Clan MacLaren

Clan MacLaren (Scottish Gaelic: Clann mhic Labhrainn) is a Highland Scottish clan. Traditional clan lands include the island of Tiree and the old parish of Balquhidder which includes the villages of Lochearnhead and Strathyre, and is about 18 miles long and 7 miles broad spanning 54,675 acres, long known as "Maclaren Country".

History

Origins of the clan

There are two quite separate possible origins for the surname MacLaren. One of these comes from the county of Perthshire while the other comes from the island of Tiree in Argyll. In Argyll the MacLaren family is said to be descended from Fergus MacErc, founder of the kingdom of Dál Riata. In Scottish Gaelic the clan name is Clann Labhruinn. However the ancestor of the MacLarens is generally given as Laurence, Abbot of Achtow in Balquhidder, who lived during the thirteenth century. Balquhidder was part of the ancient princedom of Strathern whose heraldry is shown in the heraldry of the MacLarens. The heraldry borne by the clan suggests that they descend from a cadet branch of the Celtic dynastic house of the Earls of Strathearn.