ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1521 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1521 ************************************ 7 Feb 1999 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is appropriate for a 15th century Englishman. This letter is a brief answer to your question. Your name is perfect for your period. was common in England in your period. In a list of participants at the battle of Agincourt, 1415, it is the second most common name. The name was equally common in a collection of records in Yorkshire in 1379, and we have found examples in other contemporary sources as well [1, 2, 3]. The surname is recorded in England well before your period as 1196. The name was originally derived from the place in Calvados, France; but by your period, it was simply a family surname. The spelling that you want appears in the names 1332, 1338, 1415. The alternation between 'e' and 'a' is clearly illustrated in an example a bit before your period: and 1296. Here the names are descriptive, "the Grey", but the equivalence of the two spellings is applicable to your case [1, 4]. We hope this brief letter has been useful. Please write us again if you have any questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Talan Gwynek and Aryanhwy merch Catmael. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 7 Feb 1999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] "The Agincourt Honor Rolls", _Family Chronicle_ (WWW: Family Chronicle, 1997). http://www.familychronicle.com/agincort.htm [2] Talan Gwynek, "Yorkshire Given Names from 1379" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/yorkshire/ [3] Alsford, Stephen, "The Men Behind the Masque: Office-holding in East Anglian boroughs 1272-1460", appendix I "The Officers of Borough Government" (WWW: privately published, 1998). http://www.trytel.com/~tristan/towns/mapp1_2.html [4] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.nn. Gray, Graybeard, Grayland.