Understanding Scottish Naming Patterns:


An understanding of naming patterns can be very helpful in tracing one’s ancestry. 

Many Scots families follow the custom of naming their children after the grandparents in the following manner.

First born son named for the paternal grandfather. 
Second son named for the maternal grandfather. 
Third son named for the father. 

First born daughter for the paternal grandmother. 
Second daughter for the maternal grandmother 
Third daughter for the mother.

This can cause families to have two children with the same name if the grandparents had the same name. The process also started over if the parent remarried, so it is common to find half brothers or sisters with the same names. Not all Scots families followed this pattern, but many that did continued it long after leaving Scotland. 


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