ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2070 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2070 ************************************ From: Lisa and Ken Theriot 24 Jun 2000 Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You wanted to know if the name would be appropriate for a woman living in Brittany between 1000 and 1600, whether would be an appropriate name for the same period and culture, and whether any form of your current name could be preserved. You also asked about masculine versions of the given names, and whether middle names were used. Here is what we have found. During the period you asked about, the languages spoken in France underwent enormous changes. While 11th-century Brittany still retained a mix of Breton, Frankish, Latin and biblical names, the people of 16th-century Brittany were basically French in most cultural respects. Many of them spoke Breton and some Breton names continued to be used in the region, but in general they were culturally integrated with the rest of northern France. In particular, their naming practices were generally very similar to those in other parts of northern France. Most Frankish and native Breton names had dropped out of use, while biblical and saints' names became increasingly popular. We expect that a typical Breton woman of your period would have had a typically French name. The name is an excellent choice. We find it, as well as the more common form , recorded in 16th-century Normandy. [1] Prior to the 16th century, we usually find the forms and ; we find both recorded in Paris in 1292. [2] We are not aware of any masculine form of . is an English form; we find it recorded in 1403. [3] In France, we find in 16th-century Normandy [1] as a masculine name, and in the 1292 Paris census used for both men and women. [2] Middle names, meaning a second given name such as we use today, were unknown for most of your period, and extremely rare even for the end. We do find names that appear to consist of two given names, but actually the second name is a surname, usually identifying one of the person's parents or showing a family connection. Thus, a 13th or 14th century Breton woman named might have had a father, mother or husband named , a father called , or a husband called . There is a city in France, now called , which we find recorded in 1271 as . [4] It is in the region of Doubs, which is in eastern France on the Swiss border. Modern Nods is east of Besancon. We believe is a plausible name for the 13th and 14th centuries. It is pronounced \kah-t@-REEN-@ nee-KOHL-@ d@ NO-@s\, where @ represents the sound of "a" in "about". The \O\ in \NO-@s\ may vary in sound, ranging from a 'close' \O\ (as in German "Boot" or French "chose") to \OO\ (as in "hoot"). The pronunciation of the \s\ sound at the end of \NO-@s\ also began to disappear sometime in the 13th century, so \NO-@\ would also be appropriate. Since we do not know at what point the spelling of the city changed to , we cannot recommend for the latest part of your period. If you want a name which is equally appropriate for a man or a woman, would be a good choice. If you wish to pronounce as an English speaker would (like "knocks"), you might want to consider an English name. We find recorded in England and Scotland in the 16th century; [3], [5] is recorded as a surname in Scotland in 1570, [6] and in England in 1602. [7] would be a fine name for a 16th century English or Scottish woman. [8] Although you didn't ask us for an opinion on your device, we thought you might like to know that your design is not consistent with heraldic style for your period. Though there are examples of increscents and decrescents used together in period armory, we have not found them grouped together with another type of charge, such as a roundel. Further, we have not found the "phases of the moon" arrangement in any period armory, though it is registered in the Society. [9] If you would like suggestions on appropriate armory for your period and culture, please write us again. We hope this information is useful to you. Please do not hesitate to write again if any part has been unclear, or if you require further information. I was assisted in researching this letter by Arval Benicoeur, Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Effrick neyn Kenneoch, Elsbeth Anne Roth, Juliana de Luna, Julie Stampnitzky, Maridonna Benvenuti, Meredudd Brangwyn and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Adelaide de Beaumont 24 June 2000 References: [1] Cateline de la Mor, "Sixteenth Century Norman Names" (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) [URL:http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/cateline/norman16.html], accessed 24 June 2000. [2] Colm Dubh, "An Index to the Given Names in the 1292 Census of Paris", Proceedings of the Known World Heraldic Symposium 1996 (SCA: Montgomery, Alabama; WWW: SCA, Inc., 1997) [URL:http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/paris.html], accessed 24 June 2000. [3] Talan Gwynek, "Feminine Given Names in _A Dictionary of English Surnames_" (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) [URL:http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/reaney/], accessed 24 June 2000. [4] Dauzat, Albert & Ch. Rostaing, _Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Lieux de la France_ (Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1963), s.n. Nods. [5] Talan Gwynek, "A List of Feminine Personal Names found in Scottish Records" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1996) [URL:http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/scottishfem/], accessed 24 June 2000. [6] Black, George F., _The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning and History_, (New York: The New York Public Library, 1986), s.n. Knox. [7] Hitching, F. K. & S. Hitching, References to English Surnames in 1601 and 1602, reprinted for Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998, vol. 2 (1602). [8] The use of the name in 16th century Scotland would be in the Lowlands, where Scots, rather than Gaelic was spoken. Scots is similar to English of the same period, and we accordingly find many of the same names in use in both England and Lowland Scotland. [9] [On a chief a plate between a decrescent and an increscent] "The three tertiaries are thematically unified, but the `phases of the moon' are not really period style." (Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane, LoAR 27 August 1989, p. 22)