ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2193
http://www.s-gabriel.org/2193
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1 Dec 2000
From:  (Josh Mittleman)


Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!

You asked whether <Richard of the Lake> or <Richard of the Dark Moors> is
an appropriate name for a 13th century Englishman.  This letter is a brief
answer to your question.

You are on the right track, though we will suggest slightly different forms
more likely to have been used in the 13th century.

The name <Richard> is of course an excellent choice.  This spelling was in
use as early as 1086, though <Ricard> was also common in your period [1].

Surnames like "of the Lake" are definitely appropriate for your period.  In
fact, we found the example <Richard de la Lake> "Richard from the stream"
recorded in 1200 [2].  This name is recorded in an odd mixture of English
and French that was common in Norman England.  The same man might have been
identified in speech as <Richard of the Lake>, though the word <of> was
pronounced \ohf\ rather than \uv\, and <Lake> was pronounced \LAH-k@\,
where \@\ represents the sound of the 'a' in <about> or <soda>.

"Dark moors" is not a place name for your period, but the similar
<Blakemor> 1205 or <Blakemore> 1212 would be a fine choice.  These names
probably originally meant "black forest" or "black mere" rather than "black
moor" [3].  As in the previous example, the byname would typically have
been written with the French/Latin preposition <de>.

We can recommend either <Richard de la Lake> or <Richard de Blakemore> as
excellent 13th century English names [4].

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 Maridonna Benvenuti, Modar Neznanich, Antonio Miguel Santos de Borja,
Adelaide de Beaumont, Talan Gwynek, Zenobia Naphtali, Mari neyn Brian, and
Aryanhwy merch Catmael.

For the Academy,


  Arval Benicoeur
  1 Dec 2000


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References

[1] Withycombe, E.G., _The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names_,
3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988), s.n. Richard.

[2] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_
(London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.n. Lake.

[3] Ekwall, Eilert, _The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names_,
4th edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991), s.n. Blackmoor.  We
find only one English place name that includes the element <Dark->:
<Darklake> "dark stream" in Devon.  Since it's so rare, we don't recommend
constructing new names from it.  Smith, A.H., _English Place-Name Elements_
(Cambridge: At the University Press, 1956), s.v. deorc.

[4] Other Societyfolk have registered the names <Richard Lawson of the
Lake> and <Richard fitz Richard Blackmoore>.  We do not believe that either
will cause you any trouble in registering your name, but you may want to
consult with a senior submissions herald in your kingdom.