Hi Rory,
I used George F. Black's Surnames of Scotland, Their
Origin, Meaning and History as the basis for my article, as I'm sure
was obvious. George Fraser Black (1866-1948) held a PhD, and the above
book was published in 1946. Surnames of Scotland, of course,
has become the most authoritative source for Scottish surnames. This
view is held by Sharon L. Krossa, whom I also used as a source. Ms.
Krossa is affiliated with Aberdeen University and maintains a website called
"Scottish Names 101" at
I then used the LDS church's database of Scottish Church
Records as a means of sorting and collating information, while I also had
available to me on microfilm the original, hand-written parish
registers. Through the use of these, I was able to document the
transition of the name and "prove" (as far as possible at this
point in time) George F. Black's statements regarding Argyll
Sinclairs.
Whether they were shinglers or tinklers is not terribly
important--what is important is that the Argyll Sinclairs (and those in the
Western Isles) had roots in the Clan mac na cearda (gaelic). The Scots
form of this name was McNokaird, and from approximately 1685-1750 the use of
McNokaird made its transition to the English Sinclair. I believe it's
important for Sinclairs who trace their roots back to Argyll to have this
information. However, I'm sure that not every single Sinclair
in Argyll were McNokairds--some undoubtedly originated in the traditional
Sinclair locales.
I agree with you that under the Restoration of the Clans
promoted by Robert Burns, Sir Walter Scott, Prince Albert and Queen Victoria
from 1790-1820, all Sinclairs can unite under the current Clan and Tartan
with pride!
I appreciate your interest and your
comments.
Karen Matheson
Hi Karen:
Just read your
McNokaird article and a nice piece of work it is.
Congratulations! It is really very good.
I would add as a codicil to your thesis,
however, the following:
Alexander
MacLean Sinclair was an amazingly well-connected, well-respected scholar
both in English and in Gaelic. His work was published both here and in
Scotland at the turn of the century (His 500 page tome on the
MacLeans is still in use today) and it is a remarkable achievement when
one also considers that the man grew up on an impoverished farm in one
of the poorest counties in Nova Scotia (still is). This does not
mean that he could not be wrong nor does it mean that we do not have new
information that he did not possess. But......I do not have the
Gaelic and I do not know if you do but it would be nervy of me to
contradict Professor Sinclair (a native Gaelic speaker and Gaelic
academician) even 100 years after the fact and state categorically
"The Sinclairs of Argyll were not shinglers".
Similarly, I will not argue with your thesis that they must have
been smiths. "Craftmen" or "people of the
craft" I would like to think might include shinglers and if you
don't think there's an art to shingling, try doing your own roof next
time it needs one. There is veritable skill in roofing and I should
know, I am a contractor and I value my roofers as my
brothers.
Professor Sinclair, I think would agree with your
general thesis that the Argyll Sinclairs are a different "kettle of
fish" and the proof of that is his statement that they are
"out-and-out Highlanders". My opinion is, as I have said
elsewhere, that a connection may well be there between the
Rosslyn-Caithness Sinclairs and those of Argyll but that opionion and 5
cents would have bought you a coffee in 1946. Whatever the truth
of the connection or not, our Argyll brothers and sisters are members of
our family and nothing can change that.
Juli's remark is on the money when in response to
"Sinclair's by mistake" she responds that, looked at
another way, Norman Sinclairs have no claim to be
Highland.
Yours
aye,
Rory
-----Original
Message-----
From: Matheson <zoo@uswest.net>
To:
Mailing List Sinclair <sinclair@jump.net>
Date:
Monday, May 10, 1999 7:16 PM
Subject: Re: Sinclairs by
mistake?
John,
I believe that is exactly what this means!
However, after the restoration of the clans and the return of the
"romance" of the Scots from about 1790-1820ish, Sinclairs
from everywhere can unite and claim affiliation with the Sinclair
Clan (I believe). :)
Sinclairs in Argyll were not
"shinglers." For more
information, read my article "McNokairds: The Early Sinclairs
of Argyll" found on the websites maintained by both Paul
Sinclair (http://kingcrest.com/sinclair)
and John Quarterman (www.mids.org/sinclair/)
under Argyll "Origin of Argyll Sinclairs."
Karen Matheson
Alexander Sinclairs book
states
>
The Gaelic form of the name Sinclair is Singlear. The
Sinclairs of
>Argyleshire call themselves Clann-na-Cearda
or the Children of the craft or
>trade. It is
probable that the name was given them by their neighbours
>would
naturally take for gratned that Singlear meant
shingler or >flax-dresser. The
Sinclairs of Argyll
are out-and -out Highlanders. >
Forgive me for being
obtuse but does this mean that argyle Sinclairs may have
no
real clain to be descended from the Norman/Scandiavian
Sinclairs?
Yours Aye
john
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