Henderson History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Henderson

What does the name Henderson mean?

The age-old Pictish-Scottish family name Henderson is derived from the personal name Hendry, which is a chiefly Scottish derivative of the name Henry. There were two main branches of the Henderson family, one at Glencoe, in the lower Highlands, and one at Caithness, in the extreme north of Scotland.

Early Origins of the Henderson family

The surname Henderson was first found in Caithness, Glencoe, the Shetland Islands, Liddlesdale, and Fordell. One origin claims the Henderson family descend from Great Henry, son of King Nechtan, who was also the progenitor of the MacDonalds of Glencoe. However, the branch of the Henderson to whom this story relates also claim to have settled in the Glencoe territory many years before the Maclains or MacDonalds arrived there. This is consistent with the theory that this family are a branch of the northern family who moved south and became attached to the MacDonalds.

Generally noted as great fighters, they became bodyguards of the Chief of the MacDonalds. They were also the hereditary pipers of that Clan, sometimes referred to as the Maclains.

Later, in about 1530, there emerged another section of the Henderson Clan in the Border country of Liddesdale but the connection between this group and the main Clan is somewhat tenuous. However, it is known that many of the Highland Clans were invited, coerced or transported, sometimes as a whole sometimes as a branch, to the border country to provide better defenses against English attacks along the Border.