Harkness is a

Scottish Scottish usually refers to something of, from, or related to Scotland, including: *Scottish Gaelic, a Celtic Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family native to Scotland *Scottish English *Scottish national identity, the Scottish ide ...

surname In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

. Its etymology is probably from the Old English personal name Hereca (a derivative of the various compound names with the first element here ''army'') plus the Old English næss ''headland'', ''cape''. The name is first recorded along the Cumbrian border (1350). By the 15th century they were firmly established in Nithsdale area of Dumfriesshire. James Harkness of Locherben led the rescue in 1684 of a group of

Covenanter Covenanters ( gd, Cùmhnantaich) were members of a 17th-century Scottish religious and political movement, who supported a Presbyterian Church of Scotland, and the primacy of its leaders in religious affairs. The name is derived from ''Covenan ...

s who were being taken for trial in Edinburgh. For this act his brother was hanged the following year.

Tartans

There are two

tartan Tartan ( gd, breacan ) is a patterned cloth consisting of criss-crossed, horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven wool, but now they are made in other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Sc ...

s that are recognized for the Harknesses of Nithsdale clan. One is the traditional red, and the other is the "ancient" blue. Both tartans were created by Harvey Harkness Rulien in 1982.

Family name

People with the surname include: * Shaun Harkness - an English Mechanical engineer and Landscaping and fencing specialist *

Alistair Harkness Alistair Ross Harkness (born 7 August 1974, Melbourne) is a former Australian politician and member of the Victorian Legislative Assembly for the Labor Party. Early life Dr Harkness grew up in Frankston, Victoria, where he attended Frankston ...

- an Australian politician *

Anna M. Harkness Anna Maria Richardson Harkness (October 25, 1837 – March 27, 1926) was an American philanthropist. Early life She was born on October 25, 1837, in Dalton, Ohio, and was the daughter of James Richardson and Anna ( née Ranck) Richardson. Not m ...

- an American philanthropist *

Anthony Harkness Anthony or Antony is a masculine given name, derived from the ''Antonii'', a '' gens'' ( Roman family name) to which Mark Antony (''Marcus Antonius'') belonged. According to Plutarch, the Antonii gens were Heracleidae, being descendants of Anton ...

- an American inventor * Charles W. Harkness - heir to

Standard Oil Standard Oil Company, Inc., was an American oil production, transportation, refining, and marketing company that operated from 1870 to 1911. At its height, Standard Oil was the largest petroleum company in the world, and its success made its co-f ...

fortune and namesake of Harkness Tower at

Yale University Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wo ...

* Daniel Harkness - an American university professor * Daniel M. Harkness - an American businessman and early Standard Oil investor *

Deborah Harkness Deborah Harkness (born 1965) is an American scholar and novelist, best known as an historian and as the author of the All Souls Trilogy, which consists of ''The New York Times'' best-selling novel ''A Discovery of Witches'' and its sequels '' ...

- Author and historian * Douglas Harkness - a Canadian politician * Edward Harkness - an American philanthropist *

Georgia Harkness Georgia Elma Harkness (1891–1974) was an American Methodist theologian and philosopher. Harkness has been described as one of the first significant American female theologians and was important in the movement to legalize the ordination of wome ...

- an American Christian theologian *

H. W. Harkness Harvey Willson Harkness (May 25, 1821 – July 10, 1901) was an American mycologist and natural historian best known for his early descriptions of California fungal species. Born and raised in Massachusetts and trained as a physician, Harkness ...

– an American mycologist and natural historian * Hilary Harkness – an American painter * James Harkness (disambiguation) *

Jerry Harkness Jerald B. Harkness (May 7, 1940 – August 24, 2021) was an American professional basketball player. He played for the New York Knicks of the National Basketball Association (NBA) and the Indiana Pacers of the American Basketball Association (ABA ...

(1940–2021), American basketball player * John Granville Harkness - a British major-general *

Kenneth Harkness Kenneth Harkness (byname of Stanley Edgar; November 12, 1896 – October 4, 1972) was a chess organizer. He is the creator of the Harkness rating system. Life and career He was born in Glasgow, Scotland. He was Business Manager of the United Sta ...

- manager of the

United States Chess Federation The United States Chess Federation (also known as US Chess or USCF) is the governing body for chess competition in the United States and represents the U.S. in FIDE, the World Chess Federation. US Chess administers the official national rating s ...

* Lamon V. Harkness - an American businessman, heir to

fortune and important Standardbred horse breeder *

Nancy Harkness Love Nancy Harkness Love (February 14, 1914 – October 22, 1976), born Hannah Lincoln Harkness, was an American pilot and airplane commander during World War II. She earned her pilot's license at age 16. She worked as a test pilot and air racer in th ...

- an American pilot * Ned Harkness - a college and

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

coach *

Rebekah Harkness Rebekah West Harkness (née Semple West; April 17, 1915June 17, 1982) also known as Betty Harkness, was an American composer, socialite, sculptor, dance patron, and philanthropist who founded the Harkness Ballet. In 1947, she married William Hale ...

- founder of the Harkness Ballet *

Robert Harkness Professor Robert Harkness Royal Society of London, FRS FRSE FGS (28 July 1816 – 4 October 1878), was a British geologist and mineralogist. Early life Robert Harkness was born in Ormskirk on 28 July 1816. His family moved to south-west Scotland ...

- an English geologist *

Ruth Harkness Ruth Elizabeth Harkness (21 September 1900 - 20 July 1947) was an American fashion designer and socialite who traveled to China in 1936 and brought out the first live giant panda to the United States - not in a cage or on a leash, but wrapped in h ...

- American fashion designer and socialite who brought the first

giant panda The giant panda (''Ailuropoda melanoleuca''), also known as the panda bear (or simply the panda), is a bear species endemic to China. It is characterised by its bold black-and-white coat and rotund body. The name "giant panda" is sometimes us ...

to the western world * Stephen V. Harkness - best friend and business partner of John D. Rockefeller * William L. Harkness - heir to

fortune

Fictional characters with the name

* Agatha Harkness - a witch in the

Marvel Comics Marvel Comics is an American comic book publishing, publisher and the flagship property of Marvel Entertainment, a divsion of The Walt Disney Company since September 1, 2009. Evolving from Timely Comics in 1939, ''Magazine Management/Atlas Co ...

universe * Horace Harkness - a naval officer in the ' Honorverse' *Captain Harkness - Captain of the torchship ''Mayflower'' in ''

Farmer in the Sky ''Farmer In The Sky'' is a 1950 science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein about a teenaged boy who emigrates with his family to Jupiter's moon Ganymede, which is in the process of being terraformed. Among Heinlein's juveniles, ...

,'' by Robert A. Heinlein *Captain Jack Harkness, one of the main protagonists in the fictional

television series A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite television, satellite, or cable television, cable, excluding breaking news, television adverti ...

'' Torchwood'' and a companion of the television series ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'' *George "Digger" Harkness aka Captain Boomerang - a supervillain from the

DC Comics DC Comics, Inc. (doing business as DC) is an American comic book publisher and the flagship unit of DC Entertainment, a subsidiary of Warner Bros. Discovery. DC Comics is one of the largest and oldest American comic book companies, with thei ...

universe *Harkness - Rivet City security officer in the video game '' Fallout 3'' *Gary Harkness - University student and football player in Endzone, novel by Don DeLillo

References

Ancestry.com
name meaning {{DEFAULTSORT:Harkness (surname) Surnames

Tartans

Family name

Fictional characters with the name

See also

References