Show ContentsClardy History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The age-old Hebrides islands and the west coast of Scotland are the ancestral home of the Clardy family. Their name comes from the personal name Leod. The Gaelic form of the surname is Mac Leoid, which means son of Leod, son of Olaf the Black, King of Man and the Northern Isles. Olaf was from a dynasty of Norse Kings, who, for centuries held the Isles. They were in turn descended from King Halfdan the Stingy, a King who was reputed to be descended from the god Frey. Leod held the island of Lewis, the mainland Glenelg and part of Skye in about 1195 AD. It was his two sons who founded the two great branches of the Siol Tormod and the Siol Torquil.

Early Origins of the Clardy family

The surname Clardy was first found in on the Isle of Lewis (Scottish Gaelic: Leòdhas), where the Siol Tormod branch held the territories of Harris, Glenelg and Dunvegan Castle in Skye; while the Siol Torquil branch held Assynt and Cadboll, and the Island of Ramasay. There were no title deeds for these territories as they had been considered possessions of Norway. Yet when King Haakon asserted his authority over the lands in 1263 King Alexander resisted. Although the Scottish King Alexander signed the Treaty of Perth allowing payment of rent to Norway for all these lands, it was never paid and the whole of the western Isles became Scottish possessions.

Early History of the Clardy family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clardy research. Another 380 words (27 lines of text) covering the years 1314, 1597, 1613, 1715, 1745, 1777, 1901 and 1959 are included under the topic Early Clardy History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clardy Spelling Variations

Medieval spelling was at best an intuitive process, and translation between Gaelic and English was no more effective. These factors caused an enormous number of spelling variations in Dalriadan names. In fact, it was not uncommon to see a father and son who spelled their name differently. Over the years, Clardy has been spelled MacLeod, MacCleod, MacCloud, MacLoud and many more.

Early Notables of the Clardy family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Sir Roderick MacLeod of Dunvegan Castle who led 600 of his Clansmen to Ireland to assist in O'Donnell's rebellion and Lord MacLeod's Highlanders (73rd Regiment - later the 71st Regiment)...
Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Clardy Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clardy Ranking

In the United States, the name Clardy is the 8,957th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1


United States Clardy migration to the United States +

Scottish settlers arrived in many of the communities that became the backbones of the United States and Canada. Many stayed, but some headed west for the endless open country of the prairies. In the American War of Independence, many Scots who remained loyal to England re-settled in Canada as United Empire Loyalists. Scots across North America were able to recover much of their lost heritage in the 20th century as Clan societies and highland games sprang up across North America. Early immigration and passenger lists have documented some of the first Clardys to arrive on North American shores:

Clardy Settlers in United States in the 20th Century
  • Mrs. Y. Clardy, aged 45, who immigrated to America, in 1909
  • George D. Clardy, aged 28, who immigrated to the United States, in 1914
  • Maria Clardy, aged 32, who landed in America from Moyle, Co Carlow, Ireland, in 1916

Contemporary Notables of the name Clardy (post 1700) +

  • Herman Stacy Clardy III, United States Marine Corps major general
  • Jon Clardy (b. 1943), American professor of biological chemistry and molecular pharmacology at Harvard Medical School
  • Martin Linn Clardy (1844-1914), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Missouri (1879-1883) and (1883-1889)
  • John Daniel Clardy (1828-1918), American politician, Member of the U.S. House of Representatives (1895-1899)
  • Travis P. Clardy, American politician, Texas State Representative from District 11 (2012-)
  • Martin Linn Clardy (1844-1914), American politician, lawyer and railroad executive
  • Kit Francis Clardy (1892-1961), American politician from the state of Michigan and staunch anti-communist


  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/


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