Scottish Clans & Kindred

 

Clans are essentially kinship groups amongst Scottish people. The word “clan” is derived from the Scottish Gaelic word “clann”, which can roughly be translated as “'children” or “kindred.” Clans share a sense of identity, history, and of course, clan tartans. Clans traditionally used crests and badges to identify kinsmen and of course, they also distinguished themselves by the hundreds of tartan variants that exist today.  Clans often used a particular talisman associated with their families - particularly among the Gaelic and Pictish populations; for instance, the crabapple was used by the Lamonts of Argyll, and the mistletoe was associated with the Hays'.

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For a scholarly look at Scottish clans take a look at this fascinating article by Bruce Durle, https://www.mdpi.com/2313-5778/6/4/88