ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1557 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1557 ************************************ 25 Feb 1999 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for information about the Old Norse masculine names , , , and . This letter is a brief answer to your question. All these names appear in the sagas and any of them would be a fine choice for a 9th to 11th century Norse persona [1]. You asked us to give you the meanings of each name, as we did for in an earlier letter. was a descriptive nickname, whose meaning was completely obvious to the people who used it. The four names you asked about are given names (first names). Given names don't really have meanings. Of course, nearly all of them derive from words in some historic language, but the fundamental difference between a name and a regular word is that the name is simply a label rather than a description. Consider, for example, how often it is relevant that the name derives from an Aramaic word for "twin". We'll give you some information about the etymologies of the names, but it would be a mistake to think that these are truly their meanings. You also asked the significance of the final <-r> in some Norse names. It is a grammatical ending, indicating that the name is in the nominative case. i.e. in the form used as the subject of a sentence. By contrast, the possessive form of these names would replace the <-r> with an <-s> in most cases. The <-r> is only barely pronounced as an unvoiced roll. It is never a separate syllable. is pronounced \AY-mundr\. This name derives from very ancient, uncertain roots in Old Icelandic or even older languages, and was probably not meaningful to Old Norse speakers. In other words, it's just a name [2]. is a Norse borrowing of an Irish name, , which is itself a diminutive of the Gaelic word "dark, black" [2, 3]. It also would not have been meaningful to Old Norse speakers. is pronounced \KYAHR-ahn\. \SVAHNr\ is cognate with the Old Icelandic word "swan" [2]. It was probably recognizable to any speaker of Old Norse, in the same way that the modern name is recognizable as the word . is pronounced \VAY-byorn\. The slash in our spelling of the name represents an accent on the and the comma represents a backward-comma-shaped hook hanging from the bottom of the . The first element is cognate with the Old Icelandic word "sanctuary", and the second <-bjo,rn> is similarly related to the word "bear". Old Norse speakers probably understood the meanings of the roots, but the compound doesn't seem to make much sense [2]. In the Viking period and before, Scandinavians used the runic alphabet. Once you've chosen your name, feel free to write to us if you'd like to know the runic spelling of your name. 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. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 25 Feb 1999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Fleck, G. (aka Geirr Bassi Haraldsson), _The Old Norse Name_, Studia Marklandica (series) (Olney, Maryland: Yggsalr Press, 1977). [2] Fellows Jensen, Gillian, _Scandinavian Personal Names in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire_ (Copenhagen: 1968), pp.342-352. [3] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), s.nn. Ciar, Ciara/n.