Hello my little favorite pain in the butt!
OK - Mr. Gaelic.......got a couple questions. The MacTavish claim "son of Tom or Thomas" and are bolstered by Black's book. They use: MacTammais nd MacTamhais
They also rely on Black's works to support their claim: Can you shed any light on HOW???
The Surnames of Scotland, by George F. Black, 1999 - The following surnames mean ‘son of Tammie, Thomas, Thom, or Tom’ :
1. MACVISH, Maccause, Maccavish, Maccawis, Maccaws, McAwis, G. MacThomhais.
2. MACCOMB, Maccombe. From G. MacThom, often Englished Thom.
3. MACCOMBICH, Macchombich. G. MacThomaidh ‘son of Tommie (diminutive of Thomas).
4. MACCOMBIE, Maccombe, Maccomie, Macomie. G. MacComaidh, a contracted form of MacThomaidh,’son of Tommie or Tommy. In Perthshire frequently Englished Thomson.
5. MACOMISH, Maccomish. G. Mac Thomais.
6. MACTAVISH. From G. Mac Tamhais, a form of MacThamhais, ‘son of Tammas,’ the lowland Scots form of Thomas.
7. MACTHOM. G. MacThom.
8. MACTHOMAS. G. Mac Tomais.
9. THOM. A diminutive of Thomas.
10. THOMAS. A COMMON Anglo-Norman personal name. It is from the Syriac teoma, Heb. toam, ‘twin,’ rendered by Greek Didymus in St. John, xi:16. In Gaelic it assumes the form Tomas, Tomhus.
11. THOMASON, Thomasson,
12. THOMLING.
13. THOMPSON, ‘SON OF Thom, q.v. with intrusive P .
14. THOMS, FROM DIMINUTIVE OF Thom.
15. THOMSON.
OUR NOTE: G. F. BLACK DOES NOT REFERENCE THAT MACTAVISH ‘ANGLICISED’ THEIR SURNAME AS THOMSON, NOR DOES HE RECORD A TRANSITION FROM MACTAVISH TO THOMSON. ADDITIONALLY, HE GIVES NO EXAMPLE OF ONE PATRONYMIC SURNAME HAVING PRECEDENCE OR SUPERIORITY OVER ANOTHER SIMILAR SURNAME