MacLin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Ireland
Scotland

The west coast of Scotland and the rocky Hebrides islands are the ancient home of the MacLin family. The root of their name is a devotion to St. John. The surname is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Gille Eathain, a patronymic name meaning "son of the servant of Saint John." The Clan is descended from Eachan Reaganach, (brother of Lachlan the progenitor of the Macleans of Duart). These two brothers were both descended from Gilleathain na Tuaidh, known as 'Gillian of the Battleaxe', a famed warrior of the 5th century. Eachan, or Hector was given the lands of Lochbuie from John, the first Lord of the Isles, some time in the 14th century.

Early Origins of the MacLin family

The surname MacLin was first found in the Western Isles where the Clan held extensive lands on almost every island in the Western Hebrides.

Early History of the MacLin family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our MacLin research. Another 139 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1310, 1320, 1370, 1411, 1500, 1560, 1582, 1604, 1620, 1630, 1645, 1649, 1650, 1651, 1658, 1666, 1670, 1674, 1687, 1716, 1745 and 1890 are included under the topic Early MacLin History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacLin Spelling Variations

Spelling and translation were not standardized practices until the last few centuries. Spelling variations are extremely common among early Scottish names. MacLin has been spelled MacLean, MacLaine, MacLane, MacLeane, MacClean, MacClain, MacClaine, MacGhille Eoin (Gaelic) and many more.

Early Notables of the MacLin family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Hector MacLean, Lord of Dowart (c.1560-c.1630), Scottish Lord of the Clan MacLean; Francis Cleyn (Clein, Franz Klein) (c. 1582-1658), a painter and tapestry designer; Sir John Maclean, 1st Baronet, (1604-1666); Sir Hector Maclean, 2nd Baronet of Morvern (c.1620-1651), the 18th Clan Chief of Clan Maclean from 1649 to 1651...
Another 56 words (4 lines of text) are included under the topic Early MacLin Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacLin Ranking

In the United States, the name MacLin is the 11,348^th most popular surname with an estimated 2,487 people with that name. 1

Migration of the MacLin family to Ireland

Some of the MacLin family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 67 words (5 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

MacLin migration to the United States +

Numerous Scottish settlers settled along the east coast of the colonies that would become the United States and Canada. Others traveled to the open country of the west. At the time of the American War of Independence, some remained in the United States, while those who remained loyal to the crown went north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. The highland games and Clan societies that sprang up across North America in the 20th century have helped many Scots to recover parts of their lost traditions. Research into passenger and immigration lists has revealed some of the very first MacLins to arrive in North America:

MacLin Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

William Maclin, who arrived in Allegany (Allegheny) County, Pennsylvania in 1838 2

MacLin migration to Canada +

Some of the first settlers of this family name were:

MacLin Settlers in Canada in the 17th Century

Marguerite Maclin, aged 12, who landed in Montreal in 1659

Contemporary Notables of the name MacLin (post 1700) +

Corey Maclin (1970-2013), American television broadcaster, announcer, play-by-play commentator and politician
Lonnie Lee Maclin (b. 1967), American former Major League Baseball left-fielder who played for the St. Louis Cardinals in the 1993 season
Jeremy Maclin (b. 1988), American NFL football wide receiver for the Kansas City Chiefs
F. Maclin Marrow Jr., American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Gibraltar, 1921-22 3

The MacLin Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Virtue mine honour
Motto Translation: Virtue is my honour.

Citations +

"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 26) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html