a group of families or households, as among the Scottish Highlanders, the heads of which claim descent from a common ancestor: the Mackenzie clan.
a group of people of common descent; family: Our whole clan got together for Thanksgiving.
a group of people, as a clique, set, society, or party, especially as united by some common trait, characteristic, or interest: a clan of actors and directors.
Anthropology.
the principal social unit of tribal organization, in which descent is reckoned exclusively in either the paternal or the maternal line.
a group of people regarded as being descended from a common ancestor.
Origin of clan
1375–1425; late Middle English (Scots ) <Scots Gaelic clann<Old Irish cland offspring <Latin planta scion, plant, perhaps directly <British Celtic; compare Welsh plant children
Female hyenas may be out for cubs’ blood — even within their own clans.
Female hyenas kill off cubs in their own clans|Carolyn Wilke|August 25, 2020|Science News
Though hyenas spend much of their time alone, group living allows them to defend their turf against rival hyena clans and to gang up against threatening lions, he says.
Female hyenas kill off cubs in their own clans|Carolyn Wilke|August 25, 2020|Science News
The sun could come from a large, loose-knit clan or a small family that’s always fighting.
Pinning down the sun’s birthplace just got more complicated|Lisa Grossman|July 20, 2020|Science News
My name is Romulous, I lead the Dark Angels or xDAx a clan primarily based out of Warhammer.
The U.S. Veteran and Wisconsin Boy Who Went to Fight ISIS in Syria|Jacob Siegel|October 3, 2014|DAILY BEAST
But he said that the Qawasmeh clan has had a long history of working closely with Hamas leadership.
Israeli Claim: Hamas Funded the Kidnapper Who Started the Gaza War|Eli Lake|August 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Happy to be the least of her clan, she becomes greatest among them.
Is There a Ma Joad for the Piketty Era?|Katie Baker|July 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
For 40 episodes, House Lannister has been the clan that Game of Thrones fans love to hate.
Valar Morghulis: Game of Thrones’ Women Are Going to Rule the World|Scott Bixby|June 17, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At one time he says clan members even called him the “minister of garbage” for his close ties to the government.
Jailed Italian Crime Boss Says Mafia Helped Berlusconi Government|Barbie Latza Nadeau|May 29, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Such were the mutual wishes I so often heard expressed in our neighborhood and clan fights and quarrels in Syria.
The Syrian Christ|Abraham Mitrie Rihbany
It was a principle deeply imbibed by them, to die with pleasure to revenge affronts offered to their clan or to their country.
The Eve of All-Hallows, Vol. 3 (of 3)|Matthew Weld Hartstonge
We can vouch for the truth of the statement, as many of our own teutu, or clan, were witnesses of the facts.
Byways of Ghost-Land|Elliott O'Donnell
Others carried totems—pieces of wood carved in the likeness of bird or beast to typify manitou of family or clan.
Vikings of the Pacific|Agnes C. Laut
We read the names of all the clan Farintosh in the Morning Post, as attending these banquets.
The Newcomes|William Makepeace Thackeray
British Dictionary definitions for clan
clan
/ (klæn) /
noun
a group of people interrelated by ancestry or marriage
a group of families with a common surname and a common ancestor, acknowledging the same leader, esp among the Scots and the Irish
a group of people united by common characteristics, aims, or interests
Word Origin for clan
C14: from Scottish Gaelic clann family, descendants, from Latin planta sprout, plant1