Show ContentsMcHardie History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Scotland's western coastal mountains and the desolate Hebrides spawned the line of the McHardie family. The name McHardie was originally a nickname for a brave person. This surname is a nickname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Nicknames form a broad and miscellaneous class of surnames, and can refer directly or indirectly to one's personality, physical attributes, mannerisms, or even their habits of dress. The surname McHardie comes from the Old French and Old English word hardi, which means brave. [1]

Another source claims that the name was originally Norman as the Magni Rotuli Scaccarii Normanniae lists Roger, Hunfrid, Robert and Nicholas Hardi in Normandy, 1180-1195. [2]

Early Origins of the McHardie family

The surname McHardie was first found in Lanarkshire (Gaelic: Siorrachd Lannraig) a former county in the central Strathclyde region of Scotland, now divided into the Council Areas of North Lanarkshire, South Lanarkshire, and the City of Glasgow.

"The home county of the MacHardies is the Highlands of Aberdeenshire and the immediate neighborhood north and south, but with some few unimportant exceptions they did not own land on Deeside. They were, however, numerous and influential. The Strathdon branch counted themselves of the Clan Chattan and followed Macintosh as their chief. Dr. Macbain suggested that the name came from Pictish Gartnaigh, pronounced Gratney, a well-known name of old in Mar. (There was an earl of Mar called Gartney or Gratney about 1300.) He thinks it was developed to MacCardney or MacCarday, and ultimately before 1587 to MacHardy." [3]

Further to the south in England, the root of the name was more often than not found. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 listed Thomas Hardi (with no place of origin) and later, Thomas Hardy was listed in the Yorkshire Poll Tax Rolls of 1379. [4]

"We learn from the Hundredorum Rolls that six centuries ago, Hardi or Hardy was also an east country name, occurring then in the counties of Norfolk, Bedfordshire, Cambridge, Huntingdonshire, etc. " [5]

Over in Ireland, "the ubiquitous English surname Hardy in Ireland often conceals an ancient Gaelic Irish name MacGiolla Deacair. Deacair is the Irish word for hard. The early Anglicized form of this name was Macgilledogher. This is now obsolete and in the absence of a reliable pedigree, or at least of a well established family tradition, it is not possible to distinguish between Hardys of English and Hardys of Irish origin. " [6]

The famous English novelist and poet Thomas Hardy (1840-1928), hailed from Stinsford, Dorset, England where his father Thomas Hardy (1811-1892) worked as a stonemason and local builder.

Early History of the McHardie family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McHardie research. Another 259 words (18 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1505, 1519, 1529, 1560, 1566, 1586, 1606, 1613, 1618, 1633, 1636, 1643, 1651, 1666, 1667, 1670, 1676, 1680, 1682, 1691, 1696, 1705, 1732, 1744, 1797 and 1890 are included under the topic Early McHardie History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

McHardie Spelling Variations

Spelling and translation were not standardized practices until the last few centuries. Spelling variations are extremely common among early Scottish names. McHardie has been spelled Hardy, Hardie, Hardey, MacHardy and others.

Early Notables of the McHardie family

Notable amongst the family at this time was Nathaniel Hardy (1618-1670), Dean of Rochester, son of Anthony Hardy of London, born in the Old Bailey, 14 Sept. 1618, and was baptised in the church of St. Martin's, Ludgate. [7]Samuel Hardy (1636-1691), English nonconformist minister, born at Frampton, Dorsetshire. [7]Sir Thomas Hardy (1666-1732), English vice-admiral, grandson of John Le Hardy (1606-1667), solicitor-general of Jersey, son of John Le...
Another 66 words (5 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McHardie Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Ireland Migration of the McHardie family to Ireland

Some of the McHardie family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 110 words (8 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.


Australia McHardie migration to Australia +

Emigration to Australia followed the First Fleets of convicts, tradespeople and early settlers. Early immigrants include:

McHardie Settlers in Australia in the 19th Century
  • Mr. Hugh Mchardie, (Mchardy), (b. 1810), aged 24, Scottish plumber who was convicted in Glasgow, Scotland for life for assault, transported aboard the "Bengal Merchant" on 27th September 1834, arriving in New South Wales, Australia, he died in 1837 [8]

New Zealand McHardie migration to New Zealand +

Emigration to New Zealand followed in the footsteps of the European explorers, such as Captain Cook (1769-70): first came sealers, whalers, missionaries, and traders. By 1838, the British New Zealand Company had begun buying land from the Maori tribes, and selling it to settlers, and, after the Treaty of Waitangi in 1840, many British families set out on the arduous six month journey from Britain to Aotearoa to start a new life. Early immigrants include:

McHardie Settlers in New Zealand in the 19th Century
  • John McHARDIE, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
  • Alexander McHARDIE, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1840
  • Dav McHARDIE, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1841 aboard the ship "Lady Nugent"
  • David Jun McHARDIE, who landed in Wellington, New Zealand in 1841 aboard the ship "Lady Nugent"
  • David McHardie, aged 38, a sawyer, who arrived in Port Nicholson aboard the ship "Lady Nugent" in 1841
  • ... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)


  1. Lower, Mark Anthony, Patronymica Britannica, A Dictionary of Family Names of the United Kingdom. London: John Russel Smith, 1860. Print.
  2. The Norman People and Their Existing Descendants in the British Dominions and the United States Of America. Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing, 1975. Print. (ISBN 0-8063-0636-X)
  3. Black, George F., The Surnames of Scotland Their Origin, Meaning and History. New York: New York Public Library, 1946. Print. (ISBN 0-87104-172-3)
  4. Bardsley, C.W, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames: With Special American Instances. Wiltshire: Heraldry Today, 1901. Print. (ISBN 0-900455-44-6)
  5. Guppy, Henry Brougham, Homes of Family Names in Great Britain. 1890. Print.
  6. MacLysaght, Edward, Supplement to Irish Families. Baltimore: Genealogical Book Company, 1964. Print.
  7. Smith, George (ed), Dictionary of National Biography. London: Smith, Elder & Co., 1885-1900. Print
  8. Convict Records Voyages to Australia (Retrieved 7th October 2020). Retrieved from https://convictrecords.com.au/ships/bengal-merchant


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