COLQUHOUN
Colquhoun is a Scottish surname of Gaelic origin, derived from the elements col, meaning narrow, and cù, meaning hound; alternatively it is linked to the Gaelic caolchuinn, which translates as the narrow corner. These linguistic roots indicate that the name may have originally described a person of swift or agile appearance, or one of a somewhat slender physical build.
The name appears in historical records under a wide array of spellings, including Cahun, Calhoun, Colquhoun, Colqueran and Colhoun. The earliest documented reference is the 1240 grant of the Lands of Colquhoun in Dumbarton to Robert de Colechon by the earl of Levenax, a grant recorded in multiple charters and indicating the close relationship between the family and the local earldom. In 1285 Robert de Kylkone is mentioned on an inquisition that determined the rightful heirs to Dufgall, brother of the earl of Levenax, and later records refer to Umfrai de Kilwhone, a knight of Dunbretan who pledged allegiance to the short‑lived republican government of Scotland between 1296 and 1306.
The Colquhouns of Luss were a powerful baronial family whose ancestral lands surrounded Loch Lomond in West Dunbartonshire. Members of the clan served as generals in the late medieval era, notably at the Battle of Flodden in 1513. Their lineage continued through the Colquhouns of Colquhoun and the Colquhouns of Camstradden, and the clan is traditionally credited with a legacy of courage, strength, hospitality and loyalty. A fifteenth‑century minstrel named Blind Harry, who composed the romanticised account of Sir William Wallace, is regarded as an earlier ancestor.
In the early seventeenth century the Colquhouns entered the realm of international trade when ironfounders bearing the name were employed by King Gustavus of Sweden to cast cannon for his army; records suggest that descendants under the spellings of Cahun and Cahund remain resident in Sweden to the present day. Earlier, John de Culquon held the office of Sheriff of Dunbarton in 1427, and Adam Choquhoun was rector of Stobo in 1513, illustrating the family's continued prominence within Scottish society.
Today the surname Colquhoun is most commonly found in Scotland and Northern Ireland, but it is also present in the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Italy and across the English‑speaking world, including the United States, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the British Isles. In the United States, the 2020 Census lists the name as most frequently occurring in California, Texas, New York, Pennsylvania, Florida and Michigan. Variants such as Colhoun, Colhoon, Colhoun, Calhoun, Coulhoun, Coulhoon, Calhoon, Coulhuan, Colmlhowan, and Kalkúun reflect the Anglicisation of the original Gaelic spelling across different regions and historical periods.
Thus, the Colquhoun surname, with its deep Gaelic heritage and enduring association with the historic Clan Colquhoun, continues to serve as a marker of Scotland’s noble past and the enduring legacy of its families across the globe.
Typical given names associated with the Colquhoun surname
Male
- Alan
- Alexander
- Andrew
- David
- Iain
- Ian
- James
- John
- Robert
- William
Female
- Anne
- Catherine
- Elizabeth
- Fiona
- Helen
- Jean
- Karen
- Linda
- Margaret
- Mary
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Colquhoun in...
Braille
⠉⠕⠇⠟⠥⠓⠕⠥⠝
Morse
-.-.---.-..--.-..-....---..--.
Semaphore
There are approximately 3,539 people named Colquhoun in the UK. That makes it roughly the 2,597th most common surname in Britain. Around 54 in a million people in Britain are named Colquhoun.
Famous people named Colquhoun
- Christopher Colquhoun - Actor
- Sophie Colquhoun -
- Maureen Colquhoun - Politician
- Ithell Colquhoun - Artist (1906 to 1988)
- John Colquhoun - Scottish football player
- Alan Colquhoun - Architect and historian (1921 to 2012)
- Eddie Colquhoun - Scottish football player
- David Colquhoun - Pharmacologist
- Archibald Colquhoun - Translator (1912 to 1964)
- Joe Colquhoun - Comics artist (1926 to 1987)
- Robert Colquhoun - Scottish artist (1914 to 1962)
- Ivar Colquhoun - Aristocrat (1916 to 2008)
- Patrick Colquhoun - Merchant, statistician, magistrate, river police (1745 to 1820)
- Calvin Colquhoun - Scottish football player
- Les Colquhoun - RAF Officer and recipient of the George Medal (1921 to 2001)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.