My last name??

Question:ok So my last name is McEwen where can I find out where the McEwens came from on the internet? What does our last name mean? and stuff like that. oh and is there a placee where I can see my family tree on the internet?

Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: ok So my last name is McEwen where can I find out where the McEwens came from on the internet? What does our last name mean? and stuff like that. oh and is there a placee where I can see my family tree on the internet?

tip one- Everyone with the last name McEwen, won't be related. by 1870, there were close to 2000 entries in the census. In 2008 (happy new year to us), the social security death index shows almost 3000 entries (yes, most of the females will be another name by birth). So, the actual thing is knowing where YOUR ancestors came from.
tip two.. surname or family tree? most people think they are the same. Nope. You are McEwen through your dad, but you are something else through mom. Go back to your grandparents, each has a different family name. You are part of those. Next generation you have 8 gr grandparents, and all are part of your family tree. One is McEwen. The only persons who share your exact tree are full siblings.
tip 3 - you get to pick surname or accuracy. If you are only interested in surnames, you can buy a fake family crest and hang it on the wall, and brag how the name comes from Scotland some 500 yrs ago. It would be very embarassing to do some real research, and find that grandpa McEwen was REALLY a Smith and was adopted by the neighbors. Especially if you went out and bought a kilt.
There isn't any substitute for knowing how to research your family.

You may think I make it sound harder. In fact, when you know what you are looking for, and don't get off on the false track, it becomes MUCH easier to find your real ancestry.
http://rwguide.rootsweb.com/
a guide for how to start, and what you will be looking for.

Your family tree will not be online if you do not have some distant great aunt or someone who has done the research of your family tree and then posted it online.

This is what www.ancestry.com has to say about the name.
McEwen
Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Eoghain ‘son of Eoghan’, a widespread and ancient personal name, possibly derived from eo ‘yew’, meaning ‘born of yew’. It was Latinized as Eugenius (see Eugene), and was also regarded as a Gaelic form of John. This was the name of one of the two sons of Niall of the Nine Hostages; the other was Conall.
Anglicized form of Mac Eathain ‘son of Eathan’, a Scottish Gaelic form of Latin Johannes (see John). John was taken into Irish as Eoin at first; Seán is a later form. In later Irish, as in the surnames, the personal names Eoghan and Eoin were often confused.
Hope this helps.

The best place to start tracing your roots, is to speak to an older family member. Some of them keep records on geneology. Seeing your famly tree on the internet is highly unlikely. Try Geneology.com or Ancestry.com & see if you can get some info there. Good luck!!!!

There are lots of websites. Information seen in family trees on any website, free or paid, must be viewed as clues not as fact.
Most is not documented or poorly documented. Even when you see the same information repeatedly by many different submitters, that is no guarantee it is correct. A lot of people copy without verifying. You might not find your family tree at all. Then you might find some of your family lines but it should be verified with documentation. Use the information as clues as to where to get the documents.

Also, don't expect to find living people on family history websites. It is considered unethical to post information about living people on any public forum as that is an invasion of privacy and can lead to identity theft. On Rootsweb, you probably will see some living people information is they were born prior to 1930.

Rootsweb(free site) has over 22,000 entries in family trees for McEwen. Just pull up the site and put McEwen or a full name in the Rootsweb block and then probe World Connect on the next screen.
Once you see the names, if you come across something that interest you, probe on a name and it will take you to a screen that will give you the name and email address of the submitter.

The advice Wendy C. gave you is important to consider. Your surname represents a small fragment of your ancestry.

See the link below from the most prestigious genealogical organiztion in the U. S., The National Genealogical Society.

http://www.ngsgenealogy.org/comconsumerp...

Ancestry.Com has lots of records and seem to be getting more all the time. Now it cost almost $400 a year for all their services and if that is too pricey, your public library might have a subscription to it. They have all the U.S. censuses through 1930. The 1940 and later are not available to the public yet. They have U.K. censuses also.

A Family History Center at a Latter Day Saints(Mormon) Church has records on people all over the world, not just Mormons. In Salt Lake City, they have the world's largest genealogical collection. Their Family History Centers can order microfilm for you to view at a nominal fee.

I have never had them to try and convert me or send their missionaries by to ring my doorbell just because I availed by self of their resources. I haven't heard that they have done that to anyone else either.