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The ancestors of the MacDugald family come from the ancient Scottish kingdom of Dalriada. Their surname comes from the personal name Dougal. The Gaelic form of the name is Mac Dhughaill and literally means son of Dougal.
The surname MacDugald 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 were descended from Dugall eldest son of Somerled, first Lord of the Isles, and his son Duncan who received the lands of Lorn. The Clan was a bitter foe of Robert the Bruce, who made a narrow escape during one battle with the MacDougals only by discarding his cloak. The brooch of this cloak, now known as the Brooch of Lorn, is a treasured possession of the Chief of the Clan. The Clan faced heavy retaliation and was stripped of their lands once Robert the Bruce secured the Scottish throne. The lands were restored to the Clan upon the death of the king, but passed to the Stewarts in 1388 when the last member of the senior branch of MacDougals died without issue.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our MacDugald research. Another 154 words (11 lines of text) covering the years 1175, 1244 and 1316 are included under the topic Early MacDugald History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Medieval spelling was at best an intuitive process, and translation between Gaelic and English was no more effective. These factors caused an enormous number of spelling variations in Dalriadan names. In fact, it was not uncommon to see a father and son who spelled their name differently. Over the years, MacDugald has been spelled MacDougall, MacDowall, MacDowell, MacDugald, MacDill and many more.
Another 44 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early MacDugald Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Settlers from Scotland put down roots in communities all along the east coast of North America. Some moved north from the American colonies to Canada as United Empire Loyalists during the American War of Independence. As Clan societies and highland games started in North America in the 20th century many Scots rediscovered parts of their heritage. Early North American records indicate many people bearing the name MacDugald were among those contributors: Ralph, Patrick and Mary MacDougal settled in Charles Town [Charleston], South Carolina in 1767; Dougal and Hugh MacDougal settled in Charles Town in 1767.