The Laurie Tartan Company

Ethnic origins of the name Laurie

The people known as Scots today are the result of the intermingling of races and cultures over successive millennia. Much of that history remains unrecorded. However, we do know from scholarly research and writings that the main peoples were Picts, Scots, Strathclyde British, Norse and to a lessor extent Norman French, Flemish and Anglo Norman.

The ethnic origins of the name are a matter of ongoing speculation. However, populist opinion would have us belive that the name is either Strathclyde British or Norman French in origin. The area populated by the Strathclyde British ranged from the North West of England to Central and West Scotland.

The immigration of Norman French and Anglo Normans to Scotland occurred mainly during the 12th to 14th centuries. Some were invited to settle in Scotland by the various Scottish Kings of the time and were given land as an incentive to do so. Being of the minor nobility, they also brought their Norman household servants and bondsmen with them. Others came seeking work as artisans and traders.

It is my personal belief that the name because of its association with Christian saints became popular amongst each of the ethnic groups who eventually became collectively known as Scots.

The meaning of the name Laurie

The most frequently held belief is that Laurie is a diminutive of Laurence, which in turn is thought to derive from the Latin Laurentius meaning "of Laurentum". It is also commonly ascribed the meaning "laurel crowned" or "victorious".

Virgil (Publius Virgilius Maro) describes Laurentum in his classic epic poem the Aeneid (completed 19BC) as the principal city of an area called Latium the district close to where Rome now stands. Nearly a century later Pliny the younger (Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus) also refers to Laurentum in correspondence describing one of his four villas:

"To Gallus

You are surprised that I am so fond of my Laurentine, or (if you prefer the name) my Laurens: but you will cease to wonder when I acquaint you with the beauty of the villa, the advantages of its situation, and the extensive view of the sea-coast. It is only seventeen miles from Rome; so that when I have finished my business in town, I can pass my evenings here after a good, satisfactory day's work. There are two different roads to it: if you go by that of Laurentum, you must turn off at the fourteenth milestone; if by Astia, at the eleventh. Both of them are sandy in places, which makes it a little heavier and longer by carriage, but short and easy on horseback".

Laurentum is also mentioned in some texts as the site of the imperial elephant farm.

Laurentius (Laurence in English) was the name of an early Christian martyr and saint.

On 6th August 258AD, by decree of the Emperor Valerian, Pope Saint Sixtus II and six deacons were beheaded. Laurence the only remaining deacon and church archivist was put to death on 10th August 258AD. According to legend he wasn't beheaded like his companions but was tortured to death on a grill on the site of the Basilica di San Lorenzo in Rome in an attempt to get him to reveal the whereabouts of the church treasure and records.

He is the Patron Saint of Archivists, Librarians, Comedians, Cooks, Brewers, Students, Launderers, Confectioners, and Cutlers.

St Laurence the Martyr

He remains an extremely popular saint today particularly in mainland Europe; his feast day is 10th August.

Curiously, there are another three saints also called Laurence:

St Laurence of Canterbury accompanied St Augustine to England on his mission to convert the Anglo Saxons to Christianity. After St Augustine's death he became the 2nd Archbishop of Canterbury. He died in the year 619AD. His feast day is the 3rd February.

St Laurence O'Toole became Archbishop of Dublin Ireland in 1162AD. He is the patron saint of the Dublin Diocese and his feast day is 14th November.

St Laurence of Brindisi was born in 1575AD; his feast day is celebrated on the 21st July.

Prior to the 12th Century, it was customarily in Britain for people to just have a "given" or baptismal name and no family surname. Children would be usually named after saints, a practice which has continued to the present day. Consequently, to distinguish between family members and individuals with the same name it became necessary when introducing someone or referring to them in conversation with others to either add; the name of their parent, where he/she lived, a physical characteristic or their occupation.

The following are examples of what I mean - Iain Thomas's son; Kenneth of Dysart; Helen the Small; Thomas the Smith. Through time, names were shortened, for example, Kenneth of Dysart became known simply as Kenneth Dysart with Dysart eventually becoming the surname for a family group and Iain Thomas's son became Iain Thomson. The latter example is similar to the Scots/Irish practice of distinguishing family members by adding the prefix Mac (son of) to the patronymic (father's name). Clan MacLaren (Clann MhicLabhrainn) or the sons of Laurence, is one such example.

Clan Associations

The name has always been associated more with Lowland Scotland as opposed to the Highlands. More specifically,with the border region between Scotland and England and the area known as Stirlingshire in central Scotland.

Clans as we know them today owe more to Victorian romanticism than historical fact. During that period of the 19th century, there was an extensive Scottish revivalist movement. Not only do the vast majority of Scottish tartans originate from that time but there was also a concerted effort to associate every Scottish surname regardless whether it was Lowland or Highland in origin, with a clan Hence the likely reason that Laurie became known as a Sept of Clan McLaren which had historical roots in West Stirlingshire and Perthshire and Clan Gordon because of that clan’s early associations with the Scottish Borders.

Whatever the truth of it, Lauries, Lawries, Lowrys (regardless of how they spell their name) after nearly two centuries now regard their associations with each clan as an immutable fact and a matter of pride.

There is no historical evidence that clan tartans as we think of them today existed prior to the 19th century. Prior to that time there was no such thing as a clan tartan which everyone uniformly wore. That is the reason why clansmen wore clan emblems certain plants for instance to proclaim their clan allegiances. In the case of the Jacobites a white cockcade; clansman who supported the government wore black cockcades on their bonnets to distinguish themselves from their neighbours because it was impossible to do so by just looking at the tartan they wore. It was also common for clansmen to wear several garments of differing tartans together. The famous picture of the battle of Culloden which used actual Jacobite prisoners as models nicely illustrates this point.

It is a modern custom that all associated families have taken to wearing the "clan" tartan regardless of their name. I believe today one can still take pride in being associated with a certain clan whilst still wearing one's family tartan. Remember it was the family's choice to associate themselves with a clan rather than vice versa and that arrangement was one of mutual benefit rather than one of a feudal nature i.e. vassal and lord.

Variant Spellings of the Name

When one remembers that until the recent past, vast numbers of people were illiterate and spelling was not standardised but reflected the regional phonetics of the spoken word. It is therefore hardly surprising that a large number of variant spellings of the name exist. Lawrie, Laury, Lawry, Laurie, Lowrie and Lowry being just some of the more common. Our own family surname has been variously recorded in official records as Lawrie, Lowrie and Laurie. The Laurie spelling only became fixed around 1836 when our great grandfather Thomas Laurie's birth was recorded. Interestingly enough records relating to his four siblings record their surname as Lawrie.

Immigration was another factor which contributed to name variations. People and families would often change their name in an attempt to be accepted more quickly by their indigenous neighbours. The Lauries, Lawries etc. who immigrated to Ireland during the time of the Ulster Plantation of 1609 illustrate this very point. Lawrie became Lavery and Lowry eventually became O’Lowry.

Gaelic form of the Name

Laurie, Lowry etc. is a Lowland name and strictly speaking does not have a Gaelic form. The nearest would be the Gaelic form of Laurence i.e. Labhrainn in Scots Gaelic or Labhrais in Irish Gaelic. Though, as we have already discussed the Scots/Irish practice of distinguishing family members was by adding the prefix Mac (son of) to the patronymic (father's name). That is why we only see the surname MacLabhrainn in Scots Gaelic and Mac Labhrais in Irish Gaelic. Irish surnames treat Mac and the patronymic as two separate words, while Scots Gaelic treats them as one, with an internal capital letter.

I have seen some Irish Gaelic forms of the name written as O’Labhrada. This is an invention from the Gaelic Revival Movement of the 19th Century. At that time there was a craze "Irishise" as many surnames as possible in order to suggest a uniform origin. This was a similar exercise to the one in Scotland in which every Scottish surname was associated with a clan.

History of the Name

Annie Laurie

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* * * Laurie * * * * Lawrie * * * * Laury * * * * Lowry * * * * Lowrie * * * * Lawry * * * * Lawrence * * * O'Lowrie * * * O'Labhrada * * * MacLaurie * * * Lavery * * *

The ethnic origins of the name

The meaning of the name

The name and its clan associations

Variant spellings of the name

Gaelic form of the name

History of the Name

Annie Laurie

World-wide family

Contact

Home

Back