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Greetings,
Here's the information we found on "Christopher the Wolf" as used around 1600.
We found that the name "Christopher" was not common until the 16th century in England, when it became a fairly popular name. It was a popular name in your period, and had a number of short forms, including "Kester," "Kit," and "Chris." (1) It appears that the name was much more rare in Scotland--we didn't find any examples of people named "Christopher," although we did find the Scottish surname "Christopherson," which implies that the name was used at least occassionally in Scotland. However, it appears that the name "Christian" and its short forms "Cristall" and "Cristie" were much more popular in Scotland than "Christopher." (2)
By 1600, most people in Scotland and England were using surnames like the ones used by modern people instead of nicknames. "Wolf" is a fairly common surname in both England and Scotland, and the variants "Wolfe" and "Wolff" are found near that period in both countries. Thus, the name "Christopher Wolf" (or Wolfe, or Wolff), would have been a common English name or a rare Scottish one. (2,3)
It was (and is) common for people to reference their names in their arms-- this practice is called "canting." It was extremely common for people surnamed "Wolf" or something like it to use a wolf or a wolf's head in their arms. It would be possible for you do design simple, characteristically medieval arms using a wolf, a wolf's head, or three wolves' heads as the charges--the specific possibilities would depend on the color combination you desired. Heraldry which was created in late period was generally complex; if you're interested in developing a coat of arms which reflects the heraldic style used in 1600, we would be happy to make suggestions.
Because the SCA has its own system of ranks and titles, new members of the SCA normally do not take on titles even if they would be appropriate to your persona. As a bearer of arms with no noble title, you would most likely be known as a "gentleman" (a term which in period designated an actual rank with certain rights and privileges. You also expressed interest in a "sire name," which we interpreted to mean "name of your lord." You may want to consider doing some research on the history of your time period and find a historical figure to be in service to. If you want to create a ficticious lord, there is a very wide variety of names to choose from--you can consult Withycombe and Reaney (listed below) for first and last names, respectively. Different names were used by different groups of people, so your lord's name could be chosen based on your persona's political and social views. If you have more details on your persona, we could provide suggestions for names which would be appropriate.
We are fairly certain that nobles did not employ their own soldiers during the Tudor period. While no one in the Academy is an expert on Tudor history, we strongly recommend that you consult at least one book on the history of Tudor England before working out the details of your persona--this will ensure that your persona is reasonable for your period.
Arval D'Espas Nord, Rouland Carre, Effric neyn Kenyeoch vc Ralte, Solveig Throndarsdottir, Pedro de Alcazar, Zenobia Naphtali, and Tangwystl verch Morgant Glasvryn contributed to this letter.
We hope this has been helpful, and we hope to be of further service.
In service,
Alan Fairfax
Academy of S. Gabriel
(1) Withycombe, E. "Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names."
(2) Black, G. "The Surnames of Scotland."
(3) Reaney, P. H. "Dictionary of British Surnames."