Author Topic: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after  (Read 28298 times)

Offline IanB

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #18 on: Wednesday 11 December 13 15:23 GMT (UK) »
Hi Ian,
Tradition has it that a certain Aodh MacThormoid Morrison, a ship's captain from Lewis, married the daughter (or sister) of the Bishop of Caithness and, as her dowry, the couple were given land in Sutherland in the districts of Durness and Ashir. (the name Ashir has been corrupted and now appears on maps as Oldshore.) "Ay Morrison (or Morison) brought over from Lewis some 60 families of Morisons to settle on this land, and this is thought to be the source of many of the Morisons who lived and live stll in these districts.  I have read several accounts of this tradition but none of them mentions any date.

To answer one of your questions: "Are the Morrisons and the MacLeods related", the short answer is: No, meaning they do not appear to have the same origins. With regard to the MacLeods, the origins of the eponymous Leod have been the subject of considerable debate but scholars do not agree. The Morrisons, according to the DNA study, in which I also participated, had over 200 sources of the name. From this I take it that the most common source is, as the name suggests, sons of Moore, Maurice (Moorish or dark complectioned) of which history records many, many.

All of that aside, the only reliable way to trace your 3 x great grandfather is to start with the oldest confirmed fact you have - a birth cert.; marriage cert.; or death cert.and work back from there, generation by generation. There are no reliable short cuts. Even family lore and family bibles should be confirmed.

Prior to 1855, there was no legal requirement to register births, marriage, or deaths. For most people, registration (mainly christenings & marriages) took place in the Church of Scotland Parish Registers. These were maintained by the Ministers and commenced at different dates by each parish, roughly from early to mid 18th century. If you Google, you can find out the names of all the parishes in the County of Sutherland and the dates that their register began. These registers have now been centralized and digitalized and can be accessed  on the LDS site, FamilySearch.org,   and on a pay-per-view site called "Scotlands People" ( I think, but you can find it by Googling - I don't use it myself)

Ian, this hobby requires a lot of time. Good luck!

IanB (morrison)
Morrison, MacKay, MacCulloch, Sutherland, Dingwall, MacLeod, Donn, Calder,Blyth/Blythe; Baxter; Woodburn;Fleming;Hobkirk

Offline ian_morison

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #19 on: Wednesday 11 December 13 23:06 GMT (UK) »
Thankyou Namesake ! ...maybe cousin! really appreciate your answer.
I have had my DNA tested and the results are in the Morrison project through myFTDNA.Is the study you mention still available to look at?
And should I be considering changing my nmae back to the Gaelic Machustian Macachinroy or something to that affect ?!

Best wishes and a meery Xmas to you and family.

Ian Morison :) ;)

Offline djct59

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #20 on: Friday 13 December 13 10:19 GMT (UK) »
Ian: MacHustian MacAchinroy means "Son of Hugh, the son of Red-haired Hector". Gaelic names were based on patronymics as there were inevitable several, say "Angus MacKays" or "Donald MacLeods" in any community. That particular name might not suit you....

Offline ian_morison

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #21 on: Friday 13 December 13 23:29 GMT (UK) »
True, I don't have red hair , and my names not Hugh.

It's just been good for me to reconnect with the names of my ancestors.


Offline harbert

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #22 on: Saturday 29 March 14 09:37 GMT (UK) »
At last I have found a site that nearly answers my MacLeod ancestry problems. I have managed to trace back to Donald (Bain)MacLeod jnr,( or Little Donald Bain) born c1758 in Achunahanait who married Ann Dalrymple(MacKay) in 1779 and then had a family of four. James 1779, Mary 1786, John 1788, and Janet 1788. all listed for Christening at Durness, Sutherland. Can anyone help with more information on this family, Would appreciate any comments.

Offline djct59

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #23 on: Saturday 29 March 14 16:26 GMT (UK) »
This may take a while...

There were two Donald MacLeods married in Durness in 1779. I think the one you're referring to is Donald MacLeod junior alias Macnishbhain (son of fair-haired Angus) of Achunahanait, who married Ann MacKay nin Nishnmaceniconil (daughter of Angus the son of John the son of Donald) in Hope on 12th January 1779. As his youth is not commented upon, he's likely to have been in his mid-twenties; early marriages were rare in this part of Sutherland.

Unfortunately his older brother Donald mhor MacLeod Macnishbhain was also a tenant in Achunahanait, and married to Barbara Campbell aka Grange.

On 19th December 1779 there is a baptism entry of one James MacLeod, son of the younger Donald MacLeod and Ann Dalrymple nin Nishnmaceanicdhonil in Hope, which is clearly the child of the marriage above, although there is no explanation of the change of surname from that listed eleven months previously.

By the birth of Hugh (baptised on 1st April 1782), they are still in Hope and Ann is now MacKay, alias Dalrymple.

There's an error in the baptism entry for Mary on 4th March 1786, where Donald's surname has been mistranscribed as MacKay, although the place of birth, wife's name and patronymics all fit.

By the time the twins Janet and john are baptised on 2nd November 1788, Donald is correctly listed as MacLeod, and is a dry stone mason. Ann is listed only as Dalrymple, but retains her former patronymic, although the spelling in the printed version differs from one entry to the next. 

Offline djct59

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #24 on: Saturday 29 March 14 16:35 GMT (UK) »
James MacLeod of Hope married Flory MacKay of Hope on 14th March 1803. They are probably the parents of Neil MacLeod, baptised at West Moine on 14th June 1805 and a daughter Dol baptised there on 15th February 1808, although no mother's name is listed (the West Moine records are often very poorly kept). The birth of Catherine, baptised on 22nd August 1811 does list both James and Flora (sic) as parents, as does the baptism of Ann on 29th January 1814.

Offline djct59

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #25 on: Saturday 29 March 14 16:43 GMT (UK) »
Mary MacLeod of Hope married one Hugh Gunn from Skirrid, parish of Tongue on 3rd January 1812. *Your* Mary would be 26 then. There are no children of this marriage recorded in the Durness records till 1814, but that may be because they had set up home in the parish of Tongue.

There is no record of a marriage for Hugh up to 1814

Offline harbert

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Re: Macleods of Achunahanait and various spellings there after
« Reply #26 on: Sunday 30 March 14 12:28 BST (UK) »
many thanks djct59  that has moved me further back with correct information. Am I correct in thinking that Angus MacLeod was son of John MacLeod born Isle of Skye  c1695

Are you a relation of mine by any chance?  My line goes from these MacLeods down to Ellen Caroline MacLeod c1824 who married John Christian from the Isle of Man in 1845.

again many thanks  Mary