ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1214 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1214 ************************************ 26 Aug 1998 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for information about which you want to use as an early 15th century Italian name. Here is what we have found. The web page where you found your name, part of Kate Monk's Onomastikon, is not a reliable source for pre-1600 names. It contains many names which were used in our period, but many more that were not, and it doesn't distinguish which names came from which sources. The author intended the index for gamers and authors looking for character names, so it isn't surprising that it doesn't measure up as a source for historical names. You wrote that you found the web page from an SCA page; we would appreciate it if you could point us to that SCA page so that we can send the owner this information. is a fine name for your period. is recorded in Florence in 1427, as are and [1]. is simply a diminutive form of , following the same pattern as these two other names. We did not find as a period Italian name. We did find evidence that the name (a single name even though it's two words, like in French or in English) is used in modern Italy, particularly in Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna. In Classical legend, was the mother of Romulus and Remus [2]. It is possible that this name was used in Renaissance Italy -- Classical names were fashionable at that time -- but we can't find evidence that it was used. In any case, alone does not seem to be correct. The surname is another fine choice. means "walnut" or "walnut tree", and was probably first used as a descriptive surname for someone who lived near a stand of walnut trees. We didn't actually find a period example of , but we did find a shorter form as a surname in modern Italy [3], and the similarly-formed "from/at the pine tree" is recorded in Florence in 1427 [4]. Most people in your period had only one given name. There were exceptions, but middle names like the ones we use today were unusual. is a fine 15th century Italian name. Family connections were quite important in period Italy, and most people in your period were often known as their fathers' children. If your father's name were , you might be known as . I hope this letter has been useful. Please write us again if any part of it has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Talan Gwynek and Marcello Caprioli. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 26 Aug 1998 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Arval Benicoeur, "Feminine Given Names from the Online Catasto of Florence of 1427" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1998). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/arval/catasto [2] De Felice, Emidio, _Dizionario dei Nomi Italiani_ (Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, Milan, 1992). [3] Fucilla, Joseph G., _Our Italian Surnames_ (Evanston, IL: Chandlers' Inc., 1949), p.87. [4] Herlihy, David and Christiane Klapisch-Zuber, "Census and Property Survey of Florentine Domains in the Province of Tuscany, 1427-1480", Machine readable data file. Online Catasto of 1427 Version 1.1. Online Florentine Renaissance Resources: Brown University, Providence, R.I., 1996 http://swansong.stg.brown.edu/projects/catasto/overview.html - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -