Clan Emblem

[ Home ] [ What I know ] [ What I don't ] [ Key Questions ] [ The Name ] [ Coats Of Arms ] [ Clan Crest ] [ Other Searchers ] [ Contacts & News Items ] [ And In Conclusion... ]
   The purpose of this page is to share ideas on a family emblem for people who are descended from the original MacMeanman clan.  A number of us have been discussing MacMeanman history and genealogy on an Internet mailing list ("MCMENEMY-L," for details see my  "Neat Links" page).  Most of us are convinced that, in spite of what the "arms dealers" may tell you, there are no true coats of arms for McMenamin or any variant of the name (see my "Coats of Arms" pages).  So one of us, John McLaughlin, suggested that we develop our own "family emblem."  It would be unofficial, not a traditional coat of arms, but symbolic of what we have learned about MacMeanman history and suitable for our web pages or letterheads or to hang on our walls.  On this page I'll put all the ideas for emblems that I learn of, so that all we McM's can look at them and comment on them.

odonnell1st.gif (6747 bytes)                                              odonnel2.gif (6922 bytes)

These are exploratory emblems developed by John McLaughlin.  Of the one at upper left he said,  "Here's a first attempt...I took the O'Donnell arms and added a graphic of a book with  some McMeanman text.   Ideally the book should be inside the shield, under the cross...."    Fer Leginn O Domhnaill was the ancestor from whom we believe the MacMeanman line developed.  'Fer Leginn' means 'Lector' or 'scholar of canon law' and he was highly respected in his time.  John's second attempt at an emblem is at upper right and he wrote, "I enlarged the image a bit, and pasted all the stuff inside the shield....The O Donnells don't have any proprietary rights to the cross and the hand....I ran across at least four or five other Irish families using the same cross and hand...."  new02.gifAt the lower left is John's third version.  He increased the symbols inside the shield to three, a number often used in Irish crests and arms, by adding a castle and key group.   That refers to a story he has heard in his family that the MacMeanmans were "keepers of the castle" for the O'Donnell's.  The legend at the bottom,was a suggestion that I made so I'll take any blame for it.  Menman O Domhnaill was the nephew of the Lector O Domhnaill, the first with the name "Menman" and so I feel was our first MacMeanman ancestor.  Also, "Mol," if my rudimentary Irish is correct, is the imperative form of the verb "to praise," so it would read "Praise Menman O Domhnaill."  One further blame I'll take is that the images here are not as clear as the one's John sent me.  My transferring of them to this page "fuzzed them up" a little and as I get smarter about this stuff, I'll try to improve them.

If any of you visitors to my web site have ideas, suggestions or art work for other possible designs or variations for our emblem, send them to our MCMENEMY-L mailing list if you have joined us (and if you haven't, you should) or directly to me at rjcollins1@earthlink.net and I'll forward them to the list.  I'm sure they will generate good discussions among our McM "listers."  I'll also add to this page any actual art work that you send.  

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Questions/Comments let me know at rjcollins1@earthlink.net