Arms:
The shield below left is the Cairney coat of arms, and here
following is the description of these arms as recorded in the
Official Register of All Arms and Bearings in Scotland
maintained by the office of the Lord Lyon King of Arms, the
heraldic authority in Scotland:
'Argent, a rock issuing from the base Sable charged with
nine ears of wheat Or, five and four, in chief two lions
rampant Gules.'
The crest: 'an eagle displayed Gules.'
The colours: are black and white.
The motto: 'Noble is the Wrath of the Lion.'
These are the personal arms of Neville Cairney, a descendant of
James Cairney, a Scottish pioneer in Canada and Minnesota.
The black rock at the base of the shield is an old heraldic pun on 'Cairney', which means 'hillock' in
the Scots language. This could also symbolize a rocky island, such as Iona, or Inishowen, and
certainly conveys a sense of solidity and firmness. The wheat is a symbol of fertility, of possessing
offspring, the basis of any clan. The red lion, 'rampant', in a Gaelic or Scottish context, is the royal
lion, and the lions in these arms resemble the three lions of the O'Beolains of Ross and also of some
Sligo-connected families of the Leyney barony or of the Ui Fiachrach, such as O'Horan, O'Scanlan,
O'Kearney and O'Gara.
The arms above right are an example of Sligo arms, in this case, the arms of O'Kearney of Teffia or of
Leyney. More research here needs to be done into the interesting origin of these arms, in the
Armorial roll of Richard Carney, Ulster King of Arms in 1651, and in the earlier armorial roll of
Roger O’Ferall, Linea Antiqua, held in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin.
The lions represent the Cairneys as being of the old Celtic stock, either linked with the kindred of
St. Columba (Colm Cille) and the holy island of Iona off the west cost of the Isle of Mull, an island
between Ireland and Scotland--as in the case with the Donegal Cairneys, the Perth Cairneys (The
MacNair inheritance) and also the Clan Leslie (the Abernethy inheritance)--or linked with the Ui
Fiachrach of Sligo as in the case of the Sligo Carneys and the O'Beollains of Ui Fiachrach or Ui
Cairbre (the Perth Cairneys and the Rosses were also originally O'Beolains).
The chiefs of the kindred of St. Columba were for many years the O'Donnells, princes of Donegal,
while in the west of Scotland there was the kindred of St. Columba in Scotland: at Iona, Dunkeld and
later Abernethy. The lay abbots of Dunkeld, cousins of the O'Donnells, and heads of the of the
kindred of St. Columba in Scotland, gave rise to Crinan, Thane of Dunkeld, to MacDuff, Thane of Fife
(who inherited the royal line) and eventually to the modern families of Robertson, Duncan, Reid,
Abernethy, MacDuff and several others.
†click here to map these relationships.
the Scots language. This could also symbolize a rocky island, such as Iona, or Inishowen, and
certainly conveys a sense of solidity and firmness. The wheat is a symbol of fertility, of possessing
offspring, the basis of any clan. The red lion, 'rampant', in a Gaelic or Scottish context, is the royal
lion, and the lions in these arms resemble the three lions of the O'Beolains of Ross and also of some
Sligo-connected families of the Leyney barony or of the Ui Fiachrach, such as O'Horan, O'Scanlan,
O'Kearney and O'Gara.
The arms above right are an example of Sligo arms, in this case, the arms of O'Kearney of Teffia or of
Leyney. More research here needs to be done into the interesting origin of these arms, in the
Armorial roll of Richard Carney, Ulster King of Arms in 1651, and in the earlier armorial roll of
Roger O’Ferall, Linea Antiqua, held in the National Library of Ireland in Dublin.
The lions represent the Cairneys as being of the old Celtic stock, either linked with the kindred of
St. Columba (Colm Cille) and the holy island of Iona off the west cost of the Isle of Mull, an island
between Ireland and Scotland--as in the case with the Donegal Cairneys, the Perth Cairneys (The
MacNair inheritance) and also the Clan Leslie (the Abernethy inheritance)--or linked with the Ui
Fiachrach of Sligo as in the case of the Sligo Carneys and the O'Beollains of Ui Fiachrach or Ui
Cairbre (the Perth Cairneys and the Rosses were also originally O'Beolains).
The chiefs of the kindred of St. Columba were for many years the O'Donnells, princes of Donegal,
while in the west of Scotland there was the kindred of St. Columba in Scotland: at Iona, Dunkeld and
later Abernethy. The lay abbots of Dunkeld, cousins of the O'Donnells, and heads of the of the
kindred of St. Columba in Scotland, gave rise to Crinan, Thane of Dunkeld, to MacDuff, Thane of Fife
(who inherited the royal line) and eventually to the modern families of Robertson, Duncan, Reid,
Abernethy, MacDuff and several others.
†click here to map these relationships.
Armorial artwork for purchase:
Cairney crests in traditional strap-and-buckle format can be order from M. W.
Stevens in Blairgowrie, Scotland. Various sizes. Sheba Imports of Canada can
provide hand-embroidered Cairney arms.
Also check out these links for Kearney or Cairney coat-of-arms artwork:
www.familycrestsuk.com
www.family-crests.com
www.sealengraving.com
www.familysealrings.com
Cairney crests in traditional strap-and-buckle format can be order from M. W.
Stevens in Blairgowrie, Scotland. Various sizes. Sheba Imports of Canada can
provide hand-embroidered Cairney arms.
Also check out these links for Kearney or Cairney coat-of-arms artwork:
www.familycrestsuk.com
www.family-crests.com
www.sealengraving.com
www.familysealrings.com