Show ContentsMacLoud History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The western coast of Scotland and the desolate Hebrides islands are the ancient home of the MacLoud family. Their name is derived 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 MacLoud family

The surname MacLoud 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 MacLoud family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our MacLoud 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 MacLoud History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacLoud Spelling Variations

Spelling variations were extremely common in medieval names, since scribes from that era recorded names according to sound rather than a standard set of rules. MacLoud has appeared in various documents spelled MacLeod, MacCleod, MacCloud, MacLoud and many more.

Early Notables of the MacLoud 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 MacLoud Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the MacLoud family

The descendants of the Dalriadan families who made the great crossing of the Atlantic still dot communities along the east coast of the United States and Canada. In the American War of Independence, many of the settlers traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. Clan societies and highland games have allowed Canadian and American families of Scottish descent to recover much of their lost heritage. Investigation of the origins of family names on the North American continent has revealed that early immigrants bearing the name MacLoud or a variant listed above include: Alan, Angus, Anne, Catherine, Donald, George, Jean, John, Malcolm, Margaret, Mary, Murdoch and his wife Christian; Neal and his wife Margaret and three children.



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