McFarland (surname)
McFarland, is a variation of MacFarlane that became popular in northern Ireland, but can be found worldwide. The home of the MacFarlane clan is the parish of Arrochar at the head of Loch Lomond and Loch Long at the beginning of the western Highlands in Scotland. This area was granted by feudal charter to one of the younger sons of the second earl of Lennox in 1286. The history of this exchange is found in an old Celtic genealogy of Duncan, the eighth Earl of Lennox, who was executed in 1425. It goes something like this: the first Earl of Lennox was Alwyn, followed by his son, also named Alwyn, in 1199 as the second Earl. This Alwyn had many sons, the eldest being Maldouen, the third Earl, who granted his younger brother, Gilchrist, the lands of Arrochar. Gilchrist’s son Malduin was father to Parlan. In 1344, Parlan’s son, Malcolm MacPharlain, renewed the charter for the lands of Arrochar from Donald, the 6th Earl of Lennox. The spelling changed over many years and times. The earliest MacFarlanes in northern Ireland appeared in documents as "mcffarlan" but eventually McFarland became a dominant spelling there, and as men moved back and forth between Ireland and Scotland, the use of the "d" appeared in Scotland as well. In early America the spelling could be McFarlin, MacFarland, McFarlan, or McFarling.[1] The MacFarlane project at FamilyTreeDNA has over 1000 members and genetic testing has revealed the evolution of the genetic haplogroup unique to the descendants of Malcolm MacPharlain. Downstream from R-M269, which is the most common haplogroup in Europe (carried by over 110 million men), is L21, then DF63, then A92, and finally BY674, which at this time appears to be the common SNP of the main MacFarlane (any spelling) line. However, there are multiple McFarland lines that do not descend from this line, but have other genetic markers. Those McFarlands (again, any spelling) descend from men who probably lived in the area and adopted the name of the clan chief once surnames became more common. [2]
- Alan McFarland (born 1949), Northern Ireland Ulster Unionist Party politician and MLA for North Down
- Alexander McFarland (born 1993), Canadian academic; Durham College - Music Business Management, Ontario
- Anne Hazen McFarland (1868–?), American physician, medical journal editor
- Anthony McFarland (born 1977), American professional football player
- Arthur McFarland (1874–1959), American athlete and coach
- Billy McFarland, Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary, leading figure in the Ulster Defence Association
- Billy McFarland (entrepreneur) (born 1991), American tech entrepreneur
- Bob McFarland (born 1941), member of both houses of the Texas State Legislature from 1977 to 1991
- Doug McFarland (born 1946), American Politician/Hamline Professor; Minnesota
- Dylan McFarland (born 1980), American professional football player
- Ernest McFarland (1894–1984), American politician; U.S. Senator and Governor of Arizona
- Frank Mace MacFarland (1869–1951), American malacologist
- Gary McFarland (1933–1971), American musician, composer and arranger
- George McFarland (1928–1993), American actor and singer who played "Spanky" in the Our Gang series
- Graeme McFarland (born 1983), American Football Player, Indiana University
- Jack McFarland (born 1969), American politician
- James T. McFarland (born 1930), New York politician
- Jim McFarland (born 1947), American football player
- John McFarland (disambiguation), several people
- Kathleen Troia McFarland (born 1951), American politician; Assistant Secretary of Defense 1982–1985, Deputy National Security Advisor of Donald Trump
- Mark McFarland (born 1978), American NASCAR race driver
- Michael C. McFarland (born 1948), American academic; president of the College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts
- Mike McFarland (born 1970), American actor, comedian, director, and writer
- Packey McFarland (1888–1936), American boxer
- Patrick McFarland (born 1951), American professional basketball player
- Roy McFarland (born 1948), English professional football manager
- Rebecca McFarland American actress
- T. J. McFarland (Timothy J. McFarland, born 1989), American baseball pitcher
- Virgie McFarland (1877 - 1971), Scottish educator and writer
- William McFarland (disambiguation), several people
Fictional characters:
- Ambrose McFarland, fictional head of the coal company from the 2000 drama film Songcatcher, played by Steve Boles
- Clementine McFarland, fictional wife of the head of the coal company from the 2000 drama film Songcatcher, played by Rhoda Griffis
- Jack McFarland, fictional character from the sitcom Will & Grace
References
- ↑ Haines, Mary Helen. "Ch. 1 MacFarlanes in Scotland and Ireland". www.clanmacfarlane.org. Retrieved 2018-08-25.
- ↑ "Family Tree DNA - Genetic Testing for Ancestry, Family History & Genealogy". www.familytreedna.com. Retrieved 2018-08-25.