Following the route of many other Scottish clans, a chief is being sought for another ancient Scottish name and as is required, under the auspices of Lord Lyon.
It was announced on the 11th of June 2026, that the Learned Kindred of Currie, led by the Commander of the Name Currie, Robert Currie, has been approved to hold a family convention in November of this year. Robert has led Currie since the late 1980s and has been accepted onto to the prestigious Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs in 2019. As Commander, he serves as the official representative and therefore guides our cultural mission worldwide.
At the upcoming convention, members of the Currie family will be considering nominees for the position of Chief of the Name and Arms of the Learned Kindred of Currie. This is an historic occasion for their family.
The Curries, or more accurately, the MacMhuirich Bardic Family, can trace their Scottish ancestry to the 13th century when the family served as Hereditary Bards to the Lords of the Isles and later to the MacDonalds of Clanranald.
Carruthers, because of their proven hereditary line took a different route. Because our chiefly line had only lain dormant for 210 years but it had remained intact, we did not require a gathering to have a chief confirmed but rather evidence proofs of solid genealogy was presented. As such we wish the Currie nominees a harmonious and successful outcome at their derbfine.
Currie: One of Gaelic Scotland’s longest-lived bardic dynasties is electing a clan chief for the first time in 800+ years.
As said, the global Learned Kindred of Currie will gather this November in Glasgow, Scotland (in-person and virtually) to confirm and elect a Chief of the Name and Arms of Currie. This modern-day Kindred has been a champion of Scottish history and culture around the world, while uniting their clans-folk under their banner, far and wide.
As an armigerous group, the worldwide Currie/Curry/Currey family (anciently MacMhuirich, “MacVurich”) will meet to elect a chief for the first time in their history.
Once influential poets and historians to the MacDonalds, Lord of the Isles and other prominent families and clans, the Learned Kindred of Currie will gather in Scotland for only their second clan convention in modern times.
According to Wiki, The family was centred in the Hebrides and claimed descent from a 13th-century Irish bard who, according to legend, was exiled to Scotland.
The family was at first mainly employed by the Lords of the Isles as poets, lawyers, and physicians. With the fall of the Lordship of the Isles in the 15th century, the family became employed by the chiefs of the MacDonalds of Clanranald.
The Kindred were also recorded as musicians in the early 16th century, and again as clergymen, possibly as early as the early 15th century.
Held under the authority of the Lord Lyon King of Arms, family conventions provide an opportunity for members of an armigerous clan or name to affirm leadership, strengthen kinship ties, and celebrate shared heritage.
Therefore, earlier this year, the Court of the Lord Lyon in Edinburgh assigned a Supervising Officer for the Second Family Convention of the Learned Kindred of Currie. In this instance Roderick Macpherson, Unicorn Pursuivant will be in post. The appointment of a Supervising Officer marks an important step in the preparation for the convention, ensuring that proceedings are conducted in accordance with Scotland’s heraldic law and ancient custom. The presence of a Supervising Officer reflects both the historic standing of the Currie name and the seriousness with which the Kindred approaches this gathering of the family worldwide.
The Rev. Dr. David Currie will oversee the convention on behalf of the Kindred.
“In 2017, the Curries held their first recorded family convention to elect a Commander, affirming our identity as learned kindred, distinct from any other clan or name,” said Currie. “Our upcoming family convention in November to elect a chief of the name and arms of Currie provides a unique opportunity for Curries around the world to united in making this status permanent.”
This first Currie Family Convention resulted in the appointment of Robert Currie as Commander under the supervision of the Lord Lyon. In 2019, he was also invited to membership in the prestigious Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs.
For more information, contact Rev. Dr. David Currie at: currieconvention@gmail.com
Qualifications for potential Candidates:
- A person should bear the surname “Currie” – whether they bear the surname because it is their surname recorded at birth, they adopted use of that surname later in life or they bear that surname following upon marriage – and provide evidence of that fact. Sudden changes to a surname at the last minute just to be eligible to be a candidate will be unacceptable.
- Other names that can be traced to the original “MacMhuirich” (literally, “son of Muireach Albannach, the bard”) such as Curry, Currier, MacCurry, MacVurich, MacMureach, or sometimes on some of the Gaelic-speaking islands: MacPherson or MacMillan, may also qualify.
- That evidence could simply be producing a passport, driving licence, bank or credit card statement, utility bill or the like.
https://courtofthelordlyon.scot/Currie_html_files/17@2x.webp
When I first approached Charles, Lord Bruce, heir to the Chiefship of Bruce, and informed him that I was seeking to locate and have confirmed a Chief, of Carruthers who would be the senior member of the Chiefly line, his response was ‘the more the merrier’ and gave us his full support. I therefore totally concur with his comments and wish the Kindred my personal support and I’m sure that this sentiment is shared by Carruthers worldwide.
Since our Chiefs confirmation in 2019, other clans and families are petitioning the Lord Lyon to have a chief confirmed. Lyon is the only person who holds the judicial responsibility for supervising and granting an individual the right to bear the Chiefly arms of a clan or family, and therefore through that Act, on behalf of the Monarch, gives them the official title of Chief of the Name and Arms of that ‘name’.
So why is it important, well Carruthers is no longer armigerous and through the auspices of our Chief have been legally recognised in Scots law as a Noble Incorporation since 2019. We further hold a hereditary seat at the table of the Standing Council of Scottish Chiefs, both requiring recognition by the Lord Lyon. With this of course comes international recognition and respectability throughout Scottish clan society wherever it exists. Although the Chief is no longer seen as a feudal head with all that comes with, modern chiefs have been described in their roles as the first amongst equals, quite descriptive.
Promptus et Fidelis
Non Sto Solus
