ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2131 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2131 ************************************ 20 Oct 2000 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for the origin of the Polish surname and the German surname , and also if there are heraldic arms associated with either name. Here is what we have found. The Polish surname derives from the root . The symbol {l/} represents the Polish letter that looks like an 'l' with a slash through the stem. In modern Polish, this letter is pronounced like English 'w'. In medieval records, it was written 'l', without the slash, and pronounced \l\. The word refers to some bird of prey in the falcon family, but it has no exact English equivalent [1, 2]. is most likely a genitive (possessive) form. The earliest example we found of the name is dated 1392, when it was spelled . The modern spelling appears by the mid-15th century [3, 4]. In that period, Polish surnames were not hereditary, so it was probably used for a falconer or perhaps for a man with some personal quality reminiscent of the raptor. The modern Polish pronunciation is \puh-STOH-wah\; in medieval Polish, we believe it was closer to \puh-STOH-lah\. would be pronounced \HAHNGS-to"r-f@\ in modern German. The symbol \o"\ represents the German o-umlaut. \@\ represents a schwa, the sound of the 'a' in or . We didn't find any information about this name, but we suspect it derives from the place name . We didn't find such a place, but it's a perfectly plausible name. appears in a number of place names, where it originally meant "a narrow, steeply-rising hill". Examples include , and , all of which gave rise to modern surnames. The surname is recorded as early as 1234 [8]. means "village", and means "villager". The idea of arms associated with a surname is generally false. In most heraldic traditions, arms are owned by individuals and passed down through families. Members of a family may or may not share a surname, and many different families may share the same surname. There is no such thing as arms for a German surname. There may have been some Germans at some times in history who used that surname and also used arms, but we do not have the resources to identify them. Polish heraldry was different. In Poland, arms were shared by all members of a , an association of families held together in a kind of political alliance. (The slash represents an acute accent mark on the 'o'.) After the nobility adopted hereditary surnames, certain surnames were therefore associated with particular arms [5]. The name is not associated with any , as far as our references show, so there appear not be arms for this name [6, 7]. We hope this letter has been useful. Please write us again if any part of it has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Adelaide de Beaumont, Dietmar von Straubing, Talan Gwynek, Maridonna Benvenuti, Walraven van Nijmegen, and Aryanhwy merch Catmael. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 20 Oct 2000 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Jan Stanis{l/}awski. _Wielki S{l/}ownik Polsko-Angielski_ (Great Polish-English Dictionary), s.n. pusto{l/}. The word means "kestrel" and a related word means "harrier". [2] Hoffman, William F., _Polish Surnames: Origins and Meanings_, 2nd ed. (Chicago: Polish Genealogical Society of America, 1997), p.409, s.n. Pusto{l/}. [3] Rymut, Kazimierz, _Nazwiska Polakow_ (Wroclaw: Zaklad Narodowy im. Ossolinskich - Wydawnictwo, 1991), p.224, s.n. Pusty. [4] Taszycki, Witold (ed.), _S{l/}ownik Staropolskich Nazw Osobowych_, vols. I-VII (Wroc{l/}aw: Zak{l/}ad Narodowy Imienia Ossoli{n'}skich, Polska Akademia Nauk, 1965-1987), s.n. Pusto{l/}a. [5] Stefan Laskowski, _Ksiazat Polskiego Heraldika (The Chronicle of Polish Heraldry)_, Known World Heraldic Symposium Proceedings (Los Angeles: SCA, Inc., 1989), I-41. [6] Szyman/ski, Jo/zef, _Herbarz: S/redniowiecznego Rycerstwa Polskiego_ (Warszawa: Wydawnictwo Naukowe PWN, 1993). [7] Starykon-Kasprzycki, S.J., _Polska Encyklopedja Szlachecka_ (Warszawa : Wydawnictwo Instytutu Kultury Historycznej, 1935-1938). [8] Brechenmacher, Josef Karlmann, _Etymologisches Woerterbuch der deutschen Familiennamen_ (Limburg a. d. Lahn, C. A. Starke-Verlag, 1957-1960), s.nn. Hengst, Hengstbach, Hengstberger, Hengstenberg.