Duncan MacLeod, born in 1906, was the son of Roderick MacLeod and Christina MacAskill of 17 Ruisgarry (Brusda). He started attending Berneray School in 1911.

His ancestors were coopers for whisky barrels on the island of Pabbay, hence the nickname Donnchadh a' Coupar. Duncan married Jessie Barbara MacKillop, with whom he had a son. The family lived at 5 Ruisgarry (Beasdaire). 

Duncan was a generous contributor to the School of Scottish Studies sound archive. The recordings are available on the Tobar an Dualchais website. A convenient way to access them is through Duncan's biography page.