Show ContentsAlbion History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Albion

What does the name Albion mean?

On the Scottish west coast, the Albion family was born among the ancient Dalriadan clans. Their name comes from the son of the blond one, or son of Alpin.

Early Origins of the Albion family

The surname Albion was first found in Argyllshire (Gaelic erra Ghaidheal), the region of western Scotland corresponding roughly with the ancient Kingdom of Dál Riata, in the Strathclyde region of Scotland, now part of the Council Area of Argyll and Bute, where they were descended from King Kenneth MacAlpin who was murdered by the Picts near Dundee in the year 834. MacAlpin is generally considered to have been the first king to rule both Scots and Picts, and as such, was the first king of Scotland.

Further to the south, the variant Alby hailed from Alby, a parish, in the union of Aylsham, hundred of South Erpingham, E. division of Norfolk. "This place, which was anciently called Oslby, is intersected by the road from Aylsham to Cromer, and includes the hamlets of Alby Common and Alby Hill." 1

Early History of the Albion family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Albion research. Another 193 words (14 lines of text) covering the years 1296, 1395, 1405, 1531, 1557, 1658, 1692 and 1725 are included under the topic Early Albion History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Albion Spelling Variations

In various documents Albion has been spelled Since medieval scribes still spelled according to sound, records from that era contain an enormous number of spelling variations. MacAlpine, MacAlpin, MacAilpein (Gaelic) and others.

Early Notables of the Albion family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Sir John MacAlpin; John MacAlpine (Latin: Maccabeus) (died 1557), a Scottish Protestant theologian; and Joseph Capen (1658-1725), a Massachusetts clergyman who during...
Another 30 words (2 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Albion Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Albion family to Ireland

Some of the Albion family moved to Ireland, but this topic is not covered in this excerpt.
Another 31 words (2 lines of text) about their life in Ireland is included in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Migration of the Albion family

Significant portions of the populations of both the United States and Canada are still made up of the ancestors of Dalriadan families. Some of those in Canada originally settled the United States, but went north as United Empire Loyalists in the American War of Independence. The late 19th and early 20th centuries saw the ancestors of many Scots on both sides of the border begin to recover their collective national heritage through Clan societies and highland games. Some of the first North American settlers carried this name or one of its variants: Robert MacAlpin, who settled in New York State in 1740; William MacAlpine settled in New York in 1774; Hugh and James MacAlpin settled in New York in 1811. James Alpin was registered as a United Empire Loyalist..


Contemporary Notables of the name Albion (post 1700) +

  • Leslie Albion Squires, American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Cairo, 1943 2
  • William Albion Carlson (1908-1990), American Republican politician, Member of Colorado State House of Representatives, 1939-48; Speaker of the Colorado State House of Representatives, 1947-48 3
  • George Albion Biggs, American Democratic Party politician, Postmaster at Point Pleasant, West Virginia, 1968-2002 4
  • Frederick Albion Ober (1849-1913), American naturalist and writer
  • Miles Albion Netzel (1886-1938), Major League Baseball third baseman
  • John Albion Andrew (1818-1867), American Republican politician, Member of Massachusetts State House of Representatives, 1858; In 1859, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Massachusetts, 1860; Governor of Massachusetts, 1861-66 5
  • Stephen Albion Day (1882-1950), American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Illinois, 1932; U.S. Representative from Illinois at-large, 1941-45; Defeated, 1922, 1938, 1944 6
  • Albion Keith Parris (1788-1857), American politician and jurist, United States Senator from Maine (1827-1828), 5th Governor of Maine (1822-1827)
  • Albion "Bert" Hendrickson (1897-1977), Australian politician


  1. Lewis, Samuel, A Topographical Dictionary of England. Institute of Historical Research, 1848, Print.
  2. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, April 29) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  3. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 30) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  4. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, March 17) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  5. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, February 2) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html
  6. The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2015, October 8) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html


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