Help with clan sept

[David Dubh]

My daughters boyfriend is unsure if he is Scottish or Irish,his father is not around. His last name is McSweeney he is interested to know what his clan and tartan maybe. I know that the whole clan tartan thing is a post highland/Victorian revival thing. I have found MacSween as a sept of clan Donald as Am I. Any help enlightenment from the rabble would be appreciated.
slainte David

[slothead]

Well David, that's not quite as easy as I thought it would be. Nothing pops up in my references and the name McSweeney sure sounds Irish (from an outsider's perspective). Go with your gut though and wait for someone to prove or disprove.

[Bruce Scott]

This Wikipedia article may be of interest:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Clan_Sweeney

"Clan Sweeney is an Irish clan of Scottish origin."

"Clan Sweeney doesn't have a specific recorded tartan, however sweeneyclan.com encourages the use of the Scottish Clan MacQueen tartan. The MacQueen's also derive their name from the Gaelic MacSuibhne"

[Steve Ashton]

One of the hardest myths to dispel is the one - That if your people came from Scotland, you have a Clan affiliation.

The truth is a little less romantic. The Clan system was a Highland thing. The Highlands of Scotland are in the North and West of the country. Most of the East Coast and from the town of Stirling south are the Lowlands. Most of the population centers are in the Lowlands and the vast majority of Scots are not part of the Clan system, and/or do not have a Highland Clan affiliation.

You can be 100% Scottish, born and raised in Scotland and not be part of a Highland Clan.

The whole idea of Septs today is a recent idea. In truth each Clan Chief may accept, or not, those names or people who can be considered under his or her Clan. There is no single 'Official' Sept list.

The only way to know for sure would be to do your genealogy. This is not something that is done by typing your last name into a computer. It is a paper chase. Establishing a trail of birth certificates, marriage licenses, tax records and any other piece of paper in an unbroken trail from you back to your ancestors.

All of this is made harder by changes in names and changes in spelling of names. You have to remember that prior to very recent times most people did not read and write. Names were spelled phonetically.

And people move around. More so since the Industrial Revolution.

Some people spend a lifetime searching their ancestry. It is a rewarding, and very surprising at times, hobby. One of the best sources of help with compiling your genealogy may be the records held by the Mormons.

[David Dubh]

Thanks Steve
Doing genealogical research on his fathers side is not really possible as his dad did not stick around so tracing things for this young fellow is not a real possibility. But I will advise him to try to find out some information on his dad
Cheers David

[ctbuchanan]

This type of question comes up in my clan tent at highland festivals here in the US all the time. I try to differentiate between genealogy (which we do not do) as opposed to a desire to find some connection to a clan or tartan through a family name. This appears to be the later so here is my offering.

The Surname Database offers the following:MacSweeney
This interesting surname originates in Scotland as an Anglicized form of the Gaelic "Mac Suibhne", composed of the elements "mac" meaning son of plus "Suibhne" a personal byname meaning pleasant. Suibhene was Lord of Knapdale in Strathclyde circa 1200. Later this family emigrated to Ireland and established three septs in Tirconell (Co. Donegal) as MacSweeney in the 14th Century. Murrough MacSweeny was one of the famous galloglasses. Written in Gaelic as "galloglach", the word literally means "foreign young warrior", and denotes a mercenary soldier. On May 9th 1795, Anne, daughter of James Sweeney, was christened in Downpatrick, Co. Down, and on February 4th 1837, the marriage of Brian Sweeney and Catherine Sullivan took place in Castleisland Roman Catholic Church, Co. Kerry. On June 25th 1847, a famine emigrant, Jeremiah Sweeney, aged 23 yrs., embarked from Cork on the ship "Henry-Hobbs" bound for New York. A Coat of Arms granted to the family depicts a silver lizard on a green fess between three black boars passant on a gold shield. On the Crest is an armoured arm embowed holding a battle-axe, all proper. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Murrough MacSweeny, which was dated 1267, in the "Annals of Connacht", during the reign of King Henry III, known as "The Frenchman", 1216 - 1272.

So it would seem that the young man might wear the MacQueen and feel comfortable doing so IMHO.

[georgeetta]

a term for foreign [scottish] ..mercenaries that came to ireland after ..robert bruce won scotland ..his enemies had to leave ..many were called gallowglasses or galogley ..about 1000 went to a ulster chief or king as his mercenaries ..

they had helpers called ..kerns . there are many picture s of them . there were more than just the macsweenerys ..that did this .

th