ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2253 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2253 ************************************ 10 Mar 2001 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether or is an appropriate name for a Frenchman living between 1200 and 1500, and what sort of arms he would have borne. Here's what we've found. is a fine choice for your period. The name is found in France from the 12th century onward [1]. In particular, we found recorded in Paris during the 13th century [2] and in Bordeaux c.1500 [3]. is a medieval English surname; this spelling is not appropriate for a Frenchman of your period. The name was carried to England by Norman settlers who came from one of several towns called [4]. The slash represents an acute accent mark on the preceding letter. This place name is recorded in your period in various spellings, including 1227, 1281, c.1350, 1400 [5]. would be a fine northern French name for your period. Its pronunciation would have varied over the course of your period. Around 1200, it would have been \tree-STAH~N d@ bray-TSEE\. The \AH~\ represents a nasal vowel, i.e. one pronounced through the nose. \@\ represents a schwa, the sound of the in or . During the 13th century, the \ts\ shifted to \s\ and by the end of your period, the final \n\ sound in became silent. Also by the end of your period, the stress on the syllables evened out. There are also places that were called 1210 in the modern region Seine-Maritime and 14th century (a Latinized form) in Nie\vre [6]. or would also be fine choices. Early in your period, these place names were pronounced \brah-TCHEE\ and \brah-TSAY\, respectively. In the 13th century, \TCH\ shifted to \SH\ and \TS\ to \S\. is a city southwest of Toulouse, in the Languedoc-Roussillon region of modern France. In your period, the language of this region was Provencal (also called Occitan), not French. Provencal is a different Romance language, most closely related to Catalan and sharing some features with Spanish and Italian. Provencal names were often quite different from French names. As it happens, is also the Provencal form of this name; the city is called in this language [7]. Therefore, if you want a Provencal name, we can recommend as a good choice. In an earlier note, we sent you a list of websites that include pictures of medieval French arms [8]. If you have any further questions about designing your arms, we'll be happy to do our best to answer them. One possibility you may want to consider in designing your arms is canting, a common practice in medieval French heraldry. Canting arms contained a charge whose name echoed the surname of the bearer of the arms: a lion for , a dolphin for the ruler of the Dauphinois, or blackbirds for (the French word for blackbird is ). We found an excellent cant on the surname : The 12th century French nobleman Simon de Broye bore arms charged with a tool used by farriers for restraining a horse. There are several pictures of the charge on the web: http://heraldica.org/topics/glossary/pics/396.jpg http://heraldica.org/topics/pictures/broye.jpg http://heraldica.org/topics/pictures/broye2.jpg http://www04.u-page.so-net.ne.jp/ta2/saitou/ie401/Jpglossb.htm#042 In modern English heraldic language, it is called "horse-brays" (also a "barnacle" or "horse barnacle"). In Old French, these tools were called ; in the Anglo-Norman dialect the word became and later [9]. The reference is a little obscure, but it would be marvelous re-creation and you'd be able to register very simple arms: The charge has been used in Society heraldry only a handful of times [10]. For example, you could use something like: Azure, a pair of brays Or. Gules, three pairs of brays in pale argent. We hope this letter has been useful. Please write us again if you have any questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Margaret Makafee, Adelaide de Beaumont, Talan Gwynek, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Julie Stampnitzky, Talan Gwynek, Francois Velde, and Elsbeth Anne Roth. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 10 Mar 2001 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Withycombe, E.G. The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988), s.n Tristan. [2] Dauzat, Albert. Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms et Prenoms de France. (Paris:Libraire Larousse, 1987), s.n. Tristan. [3] Aryanhwy merch Catmael and Talan Gwynek, "Names Found in Commercial Documents from Bordeaux, 1470-1520" (WWW: privately published, 2000). http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/bordeaux.html [4] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.n. Bracy, Brassey. They have 1190, 1275. This source derives the name from in Aisne (in Picardy) or a place of the same name in the Ardennes region. [5] Morlet, Marie-Therese, _Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de l'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siecle_, three volumes (Paris: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1972), III:41b. [6] Dauzat, Albert & Ch. Rostaing, _Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Lieux de la France_ (Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1963), s.nn. Bre/cy, Bre/ce/, Brachay. [7] Chambers, Frank M., _Proper Names in the Lyrics of the Troubadours_ (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 1971), s.nn. Tristan, Carcasonna. [8] The best way to get an idea of the kinds of heraldry used in medieval France is too look at lots of examples. I can suggest a few websites on the web that you can use for that purpose. On the web: Armorial de la Diana http://www.multimania.com/heratlas/Rodumna/diana/diana-voute.htm A collection of images of heraldry from a 14th century building in central France. If you follow the link for any particular set of arms, you'll see larger drawings. Armorial de Guillaume Revel http://www.multimania.com/heratlas/Rodumna/revel/revel02.htm A similar collection of French arms c.1450. Armorial de Nicolas de Lutzelbourg http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/lutzsom.htm A transcription of a 15th century French armorial, with some images. The link "Contenu du manuscrit" leads to the data. It's also in French. Many of the arms in this collection are foreign; I recommend you focus on these pages: http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/fol_14.htm http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/fol_53.htm http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/fol_58.htm http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/fol_86.htm http://www.univ-nancy2.fr/RECHERCHE/MOYENAGE/fol_100.htm Bigot Roll of Arms, 1254 http://www.s-gabriel.org/docs/bigot.html Blazons of the arms in this early French roll. English heraldry wasn't very different from French heraldry, especially in the 13th and 14th centuries. There's a fine collection of drawings from English rolls of arms on the web: Three Early Rolls of Arms http://www.heraldica.org/topics/earlyrolls/ The illustrations are modern re-drawings of the arms, and the artist made some mistakes. The blazons are correct, as far as I know. [9] Brault, Gerard J., _Early Blazon: Heraldic Terminology in the Twelfth and Thirteenth Centuries with Special Reference to Arthurian Heraldry_, 2nd ed. (Woodbridge: The Boydell Press, 1997), s.v. broie. [10] Here's a full list of the prior SCA registrations of this charge: Alric of Castleburg (badge): Sable, a pair of barnacles inverted Or. Endless Hills, Barony of (badge): Or, a pair of barnacles sable. Penelope Stoddard: Sable, in pale three pairs of barnacles extended Or. Vanessa of Tempio: Argent ermined purpure, a pair of barnacles inverted and a bordure gules.