Clan Baird Facts

Region

Baird is generally considered a Lowland Clan or Family

Standing

Currently chiefless & therefore lacking in legal & noble status

Petitioner to the Chiefship of Clan Baird

Sir James Baird, 11th Bt. of Saughtonhall

Chief’s Heraldry

The Undifferenced Arms of Baird are those of Auchmedden, 1672, currently unmatriculated

Blazon

Gules, a boar passant, Or

Crest

A griffin’s head erased

Motto

Dominus fecit (The Lord made)

Seat

Strathaven, Lanark

War Cry

Baird to the vanguard! In honour of Lt.-Col. Sir James Baird, 6th Bt. of Saughtonhall (c.1756-1830)

Plant

Acer pseudoplatanus, Sycamore Maple; 8.64 meters in circumference, standing beside a ruin wall of the ancient Barde of Posso stronghold, Manor Parish, Peebles

Tartans

Ancient, Hunting, Modern and Dress

Clan Badge

Officially sanctioned for use by all Clanspeople; A griffin’s head erased within a buckled black belt upon which is inscribed, ‘Dominus fecit’

Name Variations

Baard, Baird, Bard, Barde, Beard
Early Norman period, the ‘d’ and ‘t’ are interchangeable, i.e. Baart, one of the earliest surnames recorded (England 1087; France 1090)
Rare Variations: Bahard, Baiard, Bayard, Biaird, Bord, Burd, Byrd, MacBard, Mackabard
It is incorrect that the Irish Ward is a variation of Baird in Scotland

Baird Geography in Scotland

Data from Scotland’s People Archives show 1,857 officially recorded Baird baptisms/births between 1538 and 1700. The majority of these (78.6%) were in a band across Scotland in the counties of Ayrshire, Lanarkshire, Stirlingshire, Midlothian and West Lothian.

While some Baird families lived further north, and even in the Highlands, this data set confirms the understanding that Baird is a Lowland clan. Bairds in the Highlands and North probably migrated there from the core counties in the south.

While there is a certain romanticism associated with Highland clans, it must be remembered that the majority of recorded Scottish history occurred in the Lowlands and Borders. This is especially true during the war for Scottish independence with England. We know that Bairds were an integral part of that history.

Clan Organization

Clan systems today are very different from the practices of Scotland's Highlanders and Islanders of the Middle Ages. While those venerable constructs are quite interesting and historically significant to the development of Scotland. It doesn't help us much today as we look forward to a time when we kinsmen have a Chief for the Name of Baird. So for the purposes of contemporary accuracy, we will not lament the evolutionary restructuring of clan systems, but instead, embrace the current legally regulated laws that are administered and controlled by Scotland's Court of the Lord Lyon.

Organization Charts for the Clan with and without a Chief