The name MacLennan is rendered in Gaelic as Mac Gille Fhinnein meaning 'the son of the follower of St. Finnan' and the family held lands around Kintail in NW Scotland. They are closely related to the Logans, and may have been descendants of that clan who adopted the name MacLennan as late as the 15th century. Certainly, the clan's arms contain the same heart and passion-nails as that of the Logans, alluding to taking Robert the Bruce's heart on Crusade. The MacLennans were strong supporters of the Mackenzies and fought to the death at Auldearn in support of the Covenanting cause. With the clan much reduced their part in the Jacobite Rebellions was limited and many emigrated to the New World. The MacLennans developed a reputation as pipers, indicated by their crest, and are known to have been the ceremonial pipers in Inverness and played at the Battle of Waterloo (1815).
Notable members of the family include anthropologist John MacLennan (1827-81) and politician Robert MacLennan (b.1936) who was a founder of the Social Democratic Party in 1981.
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