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I have received several emails in from my investigation of Clan Septs. As a result I have done a substantial update of our Clan Sept page which you can see at http://www.electricscotland.com/webclans/septs.htm
The above page does provide a list of known Septs of Clans created by an ex Lord Lyon over a century ago.
Here is the text from that page...
The variety of surnames within a Scottish clan do not represent separate and definable sub-clans but instead reflect the vagaries of transition of the Gaels into the English naming system as well as marriages, migrations and occupations. The main family itself may have developed a variety of surnames. The preferred modern usage is to avoid the use of the term "Sept" and to simply describe these names as what they are - surnames of the family and of allied or dependent families. It is preferable to speak of "The names and families of Clan X" rather to call a name "a Sept of Clan X". "Sept" is actually a term borrowed from Irish culture in the nineteenth century to explain the use of a variety of surnames by members of a single clan. Where Scots would say "MacGregor and his clan" an Irish historian might say "O'Neill and his Sept".
Note that while we have done our best to trace names associated with clans this list is not exhaustive and about the best source that we can find that can give a clue to clan associations is actually a book on tartan. "Tartan for Me!" by Philip D. Smith (Now on the Ninth Edition) published by Heritage Books, Inc (ISBN:0-7884-0137-8) which gives an exhaustive list of tartans that are associated with surnames. By reading this book it may well give you a clue as to what clan your name is associated with. In addition another useful source is Black's "Surnames of Scotland".
Electric Scotland Note: Electric Scotland does not claim accuracy of any of our Sept and family lists. This particular list below came from a publication by an ex Lord Lyon. As the web has evolved and more access has been given to historical manuscripts and books new findings are always being made. Let us remember that officially only the clan chief can state if a name is a Sept of their clan but in practice many have just accepted previous lists handed down to them. And several that we contacted have been unable to state why all of the names are recognised as a Sept of their clan. They may know some but often not all.
We also do not recognize any publication as being an accurate source of names connected with clans. Part of the reason for this is that the spelling of names is a major issue as when people moved around the world some were illiterate and thus the name was spelled as it sounded by the immigration department. Many were also Gaelic speakers and thus the spelling of such names was often incorrect as some letters in Gaelic are silent. People also make a decision as to how they want their name spelled for whatever reason.
I will add some personal information here to illustrate the problem. I always knew my mothers first name was Isobel although she was usually called Sybil. On my coming to Canada I had to produce my mothers birth certificate and that was when I first found out that her first name was Isobela. Likewise my Father's name was John Gilmour but again by getting his birth certificate I found out that his name was John with no Gilmour. It turned out his mothers maiden name was Gilmour and he'd decided to add her name unofficially to his own. And in my own case my name of Alastair was mis-spelled by Canadian Immigration to Alistair. I didn't spot the error until after I'd got my Driver's License, my Social Security Card and my Health Card. To correct this I had to go back to Immigration to get them to change the spelling, and then had to visit the three other places to get it changed there as well. I can well see why folk just accepted a mis-spelling as being too much trouble to get it changed,
Finally, I have personally done an investigation into Septs and I find that many lists that are provided by individual clans and clan societies are questionable. Where a name is listed as a Sept rarely is there any information as to why that name is listed as a Sept. Often the Clan Chief does not know this information either having simply accepted the list when inheriting the chiefdom. Where there might be a connection due to the people of the name living in clan lands in most situations like this there are many people of that same name that never lived on these clan lands. This means that listing a surname as a Sept of a clan can be very misleading.
I personally feel that the Clan or Clan Society has the responsibility to make clear why a name has been listed as a Sept of their Clan. Where they are unable to do so then they should list the name as "no historical information" so that we know there is no information as to why that name was listed as a Sept. To my knowledge not one Clan or Clan Society has done that or made any effort to be transparent about their Sept list and instead just provide a list of names.
I would also add that just because your name is listed as a Sept under a Clan name doesn't mean that you are related by blood to that clan.
And so all we can offer is some guidance and we'd certainly recommend that you contact your own clan for specific information although as noted there is some question as to their own accuracy. The fact that the list below comes from an Ex Lord Lyon at a time where genealogy was not the major industry that it is today means it may be more accurate.
Alastair
The above page does provide a list of known Septs of Clans created by an ex Lord Lyon over a century ago.
Here is the text from that page...
The variety of surnames within a Scottish clan do not represent separate and definable sub-clans but instead reflect the vagaries of transition of the Gaels into the English naming system as well as marriages, migrations and occupations. The main family itself may have developed a variety of surnames. The preferred modern usage is to avoid the use of the term "Sept" and to simply describe these names as what they are - surnames of the family and of allied or dependent families. It is preferable to speak of "The names and families of Clan X" rather to call a name "a Sept of Clan X". "Sept" is actually a term borrowed from Irish culture in the nineteenth century to explain the use of a variety of surnames by members of a single clan. Where Scots would say "MacGregor and his clan" an Irish historian might say "O'Neill and his Sept".
Note that while we have done our best to trace names associated with clans this list is not exhaustive and about the best source that we can find that can give a clue to clan associations is actually a book on tartan. "Tartan for Me!" by Philip D. Smith (Now on the Ninth Edition) published by Heritage Books, Inc (ISBN:0-7884-0137-8) which gives an exhaustive list of tartans that are associated with surnames. By reading this book it may well give you a clue as to what clan your name is associated with. In addition another useful source is Black's "Surnames of Scotland".
Electric Scotland Note: Electric Scotland does not claim accuracy of any of our Sept and family lists. This particular list below came from a publication by an ex Lord Lyon. As the web has evolved and more access has been given to historical manuscripts and books new findings are always being made. Let us remember that officially only the clan chief can state if a name is a Sept of their clan but in practice many have just accepted previous lists handed down to them. And several that we contacted have been unable to state why all of the names are recognised as a Sept of their clan. They may know some but often not all.
We also do not recognize any publication as being an accurate source of names connected with clans. Part of the reason for this is that the spelling of names is a major issue as when people moved around the world some were illiterate and thus the name was spelled as it sounded by the immigration department. Many were also Gaelic speakers and thus the spelling of such names was often incorrect as some letters in Gaelic are silent. People also make a decision as to how they want their name spelled for whatever reason.
I will add some personal information here to illustrate the problem. I always knew my mothers first name was Isobel although she was usually called Sybil. On my coming to Canada I had to produce my mothers birth certificate and that was when I first found out that her first name was Isobela. Likewise my Father's name was John Gilmour but again by getting his birth certificate I found out that his name was John with no Gilmour. It turned out his mothers maiden name was Gilmour and he'd decided to add her name unofficially to his own. And in my own case my name of Alastair was mis-spelled by Canadian Immigration to Alistair. I didn't spot the error until after I'd got my Driver's License, my Social Security Card and my Health Card. To correct this I had to go back to Immigration to get them to change the spelling, and then had to visit the three other places to get it changed there as well. I can well see why folk just accepted a mis-spelling as being too much trouble to get it changed,
Finally, I have personally done an investigation into Septs and I find that many lists that are provided by individual clans and clan societies are questionable. Where a name is listed as a Sept rarely is there any information as to why that name is listed as a Sept. Often the Clan Chief does not know this information either having simply accepted the list when inheriting the chiefdom. Where there might be a connection due to the people of the name living in clan lands in most situations like this there are many people of that same name that never lived on these clan lands. This means that listing a surname as a Sept of a clan can be very misleading.
I personally feel that the Clan or Clan Society has the responsibility to make clear why a name has been listed as a Sept of their Clan. Where they are unable to do so then they should list the name as "no historical information" so that we know there is no information as to why that name was listed as a Sept. To my knowledge not one Clan or Clan Society has done that or made any effort to be transparent about their Sept list and instead just provide a list of names.
I would also add that just because your name is listed as a Sept under a Clan name doesn't mean that you are related by blood to that clan.
And so all we can offer is some guidance and we'd certainly recommend that you contact your own clan for specific information although as noted there is some question as to their own accuracy. The fact that the list below comes from an Ex Lord Lyon at a time where genealogy was not the major industry that it is today means it may be more accurate.
Alastair