McKitrake History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland
Ireland

The story of the McKitrake family stretches back through time to the Viking settlers who populated the rugged shores of Scotland in the Medieval era. The name McKitrake was derived from the Old Norse personal name Sigtryggr, which literally means true victory. The Gaelic form adopted for the surname is Mac Shitrig.

Early Origins of the McKitrake family

The surname McKitrake was first found in Galloway (Gaelic: Gall-ghaidhealaibh), an area of southwestern Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Dumfries and Galloway, that formerly consisted of the counties of Wigtown (West Galloway) and Kirkcudbright (East Galloway), where they held a family seat from very ancient times, some say well before the Norman Conquest and the arrival of Duke William at Hastings in 1066 A.D.

Early History of the McKitrake family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McKitrake research. Another 106 words (8 lines of text) covering the years 1000, 1376, 1643 and 1890 are included under the topic Early McKitrake History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McKitrake Spelling Variations

Spelling variations are extremely common among Scottish names dating from this era because the arts of spelling and translation were not yet standardized. Spelling was done by sound, and translation from Gaelic to English was generally quite careless. In different records, McKitrake has been spelled MacKettrick, Kettrick, Kitterick, MacKitterick, MacEtterick, McKettrick, McKetrick, Ketterick and many more.

Early Notables of the McKitrake family

More information is included under the topic Early McKitrake Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the McKitrake family to Ireland

Some of the McKitrake family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 76 words (5 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 McKitrake family

Those who made the voyage were greeted with ample opportunity to acquire land and a political climate far away from the oppressive monarchy of the old country. They settled along the east coast of what would become Canada and the United States. In the American War of Independence, those who remained loyal to England traveled north to Canada as United Empire Loyalists. In this century, many Scots living in North America have begun to recover their rich heritage through festivals, highland games, and Clan societies. An examination of passenger and immigration lists has shown early immigrants bearing the name McKitrake: Dr. John Kittredge (b. 1620), who arrived in America in 1660; G. B. Kitteredge, who arrived in San Francisco in 1852; F. M. Kitterage arrived in San Francisco in 1857.