McNiven

McNiven is a surname of Irish (Gallowglass) origin. It is a patronym of the name Nevin and an Anglicisation of its Irish Gaelic form MacCnaimhín / Ó Cnaimhín, meaning "Little Saint" or "Saintly"/"Believer in Saints". Secondly, it could originate from "MacCnamhín", with "Mac", meaning "son of" and "Cnamh", a bone - as such it would have borne from a nickname in reference to the first chief of the clan who was a bony/prominently boned man.