ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2271 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2271 ************************************ 16 Apr 2001 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for an early 17th century German commoner. Here is what we have found. Your name is basically an excellent choice; but we will suggest slightly different spellings of each element. In your period, there were two main dialects of German: Low German, spoken in the north and northwest; and High German, spoken in the south and southeast. ("Low" and "High" refer to altitude; Low German was spoken in the lowlands near the seas, High German in the Alpine Highlands.) Many names were spelled and pronounced differently in these two dialects, and there are specific spelling conventions that are typical of each. The particular spellings you chose mix characteristics of both dialects; we will recommend spellings consistent with one of them. The period examples we found that are closest to your choices are Low German, so we've focused on that option. If you prefer to set your persona in the south, let us know and we may be able to suggest 17th century High German spellings of the same names. A typical Low German spelling of your given name is , which we find recorded as a byname (surname) in Mecklenburg in 1496 [1]. This is a century earlier than your period, but we're confident this spelling is also appropriate as an early 17th century given name. The name was certainly still in use in your period [2]. We also found examples of a common pet name , as in the name 1585 [3]. Low German forms of include 1580, 1610, 1639, 1675; 1689 [4]; and [5]. Any of these would make a fine surname, though the spellings ending with are more typical of the Low German dialect. We can therefore recommend a spelling like as ideal for early 17th century northern Germany. is also a reasonable choice. 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 Maridonna Benvenuti, Adelaide de Beaumont, and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 16 Apr 2001 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Engel, Franz, _Die Mecklenburgischen Kaiserbederegister von 1496_, Mitteldeutsche Forschungen 56 (Koeln: Boehlau Verlag, 1968), p.285. [2] Zoder, R., _Familiennamen in Ostfalen_. 2 vols. (Hildesheim: 1968), pp.40, 74, cites 1585, 1677. These examples use the standard High German spelling of the name, but demonstrate that the given name was used in Low German-speaking regions throughout your period. [3] Zoder, p.30 and elsewhere. [4] Zoder, pp.63, 80, 105. [5] Engel, p.233 and passim. In many examples, one or both i's are replaced by y's.