Murchison

Murchison may refer to:

People

Places

Murchison (biogeographic region)

Murchison is an Interim Biogeographic Regionalisation for Australia (IBRA) region in Western Australia and part of the Western Australian Mulga shrublands ecoregion.

References

Further reading

Murchison (sept)

The Murchison family of Loch Alsh, Ross-shire, Scotland were a minor Scottish clan, and a sept of the larger Clan Mackenzie. In modern times the Murchison surname is still considered a sept of the Clan Mackenzie by the Clan Mackenzie Society of Scotland & the UK.

History

Origins

The Murchison sept are descended from Murdoch or Murcha who in 1362 received a charter for lands in Kintail from David II of Scotland. It is supposed that the Murchisons were long governors of Eilean Donan Castle. In 1563 a dispute arose between the Macraes and the MacLennans over who should hold the honorable post of constable of the castle, and the Mackenzie laird ultimately gave it to the priest John MacMhurchaidh Duhibh (Murchison). This did not suit the MacLennans who later shot Murchison in the buttocks with an arrow.

18th century and Jacobite risings

Following the Jacobite rising of 1715, William Mackenzie, 5th Earl of Seaforth was exiled in France. However his factor, Colonel Donald Murchison, continued to collect the rents from his tenants and send them to his master in France. This led to action by the Mackenzie's rivals, the Clan Ross, who supported the British Government, resulting in the Battle of Glen Affric in 1721, where Donald Murchison led the Clan Mackenzie in defeating the forces loyal to the government. This was followed by the Battle of Coille Bhan in 1721 where Donald Murchison, along with his relative Kenneth Murchison, again led the Clan Mackenzie in successfully holding their lands from the government.

Duncan

Duncan may refer to:

Fiction

Fruit

Music

Organizations

Duncan (given name)

Duncan is a given name. It is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Donnchadh. The final letter n in the Anglicised Duncan seems to be a result of confusion in the Latin form of the name—Duncanus—with the Gaelic word ceann, meaning "head". One opinion is that the Gaelic Donnchadh is composed of the elements donn, meaning "dark or dark-haired man" or "chieftain"; and cath, meaning "battle", together meaning "dark-haired or dark warrior". Another opinion is that the Gaelic Donnchadh is composed of the elements donn, meaning "brown"; and chadh, meaning "chief" or "noble".

Variations

Given name

In royalty:

In sports:

Narrow gauge engines (Thomas & Friends)

In Thomas & Friends, the Island of Sodor is home to a narrow gauge railway in the hills. These lines and the engines who work on them are some of the oldest on the island. The narrow gauge railway has some contact with The Fat Controller's standard gauge engines, but the location of the railway leaves the little engines in relative isolation.

North Western Railway

Victor

Victor is a dark red Hispanic tank engine in charge of the Sodor Steamworks. He supervises all the engines who journey in and out of the workshops, as well as Kevin, the clumsy yard crane. Victor always has a helpful, constructive disposition and is good-humored with everyone he meets. He speaks with a Cuban accent and spoke Spanish when he first came to Sodor.

Victor was introduced in the feature-length special Hero of the Rails. The show's staff were researching real-life engine workshops as inspiration for the Steamworks when they learned that one had a self-contained narrow-gauge line, used to transport parts internally. The staff decided they wanted an engine with a cab, and chose as a prototype ALCo's #1173, which was specially built for a sugar plantation line in Cuba. Some artistic licence was taken, as the original #1173 is a standard gauge locomotive. Victor made multiple further appearances in the thirteenth series, and has appeared in every series and special since.