ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1138 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1138 ************************************ From: "S Friedemann" 9 Aug 1998 Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked if would be appropriate for an Irish masculine name between 1550 and 1600, and what names might be appropriate for bards. You also asked about the arms "Argent, on a pale between two wolves combattant gules, a harp argent." Here is the information we have found. The appropriate form of for your period would be , pronounced \FAIL-kha\, with the \L\ pronounced strongly, so that it sounds almost like \FAIL-a-kha\. [1,2] We haven't found the name in use after 1200 or so, but it survived into your period in the rare surname , "[male] descendant of Faolchadh," and may still have been in use as a given name. [1] is the possessive form of the Irish word , meaning 'bard.' [1] Using as an occupational byname (a nickname based on your occupation) would be appropriate for everyday usage, though in your period your formal name would have included a patronymic byname (a byname based on your father's name), also. would be an authentic choice for a late-period Irish name. If you'd like help choosing a name for your father, feel free to write again with some of your preferences (initial letter, sound). Or, you might want to see if your library has a copy of _Irish Names_ by Donnchadh O/ Corra/in and Fidelma Maguire. Once you have chosen a name, please feel free to write again and we will be happy to help you create the appropriate patronym. Your arms are nearly perfect as they are. The only thing you might want to consider is the use of the harp on your arms. If you're using harps to say "I am Irish," we suggest that you look at a different design. In period, people didn't incorporate national symbols in this way--Irish people were no more likely to use harps in their arms than anyone else. In fact, harps weren't really a symbol for Ireland in period. The arms of Ireland (Azure, a harp Or) were first adopted by James VI & I, king of Ireland, Scotland, and England (r. 1603-25). [3] We wonder if you chose the wolf and harp to refer to both parts of your name -- the wolf for , the Gaelic word for wolf, and the harp for . While it was quite common in the late Middle Ages for a man's arms to contain a reference to his name, a practice called "canting," the reference was always to his family name, not his given name. Arms were intended to pass from one generation to the next, so a reference to one man's given name would be meaningless to the next generation. The wolf and harp are perfectly reasonable charges for arms of your period, but if you are using them to form a rebus on your name, you should be aware that it is not a period practice. We have checked your proposed arms "Argent, on a pale between two wolves combattant gules, a harp argent" against other arms protected by the SCA College of Arms, and found none that were similar. We hope that this letter has been useful to you, and that you will not hesitate to write again if any part was unclear or if you have further questions. Research and commentary on this letter was provided by Brad Miller, Arval Benicoeur, Zenobia Naphtali, Rouland Carre, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Walraven van Nijmegen, Talan Gwynek, and Effrick neyn Kenneoch. For the Academy, --Arianuia de Cair Mirdin filia Catmaili August 9, 1998 --------------------------------------- References: [1] Patrick Woulfe, _Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames_ (Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation) [2] O'Brien, M. A., ed., _Corpus Genealogiarum Hiberniae_ (Dublin: The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1976). [3] Woodward, John and George Burnett, _A Treatise on Heraldry British and Foreign_ (Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle, 1969)., p.384