A monumental work giving origin, meaning, and history of Scottish surnames from the earliest times, references to sources--Eugene P. Sheehy

Here is a beautiful, full-color guide and complete reference for anyone interested in the history of Scotland. The origin of Scottish clans and their distinctive dress is wrapped in controversy. Yet their story can be traced back to the middle of the fifth century-and to Ireland, where the Scots then lived. This authoritative, elegantly composed guide covers over 140 clans. Organized alphabetically, the entries include information on each clan's location and history, nomenclature, and renowned clansmen--as well as the clan's current status and development.

Whether new to family history, or to Scottish research, or to the use of the Internet for either, everyone will find this book a comprehensive and easy-to-follow guide. As well as dealing with the records of those who left Scotland for a better life in North America, Australasia, or even England and Wales, the author explains the sources for ancestors who joined the forces, how DNA can help research, and the benefits of joining a family history society. Appendices provide lists of useful websites, details of charges for access to on-line records and much information that is unavailable elsewhere. This book will be welcomed as much by professional genealogists as by amateurs and beginners. Illustrated.

Although clanship as the basis of Highland society was virtually destroyed after the Battle of Culloden, clans remain the single most distinctive feature of Scottish history. Compiled and edited by the Secretary and Deputy Secretary of the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs (and published with the approval of this influential organization), this book provides the histories and heraldic details of more than 300 of the most famous clans and families of Scotland. Beginning chapters provide information on the history of the clan system, the law of the clan, tartan and Highland dress, and heraldry. Beautifully illustrated with tartans, crests, and coats of arms, with appendices listing important dates in history, Scottish monarchs, and Scottish names associated with clans and families as well as information of genealogy. Color & b&w illus.

Concise in style and informed by vast erudition, "Periods in Highland History" contains a small library's worth of information on all aspects of Highland Scottish history from the earliest times to the present. It offers a wealth of detail on topics ranging from clan warfare to the origins of the highlanders' distinctive dress to the agricultural methods they used to support themselves in their beautiful but largely barren land. Until recent times, change in the Highlands came slowly, making distinct phases in history hard to identify. Here the authors divide Highland history into seven periods marked by processes such as the development of strong clan identities, the flowering of Gaelic verse, and the recovery of highland morale after the heroic defeat at Culloden. They have thus made their subject more accessible than ever before to the layman. While their approach is always scholarly and sophisticated, the authors do full justice to the dash and excitement that characterize much of the Highland past. They describe lightly armed warriors rushing downhill on their enemies -- first to the songs of bards accompanying themselves on harps, and later to the invigorating music of the pipes. They tell of outlaws who exacted tribute from villages and engaged in daring cattle raids on the Lowlands. Numerous illustrations, many showing Highland arts, crafts and weapons, make this definitive work a delight to the eye as well as to the mind.