The Cochranes are believed to have descended from Vikings who settled in Renfrewshire sometime around the eighth to tenth centuries. The name most likely originates from an amalgamation of two Gaelic words, which when translated mean 'battle-cry' or 'the roar of battle'. Or it may also be a combination of the Gaelic words 'coch' and 'ran', which mean 'brave fellow'. There are some records that indicate that the Cochranes' place of residence was the Palace of Paisley and also suggest that they arrived there around 1100.

The earliest official record is the appearance of the name William de Coveran as a witness to a charter in 1262. The appearance of a closer variation of the name comes from 1366, when Goseline de Cochran witnessed several grants. Then, later on, William de Cochran obtained a charter from Robert II granting him the lands of Cochran. Then, in 1638, the Dundonald estate, along with its castle, came into the possession of the Cochranes. It was from there that William Cochrane, the first Earl of Dundonald, received his title in 1669.

Throughout the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries the Cochranes distinguished themselves in both land and naval forces, and came to be nicknamed the fighting Cochranes. The most noteworthy of these fighting Cochranes was the tenth Earl, Thomas. The high point of his career was when a brig under his command with a crew of only fifty-four managed to capture a Spanish frigate with a crew of over threw hundred sailors. He later became the commander of Chile's navy and assisted that country, along with Peru, Brazil and Greece, to become independent.