MacKlin History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

The MacKlin family comes from the ancient Scottish Dalriadan clans of the mountainous west coast of Scotland. The name MacKlin is derived from a devotion to St. John. The surname is an Anglicized form of the Gaelic Mac Gille Eathain, a patronymic name meaning “son of the servant of Saint John.” The Clan is descended from Eachan Reaganach, (brother of Lachlan the progenitor of the Macleans of Duart). These two brothers were both descended from Gilleathain na Tuaidh, known as ‘Gillian of the Battleaxe’, a famed warrior of the 5th century. Eachan, or Hector was given the lands of Lochbuie from John, the first Lord of the Isles, some time in the 14th century.

Early Origins of the MacKlin family

The surname MacKlin was first found in the Western Isles where the Clan held extensive lands on almost every island in the Western Hebrides.