Sìol Alpin

The Clans of Sìol Alpin

Click on any clan name and connect with an official clan website

In the Highlands and Islands of Scotland are seven clans that claim descent from the royal line of King Alpin who was the 28th and last king of the Dalriadic Scots. This is family, better known as the Sìol Alpin, is one of the least discussed and more mysterious of the clan alliances in Highland history. The seven families or clans that make up this confederation are MacNab, MacGregor, MacKinnon, Grant, MacQuarrie, MacAulay and MacFie.

As to Clan MacAlpine, there has never been a Clan MacAlpin living on its own clan lands, and with its own hereditary chiefs and chieftains. At present, a society of those claiming descent from Scottish families named MacAlpine is seeking official recognition as an official clan. The proposed Clan MacAlpine is almost certainly belongs to one of the clans that make up Sìol Alpin.

According to writer-historian Nigel Tranter, and Scotland's reknown writer, Sir Walter Scott, the Chiefs of Clan Gregor were referred to as An t-Ailpinich, "The Alpin" or Chief of Clan Alpin, a custom which continues to the present Chief, Sir Malcolm MacGregor of MacGregor, 24th hereditary chief of the name.

When the earnest Lowlanders, bent on giving surnames to Highlanders who had no surnames and spoke little English, realized the difficulty of their task, they must soon have discovered that the way to find out the 'name' of a Highlander was to question him about his chief. The clansmen had listened to the bards reciting clan genealogy from their earliest childhood, back to the first man to settle on the land (and beyond.) Thus a MacKinnon might say that his chief was the son of Fingon (or Findanus) or he might say that he was the son of Alpin (son meaning "race of"), for the early MacKinnon chiefs were all known as So-and-so of the House of Findanus (who gave the clan his name) who was of the House of Alpin (who gave the clan their lands).

Early histories once tended to dismiss the Sìol Alpin as an imagined piece of boastfulness by old clans, and without claim. The reason for this is quite obvious: researchers have searched the clan histories for the Sìol Alpin and found no evidence of the claim. They tried to compare it to Clan Chattan, another great confederation, and could find no similarity. Based on this, many of them dismissed Sìol Alpin altogether.

The evidence for the common descent of these seven clans from the House of Alpin is traditional, as is the greater part of Highland history. However, traditions handed down through clan bards are far more accurate than the garbled history of the early chronicles scribed by the cleric monks. Any historian who summarily dismisses the traditions of a people is not considering the obvious. There is no doubt that these clans shared the same common origin; and the fact that it was royal is nothing out of the ordinary. Most of the west Highland Celtic clans were closely connected, both of Irish and Dalriadic (Argyll) royalty.

Diagram of suggested lines of descent:

Alpin, first king of Scots and Picts

I I I

King Kenneth King Donald Dungal

I I

King Constantine the Abbott Girig mac Dungal

MacNab I

Guarie Findaus Gregor "the Great"

I I I

MacQuarrie MacKinnon MacGregor

I I

MacFie Clan Grant & MacAulay

      The royal House of Alpin, which lasted down to the reign of Malcolm II (1005-1034) gave widely separated grants of land to the younger sons of the family, keeping them well separated. This old and effective policy of divide and rule prevented the younger sons and their descendants from combining to put one of their number in place of the current ruler. Only a fool allowed younger sons and cousins to congregate together.

Because of this policy the seven clans were widely scattered: Three are Hebridean and lived on islands, three are west Highland, and one other, the Grants, settled in the northeast side of Scotland. According to this arrangement:

* The original MacKinnon lands were in Mull and from here they spread to Arran and Skye.
* Grant lands were in Strathspey and Glenmoriston.
* MacNab lands were in Perthshire on the western shore of Loch Tay.
* MacAulays had their seat at Ardincaple in Dumbartonshire.
* MacFies held lands in Colonsay.
* MacQuarries had lands in Mull near the MacKinnons, also the island of Ulva, west of Mull.
* MacGregors had many possessions, their early principal seat being Glenorchy.

Clan Gregor also had estates at Glenstrae, Glenlyon, Glengyle, Glenlochy and Balquhidder,
most of which was taken by the ever ambitious and predatory lords of Campbell.

      The clans of the Sìol Alpin share a common plant badge, the Scots Pine. The MacFies and the MacKinnons (and present day MacAlpines) have the same Alpin war cry of Cuimhnich Bas Alpein meaning "Remember the death of King Alpin." The MacGregors were more boastful, adopting as their motto 'S rioghal mo dhream which means "Royal Is My Race." However, they are not alone in royal ties, nor are the rest of the Sìol Alpin clans.