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Electric Scotland News
I watched the interview by Tucker Carlson with Vladimir Putin on YouTube which made me want to know more about the history of Russia and so I have posted up some additional material on our Russia page including videos and historical books at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
--------
I also note that in polling predictions in the USA that Donald Trump is leading the polls and is currently predicted to win the election for President later this year.
See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBRIPpx4f8w
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
Here is what caught my eye this week...
SNP lost thousands of members during first year of Humza Yousaf leadership
The First Minister was forced to reshuffle his Cabinet team this week after the dramatic resignation of Michael Matheson.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...uring-32085990
The Most Important Country No One Talks About
Once a peripheral power, Indonesia, which will elect a new president on February 14, is now a regional fulcrum the U.S. cannot afford to ignore.
Read more at:
https://www.city-journal.org/article...ntial-election
Exclusive: Tucker Carlson Interviews Vladimir Putin
Tucker interviews Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia. February 6th, 2024.
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOCWBhuDdDo
Four years on
Four years after Brexit many people still regard it as a mistake. Much at fault here are Conservative ministers, who rarely if ever contradict the falsely negative Rejoiner claims.
Read more at:
https://www.briefingsforbritain.co.u...eid=775c261c5d
This Is HUGE. Putin Exposes The CIA.
In his interview with Tucker Carlon, Vladimir Putin alleges that the CIA controls our Presidents. We already knew that due to the deep state's reaction to Trump, who they didn’t expect. But now, Putin is confirming it. They are dumbing down and drugging Americans en masse while overthrowing governments worldwide. But to what end?
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BdtMv-vyn0
Diversity won't save an army unprepared for war
Many are shocked by revelations that the MoD has spent millions on senior ‘diversity and inclusion officers’ within all three branches of the Armed Forces. The Army doesn't need lessons in diversity: what it needs is soldiers. Particularly in a time of such geopolitical uncertainty.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/diversity-and-inclus...pared-for-war/
Why is SNP Humza Yousaf suddenly visiting Qatar without his kids? Why now?
Humza Yousaf, SNP First Minister and his wife are off to Qatar for a short visit while school kids are off yet they’re away alone.
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnUBN6Kqrrw
Conrad Black: Justin Trudeau's debacle of misgovernment
Canada has never had a government so vehemently opposed to our national interests.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/3y2Ni
The scourge of antisemitism
Staggering new statistics show that 2023 saw a 147% rise in antisemitism, with two thirds of these cases taking place after Otober 7. What has permitted this is timidity on the part of authorities and a willful ignorance among the left. That this is happening in 2024 should be a source of deep national shame.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/institutional-timidi...on-our-streets
Outside the EU, Britain can reward farmers
Farmers make up a comparatively small proportion of the electorate, but their footprint on rural communities is significant.
Read more at:
https://conservativehome.com/2024/02...-natural-world
Nicola Sturgeon's resignation one year ago turned Scottish politics on its head
Voters can see the real possibility of a change of government at Westminster in the general election later this year.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/politics/insight...cs-on-its-head
Electric Canadian
Sir Allan Napier MacNab
Politician, businessman, land speculator, lawyer, and soldier; b. 19 Feb. 1798 at Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake), Upper Canada, third of seven children of Allan MacNab and Anne Napier; d. 8 Aug. 1862 at Hamilton, Canada West.
Read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...ir-william.htm
The Canadian Scene
Sketches: Political and Historical by Hector Charlesworth (1927) (pdf)
An interesting book which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...ke0000unse.pdf
Assunta Howard, and other stories and sketches
1891 (pdf)
You can read this collection at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...untaHoward.pdf
The Canadian Pioneers
By Abbé H. R. Casgrain, Translated from the French by A. W. L. Gompertz (1896) (pdf)
You can read this translation at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...n_pioneers.pdf
Photographic Record and Souvenir of the Canadian Grenadier Guards Overseas Battalion
"Eighty Seventh" by Col. F.S. Meighen, Q.C. 1916
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forc...yBattalion.pdf
Native Trees of Canada
By B. R. Morton, B.Sc.F., With notes on nomenclature and utilization by R. G. Lewis B.Sc.F. (1921) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...00mortuoft.pdf
The Mercantile Agency reference book and key [microform]:
Containing ratings of the merchants, manufacturers, and traders generally, throughout the dominion of Canada; with an appendix containing banking towns, banks, bankers, etc., collection laws of each province, etc., etc. (March, 1887) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...ants-guide.pdf
Sir John William Dawson
Educator, added to our Makers of Canada section
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...iam-dawson.htm
Electric Scotland
The Ancient Origins Of Medieval Scotland's Most Feared Military Tactics
Added this video to the foot of our Scottish Regiments page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/scotreg/index.htm
Scythians - Rise and Fall of the Original Horselords
A video about Kings and Generals' historical animated documentary series on the history of Ancient Civilizations continues with a video on the rise and fall of the Scythians - the first nomadic conquerors in history, original horselords, who managed to take over most of the Ponto-Caspian Steppe in the Ancient era, fighting wars with Persians, Greeks and others.
You can watch this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
The Scythians: Nomad Warriors of the Steppe
A video by Barry Cunliffe
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFsd_LyYZdo
Ness of Brodgar Talk 2023 by Nick Card
A video by the Orkney Archeology Society
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5f_B_-E-y4
You can read the following books about Russia on our Russian page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
They include...
Russia and the Peace
By Bernard Pares (1945) (pdf)
A History Of Russia
By Bernard Pares (1944) (pdf)
History of Russia
By R. Gossip (1880) (pdf)
Canny Tales About Ministers & Elders
By Allan Junior (1924) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/humour/...00junirich.pdf
Brexit - 4th Anniversary
Prepared by the Department for Business & Trade - January 2024 (pdf)
You can read this report at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...nniversary.pdf
Susan Boyle
Singer, added to our Women in History page.
You can read about her and watch some videos at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...usanboylet.htm
The History of the 9th (Scottish) Division 1914-1919
By John Ewing, M.C., Brevet-Maajor, Late 6th K.O.S.B., Introduction by Field-Marshal Lord Plumer, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., G.C.V.O. (1921) (pdf)
You can read this history at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...on19141919.pdf
Scottish Society of Louisville
Got in their February 2024 newsletter which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/familyt...ille/index.htm
Female Life in Prison
In two volumes in one by a Prison Matron, Robinson, F. W. (Frederick William); Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (1862) (pdf)
You can read this publication at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...feinprison.pdf
The Tower of Craigietocher
Following the building of a new Scottish Castle which is now complete and is now open for B & B.
Get the links to book your stay at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...agietocher.htm
Story
THE following paper, slightly curtailed, drawn up by Dr. Stark, and printed in the Sixth Detailed Annual Report of the Registrar-General for Scotland, for 1860, embodies so much curious and interesting information on the subject of surnames that it may be fitly inserted here.
It may be mentioned, as a striking peculiarity of the inhabitants of Scotland, that both among the Celtic race in the Highlands, and the Lowland races on the Border, it was the custom for all to assume as their surname the name held by the head of the family, either because they were actually his descendants, or because they were his vassals and property. Hence, in the Highlands, we have large clans of the name of Macdonald, Stewart, Campbell, Mackay, Maclean, Murray, Cameron, &c.; and among the inhabitants of the Border counties the names of Scott, Graham, Kerr, Johnston, Elliott, Armstrong, &c.
To ascertain the number of distinct surnames in Scotland, it may be mentioned that the index of the birth register of a whole year has been alone taken, and every separate surname enumerated in it, when they were found to amount to 6823 separate surnames, while the total registered entries of births amounted to 104,018. These numbers would give the proportion of 15.2 persons to every surname, or 6.5 different surnames to every 100 persons. The English proportion, ascertained in the same manner by the Registrar-General of England, in 1855, was 8.4 persons to every surname, or 11.9 surnames in every 100 persons. The above facts therefore appear to demonstrate that the effect of the
CLAN SYSTEM OF SURNAMES IN SCOTLAND
is to cause a much larger number of persons to hold the same surname; in other words, that, in proportion to the population, fewer surnames exist in Scotland than in England. But the above figures do not exhibit the true proportion of Scottish surnames to the Scottish population, nor the full effect of clanship in diminishing the number of surnames; or rather in causing a smaller number of surnames to go over a larger portion of the population. Within the last sixty years a very large addition to the surnames has been made in Scotland, in consequence of the immense immigration from Ireland. This immigration, beginning about the year 1820, did not assume gigantic proportions till about the year 1840, when the demand for railway labourers brought the Irish over in hundreds and thousands. Since that period, in addition to bringing over about a thousand names which are common to Scotland and to Ireland, they have added to the Scottish surnames nearly a thousand, which, till that period, were peculiar to Ireland. Were it not, therefore, for the enormous addition to the surnames made in recent years, the proportion of persons attached to each surname in Scotland would be more than double the proportion of England.
Being, however, desirous of obtaining some more definite information relative to the surnames in most common use in Scotland, the complete indices of three years were examined, extracting all the surnames which had numerous entries under them, and carefully tabulating the number of entries in the several indices, as well as noting all the peculiar names. From that mass of surnames, the fifty in most common use in Scotland were abstracted ; and the subjoined table shews not only what these fifty most common surnames are, but also the number of times in which each of these occurs in the general indices of births, deaths, and marriages for the three years, 1855, 1856, and 1857. During these three years the total names entered on the registers amounted to 609,639; and as the fifty surnames in that table included 180,748 of that number, it would appear that these fifty most common surnames embraced 29*6 per cent, of all the names entered on the registers. In England it was found that the fifty most common surnames only included about 18 per cent, of all the names entered on the indices; so that the above fact corroborates the conclusion previously drawn from the proportion of total surnames—viz., that the adoption of clan surnames in Scotland has had the effect of causing a larger proportion of garsons to hold the same surname than in ngland, so that proportionally fewer surnames are used among the population. It has been endeavoured to render this table of the fifty most common surnames in Scotland more interesting, by adding the estimated number of the population attached to each surname. Such particulars will afford a valuable means of comparing the changes of surname which may occur in the course of ages.
To render the Scottish table of surnames more interesting by comparison, we have compared the English table of surnames, taken from the Sixteenth Report of the Registrar-General, which clearly shows that the clan predominance of surnames in Scotland, as compared with that of England, becomes very apparent. Thus, while in the English fifty most common surnames, only twenty-seven can be referred to the Christian fore-name, or name of the sire or head of the family, thirty-seven may be so referred of the fifty most common surnames in Scotland. The great majority of these fifty Scottish names are therefore truly sire-names, either in their pure, unaltered state, as, Grant, Cameron, Duncan, Graham, Kerr, Martin, Allan, &c.; or altered so as to express the descent from the head of the family, as, Robertson, Thomson, Johnston, Watson, Morrison; or with the Gaelic Mac, which means “son,” as, Macdonald, Mackay, Maclean, Macleod, &c.
Possibly in every country the surnames may be divided into four great classes; and it is possible, also, that the chief peculiarities of each country, in so far as the surnames are concerned, may depend on the relative preponderance which each of these classes bears to the other in the general population. These four classes may be regarded as—1st, Surnames derived from patronymics, that is, from the Christian fore-name of the head of the family; 2nd, Surnames derived from the rank or occupation of the persons; 3d, Surnames taken from the locality in which the persons dwelt; 4th Surnames, or soubriquets, given to persons from some supposed personal quality or resemblance.
1st, Almost all the names of our
BORDER AND HIGHLAND CLANS
belong to the first class, and they are peculiarly Scottish—neither belonging to England nor to Ireland. These surnames include all those beginning with Mac—as, Macgregor, Mactaggart, &c.; beside those simple ones—as, Fraser, Douglas, Cameron, Kerr, Grant, &c.
2nd, The surnames derived from
RANK AND OCCUPATION
are very numerous, but are equally common to England as to Scotland. Of these, in both countries, Smith is the most common name; after which follow, in Scotland, Stewart, Miller, Clark, Taylor, Walker, and Hunter; but in England, after Smith comes Taylor, Wright, Walker, Turner, Clark, and Cooper.
3d, Surnames taken from the locality in which the persons originally resided form a very numerous class, and they also are, to a great extent, peculiar to Scotland, seeing that there is scarcely a county, parish, town, river, or remarkable locality, but has its name perpetuated in the surnames. Thus, for instance, of the counties we have, as surnames, Fife, Nairn, Stirling, Ross, Lothian, Sutherland, Berwick, Roxburgh, &c. Of parishes, we have Abbey, Fordyce, Alves, Peebles, Farr, Bathgate, Callander, Traquair, Campsie, Cullen, Kirkpatrick, Bothwell, &c. Of towns, we have Glasgow, Leith, Aberdeen, Montrose, Biggar, Lauder, Melrose, Hamilton, &c.
4th, That soubriquets, perpetuated
AS SURNAMES,
are perhaps the most varied of all, and embrace every personal or mental quality supposed to reside in different individuals to whom they were originally given. They may hence be divided into dozens of subdivisions, according as they were given from the person’s general appearance, or the colour of his skin or hair— hence, Black, White, Green, Gray, Brown, &c.; or from his supposed likeness to the animal creation—as, Lyon, Bull, Stott, Bullock, Lamb, Hogg (which does not mean a pig or sow, but a lamb a year old), Collie, Tod (which is the Scottish name for the fox), Fish, Haddock, Salmon, Finch, Swan, Heron, &c.; or from its size and make—as, Meikle, Little, Long, Thin, Meiklejohn, Littlejohn; or from his strength, swiftness, or other qualities—as, Strong, Stark, Swift, Bold, Bauld, Good, Noble, &c.
It would have been very interesting, in comparing some of the commoner surnames of England and of Scotland, to have shewn how the language of each country has altered the name, so as to make the families of each country whose names are derived from the same occupation, similitude, or quality, equally distinct. Thus, the common surname Baker in England, is almost completely supplanted by the name Baxter in Scotland, and all the Bakers may be considered as of English origin. The English surname Fox is quite superseded by the Scottish form Tod, which is a very common name having the same meaning. The English surname Bullock is known in Scotland by the common surname of Stott, which has the same meaning. The English surname Crow takes the form of Craw. The English surname Dove takes the form of Dow, as does the English surname Love the Scottish form of Low, &c.; but even one of the cosmopolitan and very common surnames receives its characteristic modification in the two countries, seeing Robinsons in England become converted into Robertsons in Scotland.
BY FAR THE MOST COMMON SURNAME
is Smith. Of the 609,639 entries on the index in the three years above named, Smith occurred 8835 times; thus, of itself, constituting nearly 11 per cent, of the total entries, and corresponding to a total population of 44,378 Smiths in Scotland in 1861. It is also the most common surname in England, but not quite so prevalent as in Scotland; for while England only has one Smith in every 73 persons, Scotland has one Smith in every 68.
After the cosmopolitan surname Smith, the next most common is a purely Scottish one— Macdonald. In this respect England agrees with Scotland that, after its cosmopolitan name Smith, comes a purely English and Welsh surname—Jones. Of the total names on the three years’ indices, Macdonald claims 7480, being about 1.2 per cent, of the whole, and corresponding to a population of 37,572 Macdonalds in Scotland in 1861.
The cosmopolitan name Brown is the third most common surname in Scotland, but only the sixth in England, and constituted rather more than 1 per cent, of the total names.
Robertson and Thomson, with their varied spellings, constituted the fourth and fifth most common surnames; the English forms Robinson and Thompson being swamped by the great preponderance of the Scottish forms of these names. These two surnames may be regarded as equally prevalent in the population, and, as such, constituting 1 per cent, of the population.
Stewart—with its rarer spelling of Stuart— and Campbell, both purely Scottish names, are the sixth and seventh most common surnames in Scotland; and they are followed by Wilson, a name equally common to the two countries.
These names are followed, in succession, by Anderson, Mackay, Mackenzie, Scott, Johnston, Miller, Reid, and Ross, all of which may be regarded as purely Scottish names, for the English form of one of them is Johnson, which is rare in Scotland; and these surnames are succeeded by Paterson, Fraser, Murray, Maclean, and Cameron, all of them also of Scottish origin. Of these fifty most common surnames in Scotland, 32, in the forms in which they occur in Scotland,, may be reckoned as having originated in the country, and as being peculiar to it —a very large proportion, considering all circumstances. The remainder are common also to England.
The following table shows the fifty most common surnames in Scotland, from the indices of the registers of the years 1855, 1856, and 1858, with the number on the indices, and the estimated population holding the surname in 1861. [Of course, the numbers have greatly increased since this date, probably doubled, and it is to be hoped that some reader may examine the last register and furnish us with a table of the strength of the clans at the present time.— Editor]
Surname / Number on Indices / Pop. holding Surname in 1861
Smith 8835 44,378
Macdonald 7480 37,572
Brown 6733 33,820
Robertson 6490 32,600
Thomson 6482 32,560
Stewart 6338 31,836
Campbell 6282 31,555
Wilson 5921 29,741
Anderson 5734 28,300
Mackay 4746 23,840
Mackenzie 4633 23,272
Scott 4448 22,342
Johnston 4294 21,569
Miller 4244 21,318
Reid 3991 20,047
Ross 3634 18,254
Paterson 3593 18,048
Fraser 3586 18,013
Murray 3 505 17,606
Maclean 3459 17,375
Cameron 3345 16,802
Clark 3344 16,797
Young 3318 16,705
Henderson 3264 16,394
Macleod 3100 15,571
Taylor 3092 15,535
Mitchell 3019 15,164
Watson 2973 14,933
Ferguson 2952 14,828
Walker 2877 14,549
Morrison 2883 14,482
Davidson 2525 12,683
Gray 2500 16,557
Duncan 2482 12,467
Hamilton 2445 12,282
Grant 2426 12,186
Hunter 2355 11,829
White 2353 11,819
Graham 2331 11,709
Allan 2305 11,578
Kerr 2219 11,146
Macgregor 2204 11,870
Bell 2115 10,624
Simpson 2100 10,548
Martin 2064 10,367
Black 2021 10,151
Munro 2015 10,098
Sinclair 1967 9,880
Sutherland 1954 9,818
Gibson 1853 9,307
50 Surnames 180,748 909,920
The total names on the indices amount to 609,689.
END
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair
I watched the interview by Tucker Carlson with Vladimir Putin on YouTube which made me want to know more about the history of Russia and so I have posted up some additional material on our Russia page including videos and historical books at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
--------
I also note that in polling predictions in the USA that Donald Trump is leading the polls and is currently predicted to win the election for President later this year.
See https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mBRIPpx4f8w
Scottish News from this weeks newspapers
I am partly doing this to build an archive of modern news from and about Scotland and world news stories that can affect Scotland and as all the newsletters are archived and also indexed on search engines it becomes a good resource. I might also add that in a number of newspapers you will find many comments which can be just as interesting as the news story itself and of course you can also add your own comments if you wish which I do myself from time to time.
Here is what caught my eye this week...
SNP lost thousands of members during first year of Humza Yousaf leadership
The First Minister was forced to reshuffle his Cabinet team this week after the dramatic resignation of Michael Matheson.
Read more at:
https://www.dailyrecord.co.uk/news/p...uring-32085990
The Most Important Country No One Talks About
Once a peripheral power, Indonesia, which will elect a new president on February 14, is now a regional fulcrum the U.S. cannot afford to ignore.
Read more at:
https://www.city-journal.org/article...ntial-election
Exclusive: Tucker Carlson Interviews Vladimir Putin
Tucker interviews Vladimir Putin in Moscow, Russia. February 6th, 2024.
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fOCWBhuDdDo
Four years on
Four years after Brexit many people still regard it as a mistake. Much at fault here are Conservative ministers, who rarely if ever contradict the falsely negative Rejoiner claims.
Read more at:
https://www.briefingsforbritain.co.u...eid=775c261c5d
This Is HUGE. Putin Exposes The CIA.
In his interview with Tucker Carlon, Vladimir Putin alleges that the CIA controls our Presidents. We already knew that due to the deep state's reaction to Trump, who they didn’t expect. But now, Putin is confirming it. They are dumbing down and drugging Americans en masse while overthrowing governments worldwide. But to what end?
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BdtMv-vyn0
Diversity won't save an army unprepared for war
Many are shocked by revelations that the MoD has spent millions on senior ‘diversity and inclusion officers’ within all three branches of the Armed Forces. The Army doesn't need lessons in diversity: what it needs is soldiers. Particularly in a time of such geopolitical uncertainty.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/diversity-and-inclus...pared-for-war/
Why is SNP Humza Yousaf suddenly visiting Qatar without his kids? Why now?
Humza Yousaf, SNP First Minister and his wife are off to Qatar for a short visit while school kids are off yet they’re away alone.
Watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SnUBN6Kqrrw
Conrad Black: Justin Trudeau's debacle of misgovernment
Canada has never had a government so vehemently opposed to our national interests.
Read more at:
https://archive.is/3y2Ni
The scourge of antisemitism
Staggering new statistics show that 2023 saw a 147% rise in antisemitism, with two thirds of these cases taking place after Otober 7. What has permitted this is timidity on the part of authorities and a willful ignorance among the left. That this is happening in 2024 should be a source of deep national shame.
Read more at:
https://capx.co/institutional-timidi...on-our-streets
Outside the EU, Britain can reward farmers
Farmers make up a comparatively small proportion of the electorate, but their footprint on rural communities is significant.
Read more at:
https://conservativehome.com/2024/02...-natural-world
Nicola Sturgeon's resignation one year ago turned Scottish politics on its head
Voters can see the real possibility of a change of government at Westminster in the general election later this year.
Read more at:
https://news.stv.tv/politics/insight...cs-on-its-head
Electric Canadian
Sir Allan Napier MacNab
Politician, businessman, land speculator, lawyer, and soldier; b. 19 Feb. 1798 at Newark (Niagara-on-the-Lake), Upper Canada, third of seven children of Allan MacNab and Anne Napier; d. 8 Aug. 1862 at Hamilton, Canada West.
Read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...ir-william.htm
The Canadian Scene
Sketches: Political and Historical by Hector Charlesworth (1927) (pdf)
An interesting book which you can read at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...ke0000unse.pdf
Assunta Howard, and other stories and sketches
1891 (pdf)
You can read this collection at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...untaHoward.pdf
The Canadian Pioneers
By Abbé H. R. Casgrain, Translated from the French by A. W. L. Gompertz (1896) (pdf)
You can read this translation at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/life...n_pioneers.pdf
Photographic Record and Souvenir of the Canadian Grenadier Guards Overseas Battalion
"Eighty Seventh" by Col. F.S. Meighen, Q.C. 1916
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/forc...yBattalion.pdf
Native Trees of Canada
By B. R. Morton, B.Sc.F., With notes on nomenclature and utilization by R. G. Lewis B.Sc.F. (1921) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...00mortuoft.pdf
The Mercantile Agency reference book and key [microform]:
Containing ratings of the merchants, manufacturers, and traders generally, throughout the dominion of Canada; with an appendix containing banking towns, banks, bankers, etc., collection laws of each province, etc., etc. (March, 1887) (pdf)
You can read this at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/tran...ants-guide.pdf
Sir John William Dawson
Educator, added to our Makers of Canada section
You can read about him at:
http://www.electriccanadian.com/make...iam-dawson.htm
Electric Scotland
The Ancient Origins Of Medieval Scotland's Most Feared Military Tactics
Added this video to the foot of our Scottish Regiments page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/scotreg/index.htm
Scythians - Rise and Fall of the Original Horselords
A video about Kings and Generals' historical animated documentary series on the history of Ancient Civilizations continues with a video on the rise and fall of the Scythians - the first nomadic conquerors in history, original horselords, who managed to take over most of the Ponto-Caspian Steppe in the Ancient era, fighting wars with Persians, Greeks and others.
You can watch this at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
The Scythians: Nomad Warriors of the Steppe
A video by Barry Cunliffe
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XFsd_LyYZdo
Ness of Brodgar Talk 2023 by Nick Card
A video by the Orkney Archeology Society
You can watch this at:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j5f_B_-E-y4
You can read the following books about Russia on our Russian page at:
https://electricscotland.com/history/russia/index.htm
They include...
Russia and the Peace
By Bernard Pares (1945) (pdf)
A History Of Russia
By Bernard Pares (1944) (pdf)
History of Russia
By R. Gossip (1880) (pdf)
Canny Tales About Ministers & Elders
By Allan Junior (1924) (pdf)
You can read this book at:
https://electricscotland.com/humour/...00junirich.pdf
Brexit - 4th Anniversary
Prepared by the Department for Business & Trade - January 2024 (pdf)
You can read this report at:
https://electricscotland.com/indepen...nniversary.pdf
Susan Boyle
Singer, added to our Women in History page.
You can read about her and watch some videos at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...usanboylet.htm
The History of the 9th (Scottish) Division 1914-1919
By John Ewing, M.C., Brevet-Maajor, Late 6th K.O.S.B., Introduction by Field-Marshal Lord Plumer, G.C.B., G.C.M.G., G.C.V.O. (1921) (pdf)
You can read this history at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...on19141919.pdf
Scottish Society of Louisville
Got in their February 2024 newsletter which you can read at:
https://electricscotland.com/familyt...ille/index.htm
Female Life in Prison
In two volumes in one by a Prison Matron, Robinson, F. W. (Frederick William); Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh (1862) (pdf)
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https://electricscotland.com/history...feinprison.pdf
The Tower of Craigietocher
Following the building of a new Scottish Castle which is now complete and is now open for B & B.
Get the links to book your stay at:
https://electricscotland.com/history...agietocher.htm
Story
NOMENCLATURE IN SCOTLAND
Taken from The Celtic Monthly:
A Magazine for Highlanders edited by John MacKay, Glasgow, Vol. XIV., 1906
Strength of the Highland Clans.Taken from The Celtic Monthly:
A Magazine for Highlanders edited by John MacKay, Glasgow, Vol. XIV., 1906
THE following paper, slightly curtailed, drawn up by Dr. Stark, and printed in the Sixth Detailed Annual Report of the Registrar-General for Scotland, for 1860, embodies so much curious and interesting information on the subject of surnames that it may be fitly inserted here.
It may be mentioned, as a striking peculiarity of the inhabitants of Scotland, that both among the Celtic race in the Highlands, and the Lowland races on the Border, it was the custom for all to assume as their surname the name held by the head of the family, either because they were actually his descendants, or because they were his vassals and property. Hence, in the Highlands, we have large clans of the name of Macdonald, Stewart, Campbell, Mackay, Maclean, Murray, Cameron, &c.; and among the inhabitants of the Border counties the names of Scott, Graham, Kerr, Johnston, Elliott, Armstrong, &c.
To ascertain the number of distinct surnames in Scotland, it may be mentioned that the index of the birth register of a whole year has been alone taken, and every separate surname enumerated in it, when they were found to amount to 6823 separate surnames, while the total registered entries of births amounted to 104,018. These numbers would give the proportion of 15.2 persons to every surname, or 6.5 different surnames to every 100 persons. The English proportion, ascertained in the same manner by the Registrar-General of England, in 1855, was 8.4 persons to every surname, or 11.9 surnames in every 100 persons. The above facts therefore appear to demonstrate that the effect of the
CLAN SYSTEM OF SURNAMES IN SCOTLAND
is to cause a much larger number of persons to hold the same surname; in other words, that, in proportion to the population, fewer surnames exist in Scotland than in England. But the above figures do not exhibit the true proportion of Scottish surnames to the Scottish population, nor the full effect of clanship in diminishing the number of surnames; or rather in causing a smaller number of surnames to go over a larger portion of the population. Within the last sixty years a very large addition to the surnames has been made in Scotland, in consequence of the immense immigration from Ireland. This immigration, beginning about the year 1820, did not assume gigantic proportions till about the year 1840, when the demand for railway labourers brought the Irish over in hundreds and thousands. Since that period, in addition to bringing over about a thousand names which are common to Scotland and to Ireland, they have added to the Scottish surnames nearly a thousand, which, till that period, were peculiar to Ireland. Were it not, therefore, for the enormous addition to the surnames made in recent years, the proportion of persons attached to each surname in Scotland would be more than double the proportion of England.
Being, however, desirous of obtaining some more definite information relative to the surnames in most common use in Scotland, the complete indices of three years were examined, extracting all the surnames which had numerous entries under them, and carefully tabulating the number of entries in the several indices, as well as noting all the peculiar names. From that mass of surnames, the fifty in most common use in Scotland were abstracted ; and the subjoined table shews not only what these fifty most common surnames are, but also the number of times in which each of these occurs in the general indices of births, deaths, and marriages for the three years, 1855, 1856, and 1857. During these three years the total names entered on the registers amounted to 609,639; and as the fifty surnames in that table included 180,748 of that number, it would appear that these fifty most common surnames embraced 29*6 per cent, of all the names entered on the registers. In England it was found that the fifty most common surnames only included about 18 per cent, of all the names entered on the indices; so that the above fact corroborates the conclusion previously drawn from the proportion of total surnames—viz., that the adoption of clan surnames in Scotland has had the effect of causing a larger proportion of garsons to hold the same surname than in ngland, so that proportionally fewer surnames are used among the population. It has been endeavoured to render this table of the fifty most common surnames in Scotland more interesting, by adding the estimated number of the population attached to each surname. Such particulars will afford a valuable means of comparing the changes of surname which may occur in the course of ages.
To render the Scottish table of surnames more interesting by comparison, we have compared the English table of surnames, taken from the Sixteenth Report of the Registrar-General, which clearly shows that the clan predominance of surnames in Scotland, as compared with that of England, becomes very apparent. Thus, while in the English fifty most common surnames, only twenty-seven can be referred to the Christian fore-name, or name of the sire or head of the family, thirty-seven may be so referred of the fifty most common surnames in Scotland. The great majority of these fifty Scottish names are therefore truly sire-names, either in their pure, unaltered state, as, Grant, Cameron, Duncan, Graham, Kerr, Martin, Allan, &c.; or altered so as to express the descent from the head of the family, as, Robertson, Thomson, Johnston, Watson, Morrison; or with the Gaelic Mac, which means “son,” as, Macdonald, Mackay, Maclean, Macleod, &c.
Possibly in every country the surnames may be divided into four great classes; and it is possible, also, that the chief peculiarities of each country, in so far as the surnames are concerned, may depend on the relative preponderance which each of these classes bears to the other in the general population. These four classes may be regarded as—1st, Surnames derived from patronymics, that is, from the Christian fore-name of the head of the family; 2nd, Surnames derived from the rank or occupation of the persons; 3d, Surnames taken from the locality in which the persons dwelt; 4th Surnames, or soubriquets, given to persons from some supposed personal quality or resemblance.
1st, Almost all the names of our
BORDER AND HIGHLAND CLANS
belong to the first class, and they are peculiarly Scottish—neither belonging to England nor to Ireland. These surnames include all those beginning with Mac—as, Macgregor, Mactaggart, &c.; beside those simple ones—as, Fraser, Douglas, Cameron, Kerr, Grant, &c.
2nd, The surnames derived from
RANK AND OCCUPATION
are very numerous, but are equally common to England as to Scotland. Of these, in both countries, Smith is the most common name; after which follow, in Scotland, Stewart, Miller, Clark, Taylor, Walker, and Hunter; but in England, after Smith comes Taylor, Wright, Walker, Turner, Clark, and Cooper.
3d, Surnames taken from the locality in which the persons originally resided form a very numerous class, and they also are, to a great extent, peculiar to Scotland, seeing that there is scarcely a county, parish, town, river, or remarkable locality, but has its name perpetuated in the surnames. Thus, for instance, of the counties we have, as surnames, Fife, Nairn, Stirling, Ross, Lothian, Sutherland, Berwick, Roxburgh, &c. Of parishes, we have Abbey, Fordyce, Alves, Peebles, Farr, Bathgate, Callander, Traquair, Campsie, Cullen, Kirkpatrick, Bothwell, &c. Of towns, we have Glasgow, Leith, Aberdeen, Montrose, Biggar, Lauder, Melrose, Hamilton, &c.
4th, That soubriquets, perpetuated
AS SURNAMES,
are perhaps the most varied of all, and embrace every personal or mental quality supposed to reside in different individuals to whom they were originally given. They may hence be divided into dozens of subdivisions, according as they were given from the person’s general appearance, or the colour of his skin or hair— hence, Black, White, Green, Gray, Brown, &c.; or from his supposed likeness to the animal creation—as, Lyon, Bull, Stott, Bullock, Lamb, Hogg (which does not mean a pig or sow, but a lamb a year old), Collie, Tod (which is the Scottish name for the fox), Fish, Haddock, Salmon, Finch, Swan, Heron, &c.; or from its size and make—as, Meikle, Little, Long, Thin, Meiklejohn, Littlejohn; or from his strength, swiftness, or other qualities—as, Strong, Stark, Swift, Bold, Bauld, Good, Noble, &c.
It would have been very interesting, in comparing some of the commoner surnames of England and of Scotland, to have shewn how the language of each country has altered the name, so as to make the families of each country whose names are derived from the same occupation, similitude, or quality, equally distinct. Thus, the common surname Baker in England, is almost completely supplanted by the name Baxter in Scotland, and all the Bakers may be considered as of English origin. The English surname Fox is quite superseded by the Scottish form Tod, which is a very common name having the same meaning. The English surname Bullock is known in Scotland by the common surname of Stott, which has the same meaning. The English surname Crow takes the form of Craw. The English surname Dove takes the form of Dow, as does the English surname Love the Scottish form of Low, &c.; but even one of the cosmopolitan and very common surnames receives its characteristic modification in the two countries, seeing Robinsons in England become converted into Robertsons in Scotland.
BY FAR THE MOST COMMON SURNAME
is Smith. Of the 609,639 entries on the index in the three years above named, Smith occurred 8835 times; thus, of itself, constituting nearly 11 per cent, of the total entries, and corresponding to a total population of 44,378 Smiths in Scotland in 1861. It is also the most common surname in England, but not quite so prevalent as in Scotland; for while England only has one Smith in every 73 persons, Scotland has one Smith in every 68.
After the cosmopolitan surname Smith, the next most common is a purely Scottish one— Macdonald. In this respect England agrees with Scotland that, after its cosmopolitan name Smith, comes a purely English and Welsh surname—Jones. Of the total names on the three years’ indices, Macdonald claims 7480, being about 1.2 per cent, of the whole, and corresponding to a population of 37,572 Macdonalds in Scotland in 1861.
The cosmopolitan name Brown is the third most common surname in Scotland, but only the sixth in England, and constituted rather more than 1 per cent, of the total names.
Robertson and Thomson, with their varied spellings, constituted the fourth and fifth most common surnames; the English forms Robinson and Thompson being swamped by the great preponderance of the Scottish forms of these names. These two surnames may be regarded as equally prevalent in the population, and, as such, constituting 1 per cent, of the population.
Stewart—with its rarer spelling of Stuart— and Campbell, both purely Scottish names, are the sixth and seventh most common surnames in Scotland; and they are followed by Wilson, a name equally common to the two countries.
These names are followed, in succession, by Anderson, Mackay, Mackenzie, Scott, Johnston, Miller, Reid, and Ross, all of which may be regarded as purely Scottish names, for the English form of one of them is Johnson, which is rare in Scotland; and these surnames are succeeded by Paterson, Fraser, Murray, Maclean, and Cameron, all of them also of Scottish origin. Of these fifty most common surnames in Scotland, 32, in the forms in which they occur in Scotland,, may be reckoned as having originated in the country, and as being peculiar to it —a very large proportion, considering all circumstances. The remainder are common also to England.
The following table shows the fifty most common surnames in Scotland, from the indices of the registers of the years 1855, 1856, and 1858, with the number on the indices, and the estimated population holding the surname in 1861. [Of course, the numbers have greatly increased since this date, probably doubled, and it is to be hoped that some reader may examine the last register and furnish us with a table of the strength of the clans at the present time.— Editor]
Surname / Number on Indices / Pop. holding Surname in 1861
Smith 8835 44,378
Macdonald 7480 37,572
Brown 6733 33,820
Robertson 6490 32,600
Thomson 6482 32,560
Stewart 6338 31,836
Campbell 6282 31,555
Wilson 5921 29,741
Anderson 5734 28,300
Mackay 4746 23,840
Mackenzie 4633 23,272
Scott 4448 22,342
Johnston 4294 21,569
Miller 4244 21,318
Reid 3991 20,047
Ross 3634 18,254
Paterson 3593 18,048
Fraser 3586 18,013
Murray 3 505 17,606
Maclean 3459 17,375
Cameron 3345 16,802
Clark 3344 16,797
Young 3318 16,705
Henderson 3264 16,394
Macleod 3100 15,571
Taylor 3092 15,535
Mitchell 3019 15,164
Watson 2973 14,933
Ferguson 2952 14,828
Walker 2877 14,549
Morrison 2883 14,482
Davidson 2525 12,683
Gray 2500 16,557
Duncan 2482 12,467
Hamilton 2445 12,282
Grant 2426 12,186
Hunter 2355 11,829
White 2353 11,819
Graham 2331 11,709
Allan 2305 11,578
Kerr 2219 11,146
Macgregor 2204 11,870
Bell 2115 10,624
Simpson 2100 10,548
Martin 2064 10,367
Black 2021 10,151
Munro 2015 10,098
Sinclair 1967 9,880
Sutherland 1954 9,818
Gibson 1853 9,307
50 Surnames 180,748 909,920
The total names on the indices amount to 609,689.
END
Weekend is almost here and hope it's a good one for you.
Alastair
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