![]() A group without a chief recognised by the Sovereign, through the Lord Lyon, has no official standing under Scottish law. Clans with recognised chiefs are therefore considered a noble community under Scots law. Learney considered clans to be a "noble incorporation" because the arms borne by a clan chief are granted or otherwise recognised by the Lord Lyon as an officer of the Crown, thus conferring royal recognition to the entire clan. A romantic depiction of Highland Chiefs from 1831Īccording to the former Lord Lyon, Sir Thomas Innes of Learney, a clan is a community that is distinguished by heraldry and recognised by the Sovereign. A clan also included a large group of loosely related septs – dependent families – all of whom looked to the clan chief as their head and their protector. Clans developed a territory based on the native men who came to accept the authority of the dominant group in the vicinity. However, the need for proved descent from a common ancestor related to the chiefly house is too restrictive. Clan organization Clan membership Īs noted above, the word clan is derived from the Gaelic word clann. Ībout 30% of Scottish families are attached to a clan. Thus, by the eighteenth century the myth had arisen that the whole clan was descended from one ancestor, perhaps relying on Scottish Gaelic clann originally having a primary sense of 'children' or 'offspring'. Contrary to popular belief, the ordinary clansmen rarely had any blood tie of kinship with the clan chiefs, but they sometimes took the chief's surname as their own when surnames came into common use in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries. Most of the followers of the clan were tenants, who supplied labour to the clan leaders. Many clansmen, although not related to the chief, took the chief's surname as their own either to show solidarity or to obtain basic protection or for much needed sustenance. It is a common misconception that every person who bears a clan's name is a lineal descendant of the chiefs. The most notable clan event of recent times was The Gathering 2009 in Edinburgh, which attracted at least 47,000 participants from around the world. Clans generally identify with geographical areas originally controlled by their founders, sometimes with an ancestral castle and clan gatherings, which form a regular part of the social scene. Many clans have their own clan chief those that do not are known as armigerous clans. By process of social evolution, it followed that the clans/families prominent in a particular district would wear the tartan of that district, and it was but a short step for that community to become identified by it. Historically, tartan designs were associated with Lowland and Highland districts whose weavers tended to produce cloth patterns favoured in those districts. The modern image of clans, each with their own tartan and specific land, was promulgated by the Scottish author Sir Walter Scott after influence by others. Most clans have their own tartan patterns, usually dating from the 19th century, which members may incorporate into kilts or other clothing. Clans give a sense of shared identity and descent to members, and in modern times have an official structure recognised by the Court of the Lord Lyon, which regulates Scottish heraldry and coats of arms. A Scottish clan (from Scottish Gaelic clann, literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred' ) is a kinship group among the Scottish people.
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