This name is of Scottish locational origin from a place called Carnie near Skene in Aberdeenshire. The name derives from the Gaelic "carn" meaning a cairn, or pile of stone erected as a memorial or marker. The surname from this source is first recorded in Scotland in the early half of the 14th Century (see below). The name Carnie with variant forms Cairnie, Cairney, Carny and Kearney is well recorded in Midlothian Church Registers from the beginning of the 17th Century. On February 20th, 1600 George Carnie son of Thomas Carnie and Issobell Burrell, was christened in Edinburgh and on January 18th 1793, the marriage of Janet Carnie and James Logan was recorded in North Leith, Midlothian. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of Philip Carny of Karale. which was dated 1332, The Exchequer Rolls of Scotland. during the reign of King David II of Scotland, 1329 - 1371. Surnames became necessary when governments introduced personal taxation. In England this was known as Poll Tax. Throughout the centuries, surnames in every country have continued to "develop" often leading to astonishing variants of the original spelling.

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