ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2176 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2176 ************************************ ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Later research turned up additional * * information relevant to this report. * * See the end of the letter for details. * * * ************************************************* 28 Dec 2000 From: Judith Phillips Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked us our opinions of and as 16th century English names for yourself and your husband. Here is the information we've found. is a variant of the patronymic surname , a name which originated as a Latinization of the Welsh given name . (A patronymic surname is one which identifies a person's father.) appears to have been introduced into western England directly from Wales and into eastern England by Bretons who accompanied the Normans [1]. The name was eventually found throughout England, although it remained most common near the Welsh border. We found your spelling, , dated to 1576-8 [2] and 1598 [3], so it is perfect for your period. Other 16th century spellings include: Griffin 1597 [4] Griffen 1576-8 [3] Griffyn 1543 [5] Gryffen 1576-8 [5] By the 16th century it was normal for a wife to share her husband's surname [6]. was a common woman's name in England from the 12th century on. We've found the following spellings in your period: Cecily 1523 [7], 1581-1595 [8], 1563 [9] Cecilie 1450, 1576 [7] Cecelie 1576 [9] Cecyly 1544 [9] Cicilia 1581-1595 [8] Cicily late 16th century [10] Cicilli 1561 [9] Cicely 1540 [11], 1563 [9] Cisley late 16th century [10], 1593 [9] Cislye 1581, 1582 [9] Cycely 1565 [9] Cyceley 1567 [9] Sysley 1570 [7], 1560 [9] Scissely 1590, 1592 [9] is probably a Latinized form. The usual vernacular (spoken) forms were and [7]. was introduced into England by the Normans but never became common [12]. As a given name it seems to have fallen out of use entirely by the 16th century. and , similar names, continued in use through the 16th century. We found two 16th century examples of the given name : , recorded in the late 16th century [13], and , recorded in 1525 [14]. The name appears frequently in 14th-16th century records [8, 15]. In summary, is an excellent name for a 16th century English woman, especially one living near the Welsh border, and either or would be a fine name for her husband. I hope that this letter has been useful to you. Please contact us again if any part of it is unclear or if you have any further questions. I was assisted in writing this letter by Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Talan Gwynek, Juliana de Luna, Arval Benicoeur, Walraven van Nijmegen, Dietmar von Straubing, Adelaide de Beaumont, and Julie Stampnitzky. For the Academy, Adeliza de Saviniaco 28 December 2000 ------------------- References: [1] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995). s.n. Griffin [2] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Names of Members of the Frobisher Voyages, 1576-1578" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1999). http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/frobisher/ [3] Mari Elsbeth nic Bryan, "Name Distribution in King's Stanley Marriages: 1573-1600" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1999) http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/mari/kingsstanley/ [4] Aryanhwy merch Catmael, "Names found in Frocester, Glouchestershire Marriage Registers 1559-1600" (WWW: privately published, 2000) http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/frocester.html [5] Aryanhwy merch Catmael, "Names found in the Berkeley Hundred Court Rolls," (WWW: privately published, 2000) http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/berkeley100.html [6] McKinley, Richard. The Surnames of Oxfordshire. English Surnames Series 3 (London: Leopard's Head Press Limited, 1977). Chapter 5. [7] 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/ [8] Talan Gwynek, "Late Sixteenth Century English Given Names" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/talan/eng16/ [9] Talan Gwynek, unpublished research. [10] Aryanhwy merch Catmael, "Late 16th Century Gloucester Names" (WWW: privately published, 1999, 2000) http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/late16.html [11] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Given Names in Chesham, 1538-1600/1" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1999) http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/mari/chesham/ [12] Withycombe, E.G., _The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names_, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988). s.n. Reynard. [13] Dylan ap Maelgwn, "London Masters of Defense," (WWW: privately published, 1998) http://www.iceweasel.org/lmod_list.html [14] Julian Goodwyn, "English Names from pre-1600 Brass Enscriptions," (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1997; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/brasses/ [15] Reaney and Wilson, s.n. Reynard. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Correction, Arval, 28 Feb 2005: Corrected some footnotes and added a missing reference [15].