Contents [hide]

Cloud History Etymology Coat of Arms Creation Early Origins Early History Spelling Variations Early Notables Ranking

Contemporary Notables Related Stories Motto Suggested Reading Sources

Cloud History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Origins Available:
Scotland

Etymology of Cloud

What does the name Cloud mean?

The ancestors of the Cloud family come from the ancient Scottish kingdom of Dalriada. The family name comes from the personal name Leod. The Gaelic form of the surname is Mac Leoid, which means son of Leod, son of Olaf the Black, King of Man and the Northern Isles. Olaf was from a dynasty of Norse Kings, who, for centuries held the Isles. They were in turn descended from King Halfdan the Stingy, a King who was reputed to be descended from the god Frey. Leod held the island of Lewis, the mainland Glenelg and part of Skye in about 1195 AD. It was his two sons who founded the two great branches of the Siol Tormod and the Siol Torquil.

Cloud Coat of Arms Creation

The crest and motto of the Macleods are a bull's head and "Hold Fast." Of it the clan may well be proud, as it commemorates a brave deed by an ancestor at the prompting of sympathy and mercy.

The story goes that one of the Dunvegan chiefs went to pay a visit to Argyle at Inverary. He chanced to arrive on the day appointed for the execution of one of Argyle's clansmen, whom his chief had condemned to be gored to death by a bull. A sort of arena had been prepared, and Argyle with his guests occupied seats raised above the space in which the tragedy was to be enacted. The bull, bellowing with rage, was led in, and presently the man appeared. He was a fine looking fellow, and showed no signs of fear as he faced the animal. MacLeod implored Argyle to forgive the man. Argyle, with a cruel smile, said it was too late as the man was with the bull in the arena and nothing could save him. " If I save him," said MacLeod, " will you give him to me ?" He sprang to his feet as he spoke, flung aside his cloak, and prepared for prompt action. " Yes," said Argyle, " if you save him he is yours, but you go to your death." Without another word MacLeod sprang into the arena, rushed for the bull and seized one of its horns by the left hand, and as he did so a cry rang out, " Vold fast."

The next instant MacLeod struck a blow with his dirk which reached the beast's heart. The bull was killed and the man was saved. Even now there are Campbells living at Dunvegan who claim to be descended from the man. whom MacLeod saved, and a horn at Dunvegan is said to be one of those of the bull which MacLeod killed. 1

Early Origins of the Cloud family

The surname Cloud was first found in on the Isle of Lewis (Scottish Gaelic: Leòdhas), where the Siol Tormod branch held the territories of Harris, Glenelg and Dunvegan Castle in Skye; while the Siol Torquil branch held Assynt and Cadboll, and the Island of Ramasay. There were no title deeds for these territories as they had been considered possessions of Norway. Yet when King Haakon asserted his authority over the lands in 1263 King Alexander resisted. Although the Scottish King Alexander signed the Treaty of Perth allowing payment of rent to Norway for all these lands, it was never paid and the whole of the western Isles became Scottish possessions.

Early History of the Cloud family

This web page shows only a small excerpt of our Cloud research. Another 380 words (27 lines of text) covering the years 1314, 1597, 1613, 1715, 1745, 1777, 1901 and 1959 are included under the topic Early Cloud History in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cloud Spelling Variations

Historical recordings of the name Cloud include many spelling variations. They are the result of repeated translations of the name from Gaelic to English and inconsistencies in spelling rules. They include MacLeod, MacCleod, MacCloud, MacLoud and many more.

Early Notables of the Cloud family

Notable amongst the Clan from early times was Sir Roderick MacLeod of Dunvegan Castle who led 600 of his Clansmen to Ireland to assist in O'Donnell's rebellion and Lord MacLeod's Highlanders (73rd Regiment - later the 71st Regiment)...
Another 38 words (3 lines of text) are included under the topic Early Cloud Notables in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.

Cloud Ranking

In the United States, the name Cloud is the 2,306^th most popular surname with an estimated 12,435 people with that name. 2

Cloud migration to the United States +

Dalriadan families proliferated in North America. Their descendants still populate many communities in the eastern parts of both the United States and Canada. Some settled in Canada as United Empire Loyalists, in the wake of the American War of Independence. Families on both sides of the border have recovered much of their heritage in the 20th century through Clan societies and highland games. Analysis of immigration records indicates that some of the first North American immigrants bore the name Cloud or a variant listed above:

Cloud Settlers in United States in the 17th Century

Robert Cloud, who landed in Virginia in 1643 3
Joseph Cloud, who arrived in Pennsylvania in 1681 3
William Cloud, who landed in Pennsylvania in 1682 3

Cloud Settlers in United States in the 19th Century

J C Cloud, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1850 3
W P Cloud, who arrived in San Francisco, California in 1850 3
Dr.W. Cloud, aged 34, who immigrated to America, in 1895
Charles E. Cloud, aged 40, who immigrated to the United States, in 1896

Cloud Settlers in United States in the 20th Century

Frederick W. Cloud, aged 22, who settled in America, in 1905
Margaret R. Cloud, aged 23, who immigrated to the United States, in 1905
John W. Cloud, aged 37, who immigrated to the United States, in 1906
Marshall Cloud, aged 38, who landed in America, in 1907
Katharine M. P. Cloud, aged 13, who landed in America, in 1908
... (More are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

Contemporary Notables of the name Cloud (post 1700) +

Vivian A. Cloud, American fighter pilot and flying ace in the U.S. Army Air Forces, during World War II, credited with 5 aerial victories
Pearl Cloud, American Republican politician, Alternate Delegate to Republican National Convention from Texas, 1972 4
Newton Cloud, American Democratic Party politician, Member of Illinois Democratic State Committee, 1837-38; Delegate to Illinois State Constitutional Convention from Morgan County, 1847 4
N. B. Cloud, American Republican politician, Delegate to Republican National Convention from Alabama, 1872 4
Michael E. Cloud, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, 2002 4
Michael Cloud, American Libertarian politician, Candidate for U.S. Senator from Nevada, 1998 4
Marion E. Cloud, American politician, U.S. Vice Consul in Manchester, 1917-20 4
H. B. Cloud, American Democratic Party politician, Delegate to Democratic National Convention from Montana, 1928 4
Edward Iron III Cloud, American Democratic Party politician, Elected South Dakota State House of Representatives 27th District 2010 4
E. B. Cloud, American Democratic Party politician, Member of North Carolina State Senate 32nd District, 1915-16 4
... (Another 8 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

The Cloud Motto +

The motto was originally a war cry or slogan. Mottoes first began to be shown with arms in the 14th and 15th centuries, but were not in general use until the 17th century. Thus the oldest coats of arms generally do not include a motto. Mottoes seldom form part of the grant of arms: Under most heraldic authorities, a motto is an optional component of the coat of arms, and can be added to or changed at will; many families have chosen not to display a motto.

Motto: Hold Fast

Sources +

Polson, Alexander, The Romance of Scottish Crests and Mottoes. Inverness: Walter Alexander, Inglis Street 1929. Print
"What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
The Political Graveyard: Alphabetical Name Index. (Retrieved 2016, January 15) . Retrieved from http://politicalgraveyard.com/alpha/index.html