With a last name like Grant, it’s fairly obvious that I haven’t the slightest bit of Irish ancestry in me. In fact, my grandfather on my dad’s side has Scottish roots, and I’m sure there’s some sort of Scottish-Irish rivalry that prevents me from even thinking about engaging in St. Patrick’s Day celebrations. 

I looked up my last name, and discovered it’s meaning – which I met with a sigh. The surname Grant comes from the Norman-French word “grand”, which obviously means great, or large. Clocking in at a gigantic six-foot something, such a name is expected. 

I’m going to take a gigantic leap and assume my Grant name can be traced right back to Scotland (I know nothing of my genealogy, but I am willing to generalize for the purpose of making myself sound cooler), which makes me a member of the Clan Grant. 

According to the Clan Grant’s website, DNA evidence has traced us Grants back to the Vikings. Yes, that’s right; Håkon the Mighty, protector of Norway, is my great-great, uncle-something-or-other. 

My ancestors were responsible for lighting the beacon that sat atop the Craigelachie to warn lowland Scotland of danger. The clan’s war-cry, “Craigelachie” reflects that, and our motto came from the task as well; “Stand Fast.” It reflected our ability to stand and do nothing in the event of an attack, I suppose. 

My ancestors moved to Loch Ness and became Lords of Stratherrick, adopting the name of Grant around 1175. The meaning of the name is “gritty”, or “true grit.”

Apparently Richard Grant, which happens to be my father’s name, left Loch Ness because Stratherrick was not wealthy enough to support the entire clan. My dad then became Chancellor of Lincoln and Archbishop of Canterbury (How come this has never come up at a family dinner?). It has been recorded that Richard Grant was very tall, which possibly supplemented the pun of grand within the Grant name. 

One of my ancestors, Sir Archibald Grant of Monymusk introduced the turnip to Scotland, thus allowing Scotland to invent haggis. You’re welcome, Scotland. 

The clan system eventually ended, and Sir James Grant founded Grantown-on-spey in 1765. He trained masons by letting them work on the Castle Grant, which was later lost when the estates were disentailed in the 1880s. 

The Castle Grant was originally the Castle Comyn, but the Grant and McGregor clans stormed it and slayed the Comyn chief and kept his skull as a token. It was kept in the castle as an heirloom of the Grant clan. According to Lord Strathspey, the top of the skull was hinged and documents were kept in it. I promise I don’t keep any human skulls as heirlooms – and I have a filing cabinet to keep documents in. 

To make a very long story short; I have my own castle in Scotland, which is rumoured to be haunted by Barbara Grant, who was imprisoned by her father because she refused to marry a man she didn’t love. My middle name  happens to be Barbara. I might have to change my pen-name to Annalee the Mighty to avoid any confusion with the ghost, and to show my Viking ancestry.   

DISCLAIMER: The Last Word is an opinion column, it is meant to provoke thought and debate. As such, any opinions written here are the writers own and do not reflect the viewpoint of any other Fitzhugh staff member or the directors of the Jasper Media Group Inc.