ScotlandThe people known in ancient Scotland as the Picts were the forefathers of the Bennerghan family. It is a name for a person who was the standard bearer for the king. While the origin of this name is still somewhat in dispute, most references agree that the name is derived from the Old English word banere and the word man. The family claim that their progenitor was standard-bearer to Malcolm Ceanmore about 1070. [1]
The surname Bennerghan was first found in Aberdeenshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Obar Dheathain), a historic county, and present day Council Area of Aberdeen, located in the Grampian region of northeastern Scotland, where they held a family seat at Clyntreys. The first of the name on record is Dovinaldus (Donald) Bannerman, King's Physician to King David II of Scotland in the year 1368, although traditionally the family claim that their progenitor was Standard Bearer to Malcolm Canmore in Scotland about the year 1070. [2]
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Bennerghan research. Another 144 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1382, 1400, 1467, 1500 and 1715 are included under the topic Early Bennerghan History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
When the first dictionaries were invented in the last few hundred years, spelling gradually became standardized. Before that time, scribes spelled according to sound. Names were often recorded under different spelling variations every time they were written. Bennerghan has been written Bannerman, Bannaman, Bannermane, Banerman, Banermain, Bannermain and many more.
More information is included under the topic Early Bennerghan Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
The crossing to North America did not seem so great in comparison with the hardships many Scots endured at home. It was long, expensive, and cramped, but also rewarding. North America offered land and the chance for settlers to prove themselves in a new place. And many did prove themselves as they fought to forge a new nation in the American War of Independence. The ancestors of those Scots can now experience much of their once-lost heritage through the Clan societies and highland games that have sprung up across North America in the last century. A search of immigration and passenger lists revealed many important, early immigrants to North America bearing the name of Bennerghan: John Bannerman landed in North America in 1766; William Bennerman settled in Virginia in 1635; Mark Benerman settled in St. Christopher in 1716.
