Parent’s name
McFarland surname meaning
A northern Irish variant of Scottish Gaelic Mac Pharthaláin, “son of Parthalán,” a Gaelic form of Bartholomew.
The short story
McFarland is the northern Irish spelling of Scottish and Ulster McFarlane, from Gaelic Mac Pharthaláin, “son of Parthalán.” Parthalán is generally taken as a Gaelicized form of Latin Bartholomaeus (Bartholomew) and was often shortened in speech to Parlán; related Anglicizations include Bartlett and McPartland. MacFarland and MacFarlane keep the fuller Mac spelling. Parent’s name is high confidence: the surname is an explicit Gaelic patronymic from a personal name, whether Scottish Highland or northern Irish in a given family’s history.
Also seen as: McFarland, MacFarland, McFarlane, MacFarlane, McPartland
Sources used
- Ancestry / DAFN entry for McFarland (Irish northern variant of McFarlane)
- Ancestry / DAFN entry for McFarlane (Mac Pharthaláin, son of Parthalán/Bartholomew)
- Names2020_LastNames_RaceHispanic_Top1000.xlsx (2020 Census)