ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2191 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2191 ************************************ ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Later research turned up additional * * information relevant to this report. * * See the end of the letter for details. * * * ************************************************* 29 Dec 2000 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a 10th-11th century Irish woman. Here is what we have found. is a modern English spelling of the modern Irish name . The slash in the name represents an acute accent mark on the preceding letter. That name was probably originally a Gaelic adaptation of a pet form of , perhaps [1, 2, 3]. It may also have derived from the Anglo-Norman name , which was borrowed into Gaelic as or [4]. In either case, could not have existed in Gaelic until sometime after the Anglo-Norman settlement of Ireland in the late 12th century and may not have appeared until much later. We've found evidence of used in Gaelic as early as 1267 [5], but have found no evidence of until later than 1600. We can't guess whether you'd prefer to adjust your period or choose a different name. If you want to consider other names better suited to the 10th and 11th centuries, you can find some lists on the web. Dated Names Found in O Corrain & Maguire's Irish Names http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/ocm/ Early Irish Feminine Names from the Index to O'Brien's Corpus Genealogiarum Hiberniae http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/obrien/ We should warn you that some of the names in the second article have not been found in use by real historical women. We'll be happy to check any name that appeals to you, and give you a pronunciation appropriate to your period. The derivation of the modern surname is unclear, and we haven't found a medieval example of the name [6]. If you want to include your clan in your name, then we recommend you choose a different clan. It would be perfectly authentic, though, for you to be known simply as your father's daughter. The next paragraph illustrates the correct way to include a clan name in a woman's name. The phrase "daughter of Diarmait" is correct for your period [7]; however it normally follows the given name. Mo/r daughter of Diarmait O/ Conaill could have been called . The added 'h' in the clan name is a grammatical requirement in Gaelic: It represents a softening of the \C\ sound. For short, she might have been called or . The full name would have been pronounced \MOR EEN-y@n wee KHOHN-ahl~\. The vowel in the first syllable of the name, which we've represented here as \EY\, is the same sound as in the word . The symbol \@\ represents the sound of the 'a' in or . \KH\ is the raspy sound in the Scottish word or the German . \l~\ represents a sort of combination of an \l\ with a consonantal \y\; it's the sound of in the French word . 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 Mari neyn Brian, Talan Gwynek, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, and Adelaide de Beaumont. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 29 Dec 2000 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Coghlan, Ronan, Ida Grehan, and P.W. Joyce (New York: Sterling Publishing Co., Inc., 1989), s.n. Eilis. [2] Reaney, P.H. & R.M. Wilson. _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991), s.n. Ellis. [3] Woulfe, Patrick. _Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames_ (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1967 [1923]), s.n. Eili/s. [4] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), s.n. Alis [5] Cournane, Mavis, Vibeke Dijkman, and Ivonne Tummers, "Annals of Connacht" (WWW: CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of University College, Cork, Ireland, 1997). Entry 1267.11 has . http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/G100011 [6] One author has speculated that derives from an unattested early medieval given name [8, 9], but we could find no evidence to support this derivation. We did find an early medieval reference to a clan called the , , or [10]; this may be an early plural form of , but we can't be certain and we don't know what the singular form would have been. [7] Jones, Heather Rose (aka Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn), "100 Most Popular Men's Names in Early Medieval Ireland" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1998). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/tangwystyl/irish100 [8] Woulfe, Patrick, _Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames_ (Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation), s.n. O/ Laighin. [9] Royal Irish Academy, _Dictionary of the Irish Language: based mainly on Old and Middle Irish materials_ (Dublin : Royal Irish Academy, 1983), s.v. la/igen. [10] O'Brien, M. A., ed., _Corpus Genealogiarum Hiberniae_ (Dublin: The Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies, 1976), 122 bb 4. - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Correction, Arval, 20 Mar 2003: This report originally used rather than in the example, but that name may not have been used by real people in our period. See the correction to 2028 for details.