Clan Livingston(e)

The Scottish name “Livingston” (and its variants) comes from the ancient town in Lothian. It means “Leving’s town”; this can be seen more clearly in the Middle English form, Leuingstoun. Leving, or Leofing, was the name of a Saxon chief who settled in Lothian in the 12th century and got a baronic charter from David I of Scotland. I think his name means “little Leof”, and I’m guessing “Leof” is an Old English version of the Norse name “Leif”, which meins “heir”.

The interesting thing about the Livingston “clan” is that it’s actually two lines who are so closely allied that they are effectively one family. The two branches are the Lowland Livingstons and the Highland Livingstons.

The Lowlanders are the Lothians who lived near Livingston village. They are English speakers of primarily Anglo-Saxon descent.

The Highlanders are from the area of Argyll, Lorn, and Stirling, with their seat on the Isle of Lismore. They’re Gaelic speakers of Irish descent. Their Gaelic name is McLea. This might have come from “Mac an Leigh”, which means “son of the doctor”, referring to a physician named Ferchar who lived in western Scotland during the 14th century; or it might be a corruption of “MacDunsleibhe”.
The Livingstons and the McLeas have been close for hundreds of years, and during the 17th century they began using one another’s names interchangeably. This may have been to protect the McLeas from persecution during the Interregnum. The McLeas had been allies of the MacDougalls against the Campbells. The Campbells were Covenanters and supporters of Parliament during the English Civil War, and during the Puritan Interregnum they used their position of privilege to strike back at the McLeas. The Livingstons, who were Jacobites, supported and protected the McLeas. By the 18th century, the two lines recognized one another as kin whenever they travelled to one another’s lands. They remained distinct for certain ceremonial or legal purposes, but as far as fraternity, solidarity and hospitality are concerned, they are as one.
The McLeas are associated with St Moluag, a Dalaradian who came to Scotland to preach to the Picts on the Isle of Lismore. When the land was settled by the Gaels, the McLeas came to tend the holy sites and paraphernalia of Moluag, including his staff, the Bachuil Mor. The Chief of the McLeas is called the Coarb, or successor, of Moluag.

The Lowland line’s motto is “Si je puis”, which is French for “If I am able”. The Highlander line has two mottos. The first is “Cnoc Aingeil”, which is Gaelic for “Hill of Fire”, named for the hill in Lorn where the Picts buried their kings, near where Moluag’s Bachuil is kept. The second motto is “Ni mi e ma’s urrain dhomb”, which is Gaelic for “I will do it if I am able” – a translation of the Lowland line’s motto, signifying that the McLeas have adopted the name and spirit of the Livingstons.

I myself am a decendant of the Lowland Livingstons and hope to post more on the family geneology in the future.