Was Charlie Kirk Scottish or Irish? Bagpipes played at funeral spark questions

Updated on: Sept 22, 2025 12:32 am IST

Charlie Kirk’s Arizona funeral featured bagpipers playing ‘Amazing Grace,’ sparking viral talk on his surname’s Scottish origin, meaning “church.”

Right-wing activist Charlie Kirk’s funeral at Glendale Park, Arizona, on Sunday began with a group of bagpipers playing a rendition of ‘Amazing Grace’ – a popular Christian hymn. The display of Scottish Christian tradition at the funeral sparked questions on the origin of the surname, Kirk.

A photo of Charlie and Erica Kirk at State Farm Stadium in Glendale, Arizona.(AFP)

Kirk was an American through and through, born as he was in Arlington Heights, Illinois. But his name has Scottish and Northern English origins. As has been viral on social media over the past few days, the word, Kirk, means ‘Church’ in Scottish.

Here’s the video of the bagpipes:

Elon Musk Attends Charlie Kirk’s Funeral

All the big names of the conservative movement in the United States were in attendance for the Funeral in Arizona on Sunday. Among the first to arrive was the Tesla Motors and SpaceX CEO, Elon Musk, who was seen seated in attendance even as the memorial was about to begin. Musk posted about his visit to Arizona on X, saying he was ‘honored’ to be there.

“Every seat in this giant arena that isn’t roped off for security is packed to the ceiling. Honored to be here. All for Charlie Kirk,” Musk wrote. He also posted a video of the State Farm, which was packed with attendees ahead of the funeral.

Tulsi Gabbard, Pete Hegseth, JD Vance, and President Donald Trump are some of the other high-profile attendees at the event.

This story being updated.

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