ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1271 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1271 ************************************ 17 Oct 1998 From: Braddon Giles Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for our help in constructing an English name in the period 1300 to 1600, your first choice being , with the surname being an occupational byname. Here is what we found. Before we begin we would like to compliment you on the level of research that you came to us with. This makes our task so much easier. We also feel that the elements that you have chosen will make a wonderful name. In 1300 an Englishman named probably was a cheese merchant. Occupational bynames were literal in the 14th century, but later in period most people used inherited surnames rather than descriptive epithets. A 16th century Englishman named was probably the son of a man who used the same surname. The surname was probably adopted a couple centuries earlier. The family might still have been in the cheese business, but might just as easily not. If you want your name to mean that you are a cheese merchant, then you should set your persona at the beginning of the period you suggested, when surnames were usually understood literally. We will discuss some versions of , and then recommend an early and a late form. You found the name in 1520 [6]. Here are some early examples of and from the beginning of your period [1]: Jake Heriel 1275 Johannes filius Jake 1279 Jakes Flinthard 1292 Jak del Thorp 1332 However, it is also our opinion that would be an appropriate spelling from Northern England around 1300. The name in 1396 illustrates the typical Northern <-ys> for Southern <-es> [2]. would be pronounced \DJAH-k@s\, where the \@\ is a schwa, or the first vowel sound in \about\. You found in 1333 [3], and we have some related bynames from later in your period [1,4,5]: Cheesman 1601 Cheseman 1523 Cheswright 1478 Chesewright 1570. In Northern England in your period would be pronounced \CHAY-z@-mahng-g@r\, with a secondary stress on the third syllable. To summarize, a good name for a 16th century Englishman would be , but the surname would not necessarily be seen as an occupational byname. In 14th century northern England, would be a fine name, the byname literally indicating that Jakys sold cheese. This name is pronounced \DJAH-k@s CHAY-z@-mahng-g@r\. I hope this letter has been useful. Please write to us again if any part of the letter has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Arval Benicoeur and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Giles Leabrook 17 Oct. 98 ------------------------------------------------------------------- References [1] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995). s.n. , . [2] Black, George F., _The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning and History_, (New York: The New York Public Library, 1986). s.n. [3] Postles, D.A., _Lincolnshire Lay Subsidy website_ (WWW: Self-published March, 1998) "Parts of Holland, Boston". http://www.le.ac.uk/elh/pot/lincers.html [4]Hitching, F.K. & S. Hitching, _References to English Surnames in 1601_ (Walton-on-Thames: Chas. A. Bernau, 1910). (xxviii) s.n. [5] Bardsley, Charles, _A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames_ (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1980). s.n. , . [6] Julian Goodwyn, "Brass Enscription Index" (WWW: SCA, Inc., 1997) http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/brasses/