The personal name Duncan can be found in Scotland’s oldest records in its
Gaelic
Gaelic is an adjective that means "pertaining to the Gaels". As a noun it refers to the group of languages spoken by the Gaels, or to any one of the languages individually. Gaelic languages are spoken in Ireland, Scotland, the Isle of Man, and Ca ...
form Dunchad/Donchadh/Donachie/Donnchadh and other spelling variants.
Origins
(Dunchad) Duncan, originally a forename is one of the earliest names in Scotland – and originates from the Dalriadan Celtic
Celtic Scotii (Scots) from
Ireland
Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...
who colonised the south west of Scotland from about the 4th century AD.
Dúnchad (Duncan mac Conaing) co-ruled Dalriada with
Conall II (c.650 - 654).
Other early accounts of the name include the inscribed ‘4th century AD Turpillian Stone’ located at
Crickhowell, Wales. A particularly early mention of the name Duncan. Inscribed in
Ogham (an early form of Celtic writing) on the stone also carried the
Latin translation "TURPILLI IC IACIT PUUERI TRILUNI DUNOCATI" which roughly translates as 'The Fort Warrior'. Mention is also made of
Dunchad (Duncan) the 11th Abbot of Iona, 707 – 717AD (later St. Dunchadh) and Dunchad (Duncan) the 39th Abbot in 989AD.
Records from this time are scant and it is not until after the unification by
Kenneth MacAlpin around 843 AD of the
Celtic Scots of
Dál Riata (Dalriada) and the aboriginal
Picts
The Picts were a group of peoples who lived in what is now northern and eastern Scotland (north of the Firth of Forth) during Late Antiquity and the Early Middle Ages. Where they lived and what their culture was like can be inferred from ea ...
of northern Britain do we start to see the name significantly being used in other parts of Scotland. One of the earliest references to Dunchad/Donchad, is found in the margins of the 11th century ''
Book of Deer
The ''Book of Deer'' (''Leabhar Dhèir'' in Gaelic) (Cambridge University Library, MS. Ii.6.32) is a 10th-century Latin Gospel Book with early 12th-century additions in Latin, Old Irish and Scottish Gaelic. It contains the earliest survivin ...
'' the oldest writings in
Scots Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic ( gd, Gàidhlig ), also known as Scots Gaelic and Gaelic, is a Goidelic language (in the Celtic branch of the Indo-European language family) native to the Gaels of Scotland. As a Goidelic language, Scottish Gaelic, as well as ...
known in Scotland today, These manuscript were written by the early Christian Monks of the Abbey of Deer in
Aberdeenshire
Aberdeenshire ( sco, Aiberdeenshire; gd, Siorrachd Obar Dheathain) is one of the 32 Subdivisions of Scotland#council areas of Scotland, council areas of Scotland.
It takes its name from the County of Aberdeen which has substantially differe ...
.
When
Duncan I
Donnchad mac Crinain ( gd, Donnchadh mac Crìonain; anglicised as Duncan I, and nicknamed An t-Ilgarach, "the Diseased" or "the Sick"; c. 1001 – 14 August 1040)Broun, "Duncan I (d. 1040)". was king of Scotland (''Alba'') from 1034 to 1040. H ...
took the
Scottish throne
The monarch of Scotland was the head of state of the Kingdom of Scotland. According to tradition, the first King of Scots was Kenneth I MacAlpin (), who founded the state in 843. Historically, the Kingdom of Scotland is thought to have grown ...
, unlike the "King Duncan" of
Shakespeare's Macbeth, the historical Duncan appears to have been a young man. He followed his grandfather
Malcolm II as king after the latter's death on 25 Nov. 1034, without apparent opposition. He may have been Malcolm's acknowledged successor or tánaise as the succession appears to have been uneventful. Duncan would have been wise to pacify his remaining family, especially his cousin
Thorfinn the Mighty, Earl of Orkney; his other cousin, Macbeth; and the person closest to his throne,
Queen Gruoch, Macbeth's wife. By 1040, however, Duncan had been defeated in battle and the crown was in the hands Macbeth.
![Scottish clan map](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/78/Scottish_clan_map.png)
Fifty-four years later, despite being the son of Malcolm Canmore,
Duncan II was also dead at the hands of his relatives. Although Duncan had left a son, the throne was seized by his younger half-brother, one of the children of
English Queen Margaret.
Ewyn (Ewan) fitz Duncan was one of the signatories on
‘The Ragman Rolls’, the deed of homage draughted by
Edward I of England
Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...
to bind the King and nobles of Scotland.
John Duncan was the owner of property in
Berwick in 1367. The mayor of this Border port is recorded as John Duncanson, in all likelihood the formers son.
According to one account, a Clan Donachie/Donnachadh
had emerged in the early 14th century from the
Earls of Athole. The clan name is said to come from Donnachadh Reamhar -‘Stout Duncan’. Legend has it that this chief led the clan into
Battle at Bannockburn in 1314. Both the Duncans and the
Clan Donnachaidh (Robertsons) descend from the 4th Donachie/Donnachadh Chief.
The predominant Duncans of the East of Scotland were the
Duncans of Lundie in
Forfarshire
Angus ( sco, Angus; gd, Aonghas) is one of the 32 local government council areas of Scotland, a registration county and a lieutenancy area. The council area borders Aberdeenshire, Dundee City and Perth and Kinross. Main industries include agri ...
. Their extensive property included not only the
Barony of Lundie
The Barony of Lundie is a Scottish Feudal Barony, Scottish feudal Crown barony created during the reign of David II of Scotland, King David II for John Iles, Baron of Lundie granting him the lands and title of the Baron of Lundie. In June 1489 Jam ...
but also the estate of Gourdie. In 1764,
George III’s physician, Sir William Duncan was created a
Baronet
A baronet ( or ; abbreviated Bart or Bt) or the female equivalent, a baronetess (, , or ; abbreviation Btss), is the holder of a baronetcy, a hereditary title awarded by the British Crown. The title of baronet is mentioned as early as the 14th ...
. The 1st and last Baronet. By 1795,
Adam Duncan of Lundie had become Commander of the Fleet in the
North Sea
The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian S ...
and
Admiral of the Blue
The Admiral of the Blue was a senior rank of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom, immediately outranked by the rank Admiral of the White (see order of precedence below). From 1688 to 1805 this rank was in order of precedence third; after 1805 ...
. With a glorious career of victories he was created 1st Viscount Duncan of Camperdown in 1797 and his son was made the 2nd Earl of Camperdown in 1831. The title became extinct in 1933 with the death of George Alexander Philips Haldane Haldane-Duncan, 4th Earl of Camperdown (1845–1933) in
Boston, Massachusetts. The Duncan name in Scotland is most prominent in Aberdeenshire, Dundee & Angus, and Fife.
Castles
![Camperdown House](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/ba/Camperdown_House.jpg)
*
Lundie Castle, once stood seven miles south-east of
Coupar Angus, but there are no remains.
[Coventry, Martin. (2008). ''Castles of the Clans: The Strongholds and Seats of 750 Scottish Families and Clans''. pp 169. .] The lands were held by the Duncans and many of them are buried in nearby Lundie kirkyard.
The castle was demolished and replaced by a house in the seventeenth century, which itself was demolished to make way for the present mansion.
*
Camperdown House Camperdown may refer to:
Places
;Australia
* Camperdown, New South Wales, a suburb of Sydney
* Camperdown, Victoria, a town in Western Victoria
;Canada
* Camperdown Signal Station, operated 1797–1925, located on Portuguese Cove, Nova Scotia
;E ...
was built by the Duncans in the nineteenth century in four hundred acres of park land.
The grounds are now a country park.
As of 2008 there were plans to have a museum at Camperdown House about
Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan
Admiral Adam Duncan, 1st Viscount Duncan, KB (1 July 17314 August 1804) was a British admiral who defeated the Dutch fleet off Camperdown on 11 October 1797. This victory is considered one of the most significant actions in naval history.
Li ...
and his victory at the
Battle of Camperdown
The Battle of Camperdown (known in Dutch as the ''Zeeslag bij Kamperduin'') was a major naval action fought on 11 October 1797, between the British North Sea Fleet under Admiral Adam Duncan and a Batavian Navy (Dutch) fleet under Vice-Admiral ...
.
Branches
'Duncan Territorial Houses, Lairds and Barons'
*
Duncan of Seaside & Lundie (Camperdown)
*
Duncan of Jordanstone
*Duncan of Ardownie
*Duncan of Sketraw
[Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland - volume 88, folio 7.]
*Duncan of Mott
*Duncan of Parkhill
*Beveridge-Duncan of
Damside
*
Gomme-Duncan of Dunbarney
Clan Position
![Duncan Banner](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Duncan_Banner.jpg)
Clan Duncan
is an
Armigerous clan but with no present Chief of the name Duncan. For the present, the Clan is being led by the
armigerous
Territorial House of Duncan of Sketraw. Both
Armorial Bearings and
Territorial Designation
In the United Kingdom, a territorial designation follows modern peerage titles, linking them to a specific place or places. It is also an integral part of all baronetcies. Within Scotland, a territorial designation proclaims a relationship with ...
are recorded in the
Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland
The Public Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland, established in 1672, is an official register of Scottish coats of arms maintained by the Lyon Clerk and Keeper of the Records. As a public register, it can be seen by anyone on application, ...
.
It is the aim of the Clan Duncan Society to have a Chief of the name Duncan or one of the various spelling variants officially recognised by the
Lord Lyon King of Arms
The Right Honourable the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the head of Lyon Court, is the most junior of the Great Officers of State in Scotland and is the Scottish official with responsibility for regulating heraldry in that country, issuing new grant ...
either by a proven genealogical link to the last Chief around 1434 or more likely by the
Derbfine process laid down by The Lord Lyon to gain official recognition of a Clan Duncan Chief.
Clan Tartans
Tartans associated with Clan Duncan
The ancient kilt - not displayed
Duncan or Leslie of Wardis
Clan/Family Tartan which is the oldest and dates from around 1880. Little is known why the tartan is co named
Leslie of Wardis an Aberdeenshire Family however, it has always been associated and known as the Clan Duncan Tartan.
Thread Count:
K/8 G42 W6 G42 B42 R/8
(Half Sett with Full Count at the Pivots.)
The Duncan of Sketraw
Clan/Family Tartan, designed in 2005 by Brian Wilton of
Scottish Tartans Authority
The Scottish Tartans Authority (STA) is a Scotland-based organisation dedicated to preserving and promoting knowledge of Scottish tartans and Highland dress. It was formed in 1996 by former members of the Scottish Tartans Society (STS). The orga ...
.
Thread Count:
R/4 K12 G4 K4 G28 K2 Y4 K2 B10 R2 B10
K2 W4 K2 G28 K2 B/4
(Half Sett with Full Count at the Pivots.)
See also
*
Duncan (surname) Duncan is a Scottish and Irish surname. For the etymology of the surname ''Duncan'' this web page cites: ''Dictionary of American Family Names''. Another opinion is that the Gaelic ''Donnchadh'' is composed of the elements ''donn'', meaning "brown ...
*
Clan Donnachaidh
References
{{reflist, colwidth=30em
External links
Clan Duncan Society
Duncan
Duncan may refer to:
People
* Duncan (given name), various people
* Duncan (surname), various people
* Clan Duncan
* Justice Duncan (disambiguation)
Places
* Duncan Creek (disambiguation)
* Duncan River (disambiguation)
* Duncan Lake (d ...
Armigerous clans