 In a charter to Paisley Abbey Domhnall's father Raghnall is given a wife named Fonia (Fionnghuala?), though there is no direct proof that this was the name of Domhnall's mother. Domhnall's father Raghnall, carrying the legacy of his own father Somhairle, was a powerful Argyll and Hebridean magnate who, depending on context, bore the titles "King of the Isles", "Lord of Argyll and Kintyre", and " lord of the Hebrides (Inchegal). His father's legacy was such that he became the ancestor figure of both Clann Ruaidhri and Clan Donald.
