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The Dalriadan clans of ancient Scotland spawned the ancestors of the McCant 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.
The surname McCant 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.
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McCant 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 McCant History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
The medieval practice of spelling according to sound and repeated translation between Gaelic and English created many spelling variations of the same name. McCant has been recorded as MacIan, MacAne, MacKane, MacKean, MacKain and others.
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 McCant Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
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.
Descendents of Dalriadan-Scottish families still populate many communities across North America. They are particularly common in Canada, since many went north as United Empire Loyalists at the time of the American War of Independence. Much later, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the highland games and Clan societies that now dot North America sprang up, allowing many Scots to recover their lost national heritage. Some of the first immigrants to cross the Atlantic and come to North America bore the name McCant, or a variant listed above: