ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2050 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2050 ************************************ 2 May 2000 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a late-16th century Englishwoman. This letter is a brief answer to your question. You've chosen a fine name. It would more often have been spelled slightly differently in 16th century English, though your spelling is not impossible. In various spellings, or was used widely in Britain in your period. The most common English spellings were , , , and [1, 4, 5]. The form was recorded in Kent in 1515 [2], and and were common in the Scottish Lowlands (where they spoke Scots, a language closely related to English) [3, 7]. If your persona lived in Kent, or in the Scottish Lowlands, or perhaps in far northern England, then her name might sometimes have been written ; but in the standard English of the day, it would have been spelled with a 'g'. The surname is recorded in Kent and the variant in Lancashire in 1601 [6]. 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 Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Maridonna Benvenuti, Talan Gwynek, Mari neyn Brian, Africa neyn Kenneoch, and Raquel Buenaventura. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 2 May 2000 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Talan Gwynek, "Feminine Given Names in _A Dictionary of English Surnames_" (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/reaney/ [2] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.n. Pauley. [3] The manuscript Aberdeen Council Registers, Volumes 8 - 20 (1501-1551), in the Aberdeen City Archives. [4] Talan Gwynek, "Late Sixteenth Century English Given Names" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/eng16/ [5] Gray, Irvine and J. E. Gethyn-Jones, editors, _The Registers of the Church of St. Mary's, Dymock, 1538-1790_ (The Bristol and Gloucestershire Archaeological Society, 1960). [6] Hitching, F. K., and S. Hitching, _References to English Surnames in 1601 and 1602_. (Walton-on-Thames, 1910-11; Baltimore: republished for the Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998, ISBN 0-8603-0181-3). [7] Krossa, Sharon L. (Effric neyn Kenyeoch vc Ralte), "Early 16th Century Scottish Town Women's Names" (WWW: Privately pubished, 26 Oct 1996). http://www.MedievalScotland.org/scotnames/scottownwomen16.shtml