The ancient Pictish-Scottish name McNairn comes from the
personal name John. The Gaelic form of their name was originally
Mac-Iain-uidhir, which means
son of dun John. However, the McNairn family of Perth traditionally derive their name from
M'an-oighre, which means
son of the heir. Experts have also theorized that the surname McNairn may be derived from
Mac-an-fhuibir, which means
son of the smith, or
Mac-an-huidhir, which means
son of the stranger. Early Origins of the McNairn family
The surname McNairn was first found in Perth, 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.
Further to the south in England, the Menaire, Menear, Manhire and other variants claim descent from Walter Maenhir who was listed in Devon in 1293. The very rare variant Manhire traces back to Ellis Menheire who was listed in Devon in 1642. [1]CITATION[CLOSE]
Reaney, P.H and R.M. Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames. London: Routledge, 1991. Print. (ISBN 0-415-05737-X)
Early History of the McNairn family
This web page shows only a small excerpt of our McNairn research.
Another 144 words (10 lines of text) covering the years 1392, 1526, 1546, 1776 and are included under the topic Early McNairn History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
McNairn Spelling Variations
Scribes in the Middle Ages did not have access to a set of spelling rules. They spelled according to sound, the result was a great number of
spelling variations. In various documents, McNairn has been spelled MacNair, MacNaire, MacNayer, MacNeir, MacNuir, Menair and many more.
Early Notables of the McNairn family (pre 1700)
Another 28 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early McNairn Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.
Migration of the McNairn family to Ireland
Some of the McNairn family moved to
Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 123 words (9 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 McNairn family to the New World and Oceana
Some of the first settlers of this family name were:
McNairn Settlers in Canada in the 18th Century
- Mr. John McNairn U.E. who settled in Canada c. 1784 [2]CITATION[CLOSE]
Rubincam, Milton. The Old United Empire Loyalists List. Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc, 1976. (Originally published as; United Empire Loyalists. The Centennial of the Settlement of Upper Canada. Rose Publishing Company, 1885.) ISBN 0-8063-0331-X
Contemporary Notables of the name McNairn (post 1700)
- Caroline McNairn (1955-2010), Scottish figurative painter