Clan Craig is a

Scottish clan A Scottish clan (from Gaelic , literally 'children', more broadly 'kindred') is a kinship group among the Scottish people. Clans give a sense of shared identity and descent to members, and in modern times have an official structure recognised ...

hailing from Aberdeenshire. The clan does not have a chief recognized 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 ...

, therefore the clan has no standing under Scots Law. Clan Craig is considered an

armigerous clan An armigerous clan (from armiger) is a Scottish clan, family or name which is registered with the Court of the Lord Lyon and once had a chief who bore undifferenced arms, but does not have a chief currently recognised as such by Lyon Court. Befor ...

, meaning that it is considered to have had at one time a chief who possessed the chiefly arms, however no one at present is in possession of such arms. Per the Lord Lyon King of Arms, no clan society, association or organization is recognised as an "official Representor" of an Armigerous Clan. Armigerous clans have no official Representor, as they do not have a Chief or Commander recognized by the Lord Lyon King of Arms. The only official Representor of a Scottish Clan is the Chief or Commander officially recognized in their letters patent, or more common when a Warrant has been issued by the Court of the Lord Lyon. The Clan Craig Association of America (and other clan Craig organisations), however, are an important clansman charged with business matters of the clan. The primary responsibility of all Armigerous Clan societies and associations is to find a chief or commander and bring legitimacy and honour back to their family name. ef. Adam/Innes. "Clans, Sept & Regiment of the Scottish Highlands" The Scottish surname '' Craig'' is derived from the Gaelic ''creag'' meaning " rocky hill". The surname is a

topographic name Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage and types. Toponym is the general term for a proper name of ...

for a person who lived near a steep rock, and often prefixed to the names of places in hilly or mountainous districts in various parts of Scotland. The name seems to belong particularly to the north of Scotland. John of the Craig (Johannes Del Crag) of Aberdeenshire led a party of 300 men into the

Battle of Culblean The Battle of Culblean was fought on 30 November 1335, during the Second War of Scottish Independence. It was a victory for the Scots led by the Guardian, Sir Andrew Murray over an Anglo-Scots force commanded by David III Strathbogie, titu ...

in 1335. It is believed that John of the Craig was Laird of the Craig of Auchindoir - the estate next to the Den of Craig in the Parish of Auchindoir. According to George Fraser Black, during the 15th century there were three families that styled themselves "of that Ilk" (meaning that the name of the family is the same as that of the place they come from i.e. Craig of Craig). The Craigs of Craigfintry - later Riccarton - became the most noted family. Thomas Craig of Riccarton 1538-1608, lawyer and writer, was descended from William Craig of Craigfintry"Life of Thomas Craig"
An account of the life and writings of Sir Thomas Craig of Riccarton By Patrick Fraser Tytler - retrieved 10 February 2010."Pedigree of Craig"
Visitation of England and Wales, Volume 5, 1903 - retrieved 09.03.2010 (later Craigston) in Aberdeenshire, who was born in the last half of the 15th century. William Craig's second son (also named William Craig of Craigfintry) fought against the English at the

Battle of Flodden The Battle of Flodden, Flodden Field, or occasionally Branxton, (Brainston Moor) was a battle fought on 9 September 1513 during the War of the League of Cambrai between the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, resulting in an English ...

in 1513, where he was slain. The last lineal descendant of the Craigs of Riccarton was Robert Craig of Riccarton who died in 1823 leaving no heirs."Old and New Edinburgh"
Grant, James. Old and New Edinburgh, Volume VI, 1883 - retrieved 10 February 2010. The estate of Riccarton passed to Mr. James Gibson who assumed the name and arms of Craig, changing his name to James Gibson-Craig. Members of Clan Craig may wear a

crest badge A Scottish crest badge is a heraldic badge worn to show allegiance to an individual or membership in a specific Scottish clan. Crest badges are commonly called "clan crests", but this is a misnomer; there is no such thing as a collective ''clan' ...

containing the crest of ''a

chevalier Chevalier may refer to: Honours Belgium * a rank in the Belgian Order of the Crown * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold * a rank in the Belgian Order of Leopold II * a title in the Belgian nobility France * a rank in the French Legion d'h ...

on horseback in full charge grasping a broken lance in bend Proper'', and the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

motto A motto (derived from the Latin , 'mutter', by way of Italian , 'word' or 'sentence') is a sentence or phrase expressing a belief or purpose, or the general motivation or intention of an individual, family, social group, or organisation. Mot ...

''VIVE DEO ET VIVES'' meaning "live for God and you shall have life". The heraldry within the crest badge is taken from the arms of Craig of Riccarton.

References

External links

Clan Craig

The Craig Family of Aberdeenshire
{{DEFAULTSORT:Craig Armigerous clans Scottish clans