My Burnfield link to Gille Bride and Gille Dog

January 30, 2019

My Burnfield link to Gille Bride and Gille Dog

Genetic studies show that my earliest sure paternal ancestor, directly down the paternal line is Gillbride, Thane of Argyll and father of Somerled, King of the Isles – progenitor of Clan Donald, Clan MacNeil, Clan McInnis, Clan Douglas and Clan MacAlister. He was of Norse origin, but his family is likely to have arrived in Scotland before the Viking invasions. Gillbride means “Servant of Saint Brighid” of Ireland.

Later on in time my paternal line are Gille Dog, “Servants of Saint Cadoc” of Wales. My family tree paper trail via the paternal line goes back to John Doig, born 1642, of Rattrray, Perthshire in Scotland – one of the the well documented family – “The Dogs of Mentieth.” The Doig name is derived from the earlier Gille Dog. Here is a piece from Wikipedia about St Cadoc:

“Saint Cadoc in Scotland

About 528, after his father’s death, Cadoc is said to have built a stone monastery in Scotland probably at Kilmadock, which was named for the saint, north-west of Stirling,[17] where the Annant Burn enters the River Teith about 2 miles upstream from Doune. Near the ruins of the old Kilmadock church and graveyard is Hermit’s Croft, thought to be where he lived for seven years. Seven local churches that were built in his name came under the authority of Inchmahome Priory. It is also said that Cadoc’s monastery was “below Mount Bannauc” (generally taken to be the hill southwest of Stirling down which the Bannockburn flows). It has been suggested that the monastery was where the town of St Ninians now stands, two kilometers south of Stirling. Scottish followers were known as “Gille Dog”, the servants of Cadog, which appears as a surname, first as Dog, and later as Doig, Dock, and Doak.”

Well we must have been a very religious lot! And I would have been Doctor Dog and Penny Mrs Dog if my Great Grandfather, David Doeg, had married my Great Grandmother Marjorie Burnfield, herself of Norman descent (De Burnvile).  But he couldn’t marry her because he was already married with several children – the Dirty Dog!

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