The Scottish and Irish surname MacMurray has two distinct origins. When found in Scotland it is a regional name from Moray in northeastern Scotland, which is probably named with Old Celtic elements meaning “settlement by the sea.” In Ireland the name is an anglicized form of the Gaelic name  Ó Muireadhaigh meaning “descendant of Muireadhach.” In Scotland the main family of MacMurray can be traced to a Flemish settler, Hugh Freskin, who in 1130 obtained extensive grants of land in Morayshire from which the name was taken. The first recorded spelling of the family name is shown to be that of William de Moravia. This was dated 1203, when he was a witness at the abbey of Holyrood, Scotland.