant requests. So today I want to review your clan origins from the likes of clan Gibson, clan Weir, Wallace and my own clan itself, Macmillan. I'll put chapters in this video so feel free to skip to your clan origins or the one you find the most interesting. The first clan we will look at today is the origins of clan Gibson. Gibson is thought to be derived from Gibb, shortened forms of the popular Middle Ages personal name Gilbert, with the surname Gibson, meaning son of Gibb. In Scotland, there is a record of a Gibson of Rothsy on the Isle of Butte in the 9th century. One theory suggests that the Gibson's came from Irish tribes who first settled in Scotland's western sea borne, particularly Argyll, from around 500 AD. Gibson is considered to be a sub-branch of clan Buchanan. Clan Buchanan and their kin's folk, including the Gibson's, fought for the cause of Scottish independence and the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314. In England, it took the form of Gieselbert, which was popularised by the Normans after 1066, composed of their Germanic elements, Giesel, meaning hostage or noble youth, and Bert, meaning bright or famous. Clan Wallace bears the name of probably the most famous Scottish person in all of history, William Wallace, but what about the origins of Clan Wallace? Wallace may come from a corruption of Lou Willay, meaning the Welshman. The name Wallace first appears in the historical record in the 12th century. After Walter Fitz-Allen, a baron of Breton origins in France, became the steward of Scotland under King David I. Although Walter himself was a founder of the steward clan, a follower of Walter came north from Oswestory, a town in England near the Welsh border. His name was Richard Wallace. There are various theories as to where the reference to Wales comes from. It could come from an Old English word, Wallace, meaning foreigner or Welshman. It could be the case that the Wallaces were Celtic Britons from the Welsh area, who then moved into Scotland and were therefore referred to as the Welsh. We know that in general there were strong links between Wales and the Brythonic Kingdom of Strathclyde, also known as the Old Clue. In fact, historically in Scotland, Walensis was a word used for people from the Strathclyde area, which the Wallaces may have lived before moving south into Ayrshire. The exact origins of Clan MacIver are not clear, but it is thought that MacIver is an anglicisation of a Gaelic name, meaning son of Iver, an Old Norse name. The MacIvers are considered seps or branches of larger clans such as the Campbells in the MacKenzie's. Clan Sweeney is an Irish clan of Scottish origins, and they are thought to have moved into Ireland around the 14th century as Gallaglass soldiers, a subject of a video on, who were essentially elite groups of Norse scale mercenaries who settled in Ireland. The origins of Clan McKinley are a little unclear, but they are associated with County Donegal in Ireland. It is thought to mean the son of Finlay in Scotland, although there does seem to be an association with physicians also. There are at least three possible origins of Clan Weir. Firstly, Weir may come from the Norman French place name of Weir, with the Du Weir settling in Scotland after the Norman conquest of 1066. Secondly, Weir could be derived from an Old English word, Weir, meaning a dam or fish trap, and this explains place names such as the Scottish village of Bridge of Weir and Renfrewshire. Weir therefore could be someone who lived near or worked with a dam or fish trap. Another source is from a Scotts Gale origin, meaning son of Stuart or son of the Smith, which later evolved into McNair and was then anglicised into Weir. Clan Johnston were a powerful Scottish clan on the borders. They were one of the most powerful border reaver clans who were known to keep watch against English advances along the Anglo-Scottish border known as the Scottish Marshes. Clan Elliot was another clan that occupied the border land region and they were known as being the wildest clan of the border reavers. Although associated with the borders, the name could potentially have come from Elliot near Dundee. The border region in general was a wild place historically, a somewhat lawless place as there was constant tension and threat of conflict given its geography. When war between Scotland and England erupted, it was always devastated. This instability meant that farming was often considered a waste of time for many. As the border land was destroyed whenever war broke out, the border reavers were known to raid and plunder along the Anglo-Scottish border. Another border clan was Armstrong. As for the Lingle surname, it is included in a list of seps of clan Graham, although the exact reason for this is unclear. The Anil clan that later became a dynasty is of Irish Gaelic origins and it is a surname synonymous with power in Ireland. The Anil's trace the descent back to her 10th century High King of Ireland. Clan Taylor has said to get his name from an old French word talé, meaning to cut as in a cutter of cloth. So what about my clan origins? And in general if the audio sounds a wee bit terrible at the moment, I do have a bit of a sore throat and a bit of a head cold, so that's the reason for that. But yeah, my surname is Macmillan, so what about the origins of Clan Macmillan? Well they seem to have a religious or ecclesiastical background. And the Macmillan clan claims descent from followers of the ancient Celtic church. Macmillans were also known to fight alongside Robert the Bruce during the fight for Scottish independence. My gran is also a Campbell, however, so what about the origins of Clan Campbell? One of the most powerful clans historically in Scotland in the Scottish Highlands. They are known as the Race of Dermid, with two of the largest branches being Bredalbane and Codor. So I've tried to cover as many clan origins as possible in this video, but there's literally hundreds of Scottish clans, so if there's clans I've missed out or mistakes I've made in this video, please get in the comments below. I also couldn't go into too much detail on each clan, otherwise this video would be about five hours long, so I hope you recognize it's just a kind of introduction to each clan history. But lots of interesting subject matter there, and lots of different avenues I want to delve more in future videos. Particularly the clans around the border area I thought was really interesting, and the border weavers, which is a subject I'm definitely going to make a video on down the line and potentially travel to the kind of border area to make such a video. If you have any requests for videos, please get in the comments below. Also, if you do value this content, and if you do want ad free and early access to my videos, please become a member of my Patreon page. I've started uploading ad free content to my Patreon page, and you'll get access to that for as little as a pound a month. 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