h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Yep, I think the brighter it is, the more likely to be a modern fabrication it is. Some of the more muted colours may have been originals, but not necesarily for the name they now represent.

I think that was David I who brought the pesky feudal system to Scotland. Stewart comes from the fact that the first king of that name (I can't remember) had been the Steward of Scotland (general second in command when the King was a bit peeky) for the previous king.
As to MacLeod, I think Leod was the son of Somerled (sp?) who was the first Lord of the Isles. He was of Norse descent, but was in the habit of sticking two fingers up at anyone he felt like.

Crikey I can witter on about this stuff, can't I

Go right ahead. Although I do have a book about the highland clans, so I might feel inclined to double-check if anything sounds dodgy. (I'm a born nitpicker - don't ever watch a film with me if there's a reference book around and the film has some dodgy facts!)

Well my father produces Cheap Tartan Tourist Tat for a living. Thus, my parents house, which I have not been to since last Christmas (Crumbs!), is full of books on which Tartan applies to which name. Hence the vague knowledge. It is only vague, so I would be surprised if I didn't get something wrong.

America is a young culture with a history of kids getting out of their parents houses as quickly as possible because there was/is an abundance of room. This contrasts with the European model of a family where parents, children and indeed sometimes grandparents can live in the same house for generations. I mean, I only live 5 hours away from my parents, but only visit maybe once a year, whereas an exchange student we hosted from Germany while I was in high school was planning on moving into an addition her parents were building for her on their house. I think that the distance that we put between our families and ourselves in modern America - as well as throughout the country's history - has contributed to the loss of family ties that you have noticed.

Of course, that's just my opinion. I could be wrong.

Yeh. I was weird at school, as we had moved from outside the village. Most of my friends at school lived only doors away from their grandparents and, if they ever moved, it was a matter of changing street. It has improved from the days when the young lads of the village used to blockade the street to stop anyone from the neighbouring villages getting in. This did happen, I got nobbled by an old biddy at a bus stop once who told me all about it. With a smile on her face.

Another thing that I find interesting is that the differences and similarities between Mc and Mac are often overlooked. Completely different surnames can pop out of the same family because one was a grandson and the other a son of the same man. Facinating, aren't they...

Or names that are spelt differently, yet pronounced the same, to indicate illegitimate children. Such as Loudoun and Loudon, the former being the official, noble family way of spelling it.

It's amazing what lengths people will go to to associate themselves with certain families. Or to disassociate themselves. No wonder no one knows who's related to who. I find it easier just to treat everyone as 16th cousins and leave it at that.

Then there's 'Fitz' meaning 'Son of' (derived from the French 'fils'). I understand that this often became the part of the surname of illegitimate sons, hence 'Fitzroy' would be '(Illegitimate) son of the king'.

let it be stated now, my spelling is abysmal, so much so that I have Word up and often use it to check..... abysmal for instance, just forgot to check 'surname'. I guess my thinking got ahead of spell checking.

The later bits about the lack of extended families does seem to be true. Here state side, you don't see it very often. Having all the relatives in one place would tend to generate stories of the family heritage. But as it was pointed out farther up the list, who knows how true they were. I like the 'idea' of an extended family, but then the though of having my mother come live with me.... Oh never mind.

As being descended from a Jack's son, this tells me less than having come from a town with a mill in it. Oh well....

I think I've read that having slaves take thier master's name happened here. Similar to, but not the same as having them wear the same tartans.

They did, indeed, often take their 'owners' names. And some (many) of them deserved them.

Slaves taking masters names seems to be a generic thing. There was recently an article in my Sunday paper on this, which pointed out how many modern day blacks have Scottish names. Basically it was reminding us that we were just as involved as everyone else. A fact that is often ignored round here.

There was a 4-part series on Channel 4 recently (finished 24/10/1999) about Britain's (or, to be more exact, England's) involvement in the slave trade. Slaves on the British-owned plantations often took their owner's names, particularly during the 19th century.

I'm not at all sure that Americans are any worse than us in Europe at tracing their families. At least it's my impression that you usually know when your ancestors immigrated, and where they came from. I might be able to trace my family about 100 years back or maybe even 150 if I'm lucky... I think that Americans know a bit of their history because they have at least one extraordinary event (when their ancestors immigrated to America) to hold on to. If you live in Europe no such thing has ever happened. Your ancestors might have moved from Germany to France, or from England to Sweden but thats not really the same. Your family is just a sort of mish-mash of people from different countries in Europe.

Another thing might be that the Brits are a bit more practiced in hiding their skeletons in the closet, while often in the US they are worn as badges. (For instance, on my mother's side I have a former state governor, while on my father's side I have the first man to attempt a robbery of the Federal Reserve Banking System in broad daylight. )

I think it depends very much on the country you're looking in. From my father's experience trying to trace his ancestors, the Scottish side of the family tree is easier to follow, as the record keeping in the 1800s was more meticulous there than in the English places he tried. I'm sure the standards of record keeping have varied quite widely both over time, and between different countries.
I suppose many European countries, especially those on the European mainland, have suffered from destruction of records by warfare or other means, which America has presumably avoided for the most part.(assuming there wasn't much deliberate destruction in the Civil War)

Interesting to note then that the first Steward of Scotland Walter Fitzalan (1160 A.D) would have been the illegitimate son of King Alan of ?

any input greatly appreciated at http://www.h2g2.com/A198579

If Fitzroy == illegitimate son of the king, wouldn't Fitzalan just mean the illegitimate son of a some guy called Alan, not necessarily a king.

Definitely. Unlike Taipan, you obviously read my comment on 'Fitz' correctly! Congratulations! Have a cigar! You don't smoke? Congratulations, again! Have a large one of your favourite tipple! (And please don't tell me you don't drink. Every one should have at least one vice. If drinking isn't one of yours, what is? On second thoughts, I don't want to know. Or do I?