ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1277 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1277 ************************************ From: "S Friedemann" 9 Oct 1998 Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You want to know if or would have been used as Welsh feminine names between 1250 and 1350. Here is the information we have found. is a modern Welsh feminine name, derived from the root , meaning "poetic inspiration." [2] Unfortunately, we have no evidence that it was ever used as a given name in period. The closest name that we found is , in the 13th century. [1] If you're interested in looking for a different name from this period, we suggest you read the following article in our library: "A Simple Guide to Creating 13th Century Welsh Names" http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/tangwystyl/welsh13.html We recommend that you not use Heini Gruffudd's _Welsh Personal Names_ (also called _Enwau i'r Cymry_). Although that book contains some period names, which you can identify from the dated examples, many of the women's names are modern inventions, not suitable for medieval re-creation. is an excellent choice for your father's name; it was a fairly popular name by the late 13th century [3]. It was also spelled in your period. [1] , as we wrote to you last time, is a verb meaning "to free, to make free." The adjective parallel to this is the word , meaning "free, loose, liberal." [4] In a period Welsh context, a word meaning "free" would normally have the implication of "free-born, not a villein," instead of some more poetic sense of the word. We have no examples of people in period using bynames like this, and before we can suggest alternatives, we would need to know what nuance of "free" you're looking for. Please feel free to write again with details, and we'll be happy too look for something matching your interests. Welsh women of your period were most often known as their fathers' daughters. If your name was and your father was called , you would generally be called . For more information on Welsh naming in your period, we recommend the "Simple Guide" that we mentioned earlier. 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 Arval Benicouer and Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn. For the Academy, --Aryanhwy merch Catmael October 9, 1998 --------------------------------------- References: [1] Jones, Heather Rose (aka Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn), "A Simple Guide to Constructing 13th Century Welsh Names" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1996) . [2] Gruffudd, Heini, _Enwau i'r Cymry/Welsh Personal Names_ (Talybont: Y Lolfa, 1984). [3] Jones, Heather Rose (aka Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn), "Names and Naming Practices in the Merioneth Lay Subsidy Roll 1292-3", in Known World Heraldic Symposium Proceedings, 1991 (SCA: Laurel, Maryland, 1991). [4] Evans, H. Meurig & W.O. Thomas, _Y Geiriadur Mawr_ (The Big [Welsh] Dictionary) (Llandysul: Gomer Press, 1987).