Naming Traditions
Given names followed a traditional naming pattern in Scotland by honouring members of the family. On occasion, the same name was given to more than one child, if the first child had died, in order to perpetuate the name within the family. If both grandfathers shared a forename, it is possible to find two male children in the same family sharing the same name. This tradition was still in use in the mid 1900s and by referencing this tradition it will help you to confirm questions.
Compare data you have already confirmed with the data below to see if your family followed traditional naming patterns.
MALE CHILD
A 1st born son was generally named after the father's father
2nd born son was named after the mother's father
3rd born son was named after the father
4th born son was named after the father's eldest brother
5th born son was named after the father's second oldest brother, or the mother's oldest brother
FEMALE CHILD
A 1st born daughter was generally named after the mother's mother
2nd born daughter was named after the father's mother
3rd born daughter was named after the mother
4th born daughter was named after the mother's eldest sister
5th born daughter was named after the mother;s 2nd oldest sister, or the father's oldest sister
SURNAMES
An individual’s name was often derived from the place where he lived (Melrose), his occupation (Smith, Miller, Wright) or his relationship with someone else (Macdonald: the prefix Mac means son, the son of Donald.) Occasionally a name was based on physical abilities (Strong, Lean), character (Wise, Smart) or behavior (Keene, Lamb.)
In many cases surnames have changed so much that their origins are no longer obvious.
Those responsible for recording names were not always scholars and spelling was not standardized, phonetic spelling was often used and varied greatly. Regional accents also affected spelling. Hence, the surname variants that you will find while searching through documents.
Example: Lokart, Lochart, Lochard, Lockheart, Lockhart
Use surname variants when searching for records. Scotlands People offers this option in the search fields, or use wildcards: loc* will find any surname beginning with the letters ‘loc’.
Compare data you have already confirmed with the data below to see if your family followed traditional naming patterns.
MALE CHILD
A 1st born son was generally named after the father's father
2nd born son was named after the mother's father
3rd born son was named after the father
4th born son was named after the father's eldest brother
5th born son was named after the father's second oldest brother, or the mother's oldest brother
FEMALE CHILD
A 1st born daughter was generally named after the mother's mother
2nd born daughter was named after the father's mother
3rd born daughter was named after the mother
4th born daughter was named after the mother's eldest sister
5th born daughter was named after the mother;s 2nd oldest sister, or the father's oldest sister
SURNAMES
An individual’s name was often derived from the place where he lived (Melrose), his occupation (Smith, Miller, Wright) or his relationship with someone else (Macdonald: the prefix Mac means son, the son of Donald.) Occasionally a name was based on physical abilities (Strong, Lean), character (Wise, Smart) or behavior (Keene, Lamb.)
In many cases surnames have changed so much that their origins are no longer obvious.
Those responsible for recording names were not always scholars and spelling was not standardized, phonetic spelling was often used and varied greatly. Regional accents also affected spelling. Hence, the surname variants that you will find while searching through documents.
Example: Lokart, Lochart, Lochard, Lockheart, Lockhart
Use surname variants when searching for records. Scotlands People offers this option in the search fields, or use wildcards: loc* will find any surname beginning with the letters ‘loc’.