Show ContentsKanne History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The sea-swept Hebrides islands and the west coast of Scotland are the ancestral home of the Kanne family. Their name comes from the given name Ian or John. John is the most common personal name in the Highlands. The Gaelic form of the name is Mac Iain.

Early Origins of the Kanne family

The surname Kanne was first found in Argyllshire (Gaelic erra Ghaidheal), the region of western Scotland corresponding roughly with the ancient Kingdom of Dál Riata, in the Strathclyde region of Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Argyll and Bute, where they held a family seat from early times and their first records appeared on the early census rolls taken by the early Kings of Britain to determine the rate of taxation of their subjects.

Early History of the Kanne family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Kanne research. Another 166 words (12 lines of text) covering the years 1292, 1340, 1618, 1667, 1717, 1777, 1808, 1875 and 1890 are included under the topic Early Kanne History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Kanne Spelling Variations

Medieval translation of Gaelic names could not be referred to as an accurate process. Spelling was not yet standardized, and names in documents from that era are riddled with spelling variations. Kanne has been written as MacIan, MacAne, MacKane, MacKean, MacKain and others.

Early Notables of the Kanne family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Archibald McKain (1717-1777), Scottish Shoemaker and Burgess of Elgin, Morayshire, who became the 15th Chief of MacIain of Ardnamurchan. Also of note was Thomas M'kean of Delaware, one of the signers of the American Declaration of Independence. John Canne (d. 1667?)...
Another 48 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Kanne Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the Kanne family to Ireland

Some of the Kanne family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 80 words (6 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Kanne family

Many of the ancestors of Dalriadan families who arrived in North America still live in communities along the east coast of Canada and the United States. In the American War of Independence many of the original settlers traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries the ancestors of many Scots began recovering their collective national heritage through Clan societies, highland games, and other patriotic events. Research into the origins of individual families in North America revealed records of the immigration of a number of people bearing the name Kanne or a variant listed above: John MacKane settled in Carolina in 1806; Alexander, John, Peter, Thomas MacKane all arrived in Philadelphia between 1840 and 1860; James MacKean settled in Carolina in 1767.


Contemporary Notables of the name Kanne (post 1700) +

  • Fred H. Kanne, American politician, U.S. Collector of Internal Revenue for Hawaii, 1941-46 1
  • General Wesley Kanne Clark KBE (b. 1944), American retired Army officer and the Supreme Allied Commander Europe of NATO from 1997 to 2000 and Rhodes Scholar


  1. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 6) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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