Iain Macleod
Iain Macleod was born at Clifford House, Skipton, Yorkshire, on 11 November 1913. His father, Dr. Norman Alexander Macleod, was a well-respected general practitioner in Skipton, with a substantial poor-law practice (providing medical services for those who could not afford to pay); the young Macleod would often accompany his father on his rounds. His parents were from the Isle of Lewis in the Western Isles of Scotland, belonging to the branch of the Macleods of Pabbay and Uig. They moved to Skipton in 1907. Macleod grew up with strong personal and cultural ties to Scotland, as his parents bought in 1917 part of the Leverhulme estate on the Isle of Lewis, where they often used to stay for family holidays.
Leod
This traditional ancestry may be traced to the late 17th century when a chief adopted the designation of "McOlaus" and another was the first MacLeod to incorporate the royal Manx arms into MacLeod heraldry. In a document dating to 1630, Iain Mòr MacLeod of Dunvegan (chief 1626–1649) appears as "John McOlaus of Dunvegane"—"McOlaus" representing "MacOlaf". This chief's son, Iain Breac (chief 1664–1693), is the first MacLeod to have incorporated the Manx triskelion into his coat of arms. The triskelion was borne in the arms of the kings of Mann and the Isles as far back as the 13th century. The earliest known arms borne by the MacLeods of Harris and Dunvegan ("pictured top-right") are, however, quite different the royal Manx arms. These earliest MacLeod arms date to the mid 15th century; recorded in a leading European armorial known as the "Armorial de Berry". Accordingly, it has been suggested that these points show that 17th century belief of a descent from Olaf was not one of long standing.