Contents [hide]

Clune History Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

United States Canada Australia New Zealand

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Citations

Clune History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

The chronicles of the Clune family reach back into Scottish history to an ancient tribe known as the Picts. The ancestors of the Clune family lived in the lands of Clunie in Stormont, Perthshire. "This place, which is of remote antiquity, is distinguished as the scene of a battle between the Caledonians and the Romans under Agricola. In a field near the Hill of Gourdie, are still remaining several mounds, in a parallel direction, separated by trenches of equal length, called the "Steeds Stalls;" and here the advanced guard of the Caledonian army was posted to watch the movements of the Roman army, which was encamped on the plains of Inchtuthill, about two miles to the south." 1

Early Origins of the Clune family

The surname Clune was first found in Perthshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Pheairt) where "William de Clonin witnessed a confirmation charter by Alexander II to the Abbey of Arbroath c. 1214-1218. The ward of Eugene de Cluny is referred to in 1263. William de Cluny of Perthshire rendered homage in 1296, and appears again on an inquest at Perth in 1304. Another William de Cluny, chaunteur of Breghyn in the county of Strivelyn, also rendered homage in that year and is mentioned again in 1305 as Sir William de Clony, chaplain to the bishop of Brechin. Adam Cluny of Fifeshire also rendered homage in 1296, and John de Cloni or de Cloney of Fife was one of the Scots prisoners taken at Dunbar Castle in the same year." 2

The mentions of "rendered homage" in the preceding paragraph refers to King Edward I of England's intrusion into Scotland.

Cluny is a parish in the district of Kincardine O'Neil, county of Aberdeen "The name of this place, signifying, in Gaelic, meadows interspersed with rising grounds, is descriptive of the appearance of the locality." 1

Early History of the Clune family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Clune research. Another 130 words (9 lines of text) covering the years 1214, 1296, 1616, 1686, 1757, 1784, 1787, 1790, 1791 and 1819 are included under the topic Early Clune History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clune Spelling Variations

When the first dictionaries were invented in the last few hundred years, spelling gradually became standardized. Before that time, scribes spelled according to sound. Names were often recorded under different spelling variations every time they were written. Clune has been written Clunie, Clooney, Cloon, Cloone, Clowney, Clune, Cluney, Clunis and many more.

Early Notables of the Clune family

Notable amongst the Clan at this time was John Clunie (1757?-1819), "the supposed author of the beautiful Scotch [(Scottish)] song 'I lo'e na a laddie but ane,' born about 1757. He was educated for the church of Scotland, and licensed by the presbytery of Edinburgh on 29 Dec. 1784. He then became schoolmaster at Narkinch, Fifeshire, and possessing a fine voice and some musical skill acted as precentor in the parish church. In 1790 he was presented by the Duke of Buccleuch to the parish of Ewes, Dumfriesshire, and...
Another 88 words (6 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Clune Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Clune Ranking

In the United States, the name Clune is the 18,287^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 3

Clune migration to the United States +

The crossing to North America did not seem so great in comparison with the hardships many Scots endured at home. It was long, expensive, and cramped, but also rewarding. North America offered land and the chance for settlers to prove themselves in a new place. And many did prove themselves as they fought to forge a new nation in the American War of Independence. The ancestors of those Scots can now experience much of their once-lost heritage through the Clan societies and highland games that have sprung up across North America in the last century. A search of immigration and passenger lists revealed many important, early immigrants to North America bearing the name of Clune:

Clune Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

Bartholomew, John, and Joseph Clune, who arrived in Philadelphia between 1858 and 1868

Clune migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

Clune Settlers in Canada in the 19th Century

Mr. Ned Clune, aged 16 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "George" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in June 1847 4
Mr. Thomas Clune, aged 21 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Naomi" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in September 1847 4
Mr. William Clune, aged 10 who immigrated to Canada, arriving at the Grosse Isle Quarantine Station in Quebec aboard the ship "Rankin" departing from the port of Liverpool, England but died on Grosse Isle in June 1847 4
Miss. Ellen Clune, aged 1 who was emigrating through Grosse Isle Quarantine Station, Quebec aboard the ship "Agnes" departing 10th April 1847 from Cork, Ireland; the ship arrived on 10th June 1847 but she died on board 5

Clune migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

Clune Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century

Mr. Michael Clune, (b. 1813), aged 31, Irish farm labourer who was convicted in County Clare, Ireland for 14 years for arson, transported aboard the "Cadet" on 9th April 1844, arriving in Tasmania (Van Diemen's Land), he died in 1891 6
Biddy Clune, aged 23, a farm servant, who arrived in South Australia in 1852 aboard the ship "Sibella" 7
Patrick Clune, aged 28, who arrived in South Australia in 1857 aboard the ship "Caucasian" 8

Clune migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

Clune Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century

Conor Clune, aged 32, a labourer, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864
Sarah Clune, aged 22, who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864
Maria Clune, aged 6 mths., who arrived in Auckland, New Zealand aboard the ship "Maori" in 1864
Miss Mary Clune, (b. 1858), aged 21, British settler travelling from Plymouth aboard the ship "Stad Haarlem" arriving in Wellington, New Zealand in 1879 9

Contemporary Notables of the name Clune (post 1700) +

Colonel John J. Clune (1932-1992), American Director of Athletics at the United States Air Force Academy (1975-1991)
Donald Andrew "Don" Clune (b. 1952), former American NFL football wide receiver
Michael Clune, American politician, Member of New York American Labor Party Executive Committee, 1945; American Labor Candidate for U.S. Representative from New York 43rd District, 1950 10
John H. Clune, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Springfield, Massachusetts, 1894-98; Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Massachusetts, 1912 10
Francis Patrick Clune OBE (1893-1971), Australian author, travel writer and historian
Deirdre Clune (b. 1959), Irish Fine Gael politician
Patrick Joseph Clune DD CSsR (1864-1935), Irish-born, Australian bishop, the fourth Roman Catholic Bishop of Perth and first Archbishop of Perth
Richard Clune (b. 1987), Canadian NHL ice hockey left winger for the Nashville Predators from Toronto
Jackie Clune (b. 1965), British entertainer and writer

Citations +

Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of Scotland. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 19)
Charbonneau, André, and Doris Drolet-Dubé. A Register of Deceased Persons at Sea and on Grosse Île in 1847. The Minister of Canadian Heritage, 1997. ISBN: 0-660-198/1-1997E (p. 69)
Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 17th November 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/cadet/
South Australian Register Tuesday 3 February 1852. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) SIBELLA 1852. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/sibella1852.shtml
South Australian Register Tuesday 26 April 1853. (Retrieved 2010, November 5) Caucasian 1857. Retrieved http://www.theshipslist.com/ships/australia/caucasian1857.shtml
New Zealand Yesteryears Passenger Lists 1800 to 1900 (Retrieved 26th March 2019). Retrieved from http://www.yesteryears.co.nz/shipping/passlist.html
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 15) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html