Scottish Surname Origins & Genealogy Resources
Scottish names are generally derived from one of the following:
- Patronymics - a surname based on the name of his father
- Occupations (Burgess) - a representtive in Parliament
- Local features or places (Guthrie) a town in Scotland
- Nicknames (Inglis) an Englishman.
Patronymic names account for the majority of Scottish surnames. There are a few occupational names with a few coming from Gaelic origins.
With Scottish surnames, it is worth remembering that people moved constantly between Ireland and Scotland. Roots of some Scottish surnames can be traced to the followers of William the Conqueror, to Norse and Flemish origins (present-day Belgium), and to several other countries of Europe.
Some Common Scottish surnames are:
Aitken
Alexander
Allan
Anderson
Armstrong
Austin
Bell
Black
Boyd
Boyle
Brown
Bruce
Buchanan
Burnett
Burns
Calhoun
Cameron
Campbell
Christie
Clark
Cooper
Craig
Crawford
Cummings
Cunningham
Davidson
Dickson
Docherty
Donaldson
Douglas
Duncan
Ferguson
Findlay
Fleming
Fletcher
Forbes
Fraser
Gibson
Gordon
Graham
Grant
Gray
Hamilton
Hay
Henderson
Hill
Hughes
Hunter
Jamieson
Johnston
Jones
Keith
Kelly
Kennedy
Kerr
King
Lindsye
MacDonald
MacKay
MacKenzie
MacLean
MacLeod
Marshall
Martin
Maxwell
McBride
McDonald
McGregor
Mcintosh
Mcintyre
McKay
McKenzie
MacMillan
McLaughlin
McLean
MacMillan
Miller
Milne
Mitchell
Montgomery
Moore
Morrison
Muir
Munro
Murphy
Murray
Paterson
Ramsey
Reid
Reilly
Ritchie
Robertson
Rose
Ross
Russell
Scott
Shaw
Simpson
Sinclair
Smith
Stevenson
Stewart
Sutherland
Taylor
Thompson
Walker
Wallace
Watson
Watt
White
Williamson
Wilson
Wood
Wright
Young
To find additional surnames, choose the first letter of surname:
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