This surname may be extinct

McMartain Surname Definition:

MACMARTIN: Gaelic MacMhartainn or MacMhartuinn for earlier MacGille Mhartainn, 'son of the servant of (S. ) Martin. ' The saint is Martinus (dimin. of Martius, 'little Mars'), "who was widely reverenced in Scotland, doubtless because of his connection with Ninian's church of Whithorn, which was dedicated to him.

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McMartain Surname Distribution Map

By incidenceBy frequencyBy rank
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Scotland41:935,80421,348
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States51:10,043,737422,899

McMartain Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

MACMARTIN: Gaelic MacMhartainn or MacMhartuinn for earlier MacGille Mhartainn, 'son of the servant of (S. ) Martin. ' The saint is Martinus (dimin. of Martius, 'little Mars'), "who was widely reverenced in Scotland, doubtless because of his connection with Ninian's church of Whithorn, which was dedicated to him." Murdac mac Gillemartin witnessed a charter by Roger de Scalebroc of lands in Carrie, c. 1185 (Melros, I, p. 25; RMS., II, 142). Femware Macgilmartine or Mackilmartine granted a half carucate of land in Strathblane to Sir David de Grahame c. 1240 (HMC., 3. Rep., App., p. 386). Adam filius Gilmur Makmartin held the lands of Lethin and Kyinnis before 1290 (Laing, 15), and in 1329 there is entry of payment of the king's debt to Fergus McMartin in Galloway (ER., I, p. 152). Gillaspic mac Marten held land in Loryne, c. 1364 (HP., IV, p. 16). Angus Mertini and Duncan Mertini witnessed a charter by Celestine of the Isles to Alan Donald Duff, captain of Clan Camroun, 1495 (RMS., II, 2281). Ewn M'Gillemertin and Finlaw M'Mertin took part in the second hership of Petty, 1513 (Rose, p. 190). Gilbert McMartyne, a follower of the earl of Cassilis, was respited for murder, 1526 (RSS., I, 3386). M'Gillemertyne appears in Trottemish 1536, and the name is common in the Black Book of Taymouth. In 1613 John McGillemertene in Geche and Finla McMertene were fined for reset of members of Clan Gregor (RPC., XIV, p. 629,633). The Clann Mhic Mhartainn of Letterfinlay are a sept of the Camerons, and the name has all but disappeared from the Highlands, having been merged into Cameron. This change of name began early, as in 1617 three individuals are designated "Cambroun alias M'Martene" (RPC., IX). Makgillemertyn 1495, M'Ilmartine 1675, McIlmartun 1541, M'Ilmertin 1670, M'Mertein 1672, McMertene 1617. A M'Mertinestoun in Ayrshire, 1622 (Retours, Ayr, 212).

— The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

The son of Martin, or the warlike.

— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur
DNA test information

Phonetically Similar Names

Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ASimilarity (high to low)Similarity (low to high)Prevalent jurisdiction A-ZPrevalent jurisdiction Z-A
SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
McMartin942,141/
MacMartin89518/
Mc-Martin891/
McCmartin891/
Mmcmartin890/
McMarthan890/
MacKmartin842/
Mac Martin840/
Mcmarton822/
McMarten821/
McMurtin820/
McMarrton780/
McMurtine780/
McKay-Martin762/
Macayomartin761/
McCoy-Martin761/
McKay Martin761/
McMurtny711/
Mcmurtne711/
McMurdin711/
McMorton711/
McMurton710/
McMordin710/
Mokmardin671/
MacMorton671/
McMurtney670/
MacMorten670/
Makhamardin601/
Mokamarudin601/
Mcmurdon597/
McMurden590/
Mequi Marton572/
Mkhamaruddin571/
Mac Moritine570/
MacMurden562/
Makmuridin5363/
Makmurotun535/
Mac Morten530/
Magwa-Mrwetyana501/
Makhamirdin501/
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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
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  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to McMartain
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