ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2529 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2529 ************************************ 28 Apr 2002 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a Japanese woman before 1600, and whether she might have used a butterfly in her arms. Here is what we have found. doesn't actually mean "butterfly"; rather, it is a version of the name of the title character in Puccini's opera "Madama Butterfly" [2]. We haven't found a period example of the name, and because of its strong modern association we don't recommend it as a good choice. On its own, it is not implausible: there are historical examples of names that consist of a syllable repeated. However, we've found no evidence that itself was used in period, so we can't recommend it as the best recreation. If you are interested in a name with a similar meaning, you might consider , which is composed from "bug, insect, worm, snake" and <-me> "woman". If you want a similar sound, you could consider , which is composed of elements meaning "Eldest/Senior Woman"; it was often used for an eldest daughter [1]. Japanese women mentioned in records from our period are more often identified by their relationship to a man rather than by their own formal name. Consequently, our knowledge of the structure of women's names is imprecise. We believe that a Japanese woman's name in our period could consist of two or three parts: a family name and one or more given names. She would have had a nanori, which is a formal given name; and she might have had a yobina, an informal given name, used only by those intimate with her [1]. You can read more about the construction of medieval Japanese names in this report: http://www.s-gabriel.org/2019 You've already read our article on period Japanese arms: A Roll of Japanese Armory http://www.s-gabriel.org/heraldry/solveig/kamon/ and, as you found, the butterfly was indeed used as a charge [3]. We offered some general suggestions on designing medieval-style Japanese arms to a previous client; you can read them at: http://www.s-gabriel.org/2009 We recommend you use one flying butterfly, as in the examples in our article; or perhaps three in a circle facing inward or two facing one another. As far as we know, any combination of dark and light colors is appropriate for displaying your arms. We believe, though, that by the 16th century color had become significant, i.e. that a particular kamon was displayed consistently in the same colors. The Japanese did use purple, by the way. 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 Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Julie Stampnitzky, Talan Gwynek, and Solveig Throndardottir. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 29 Apr 2002 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Solveig Throndardottir, _Name Construction in Mediaeval Japan_ (Carlsbad, N. Mex.: The Outlaw Press, 1994; Potboiler Press, 1999 [Box 30171, Columbia, MO 65205]), pp. 109, 172 and passim. [2] "Madama Butterfly" (WWW: OperaGlass, 1998) http://rick.stanford.edu/opera/Puccini/Butterfly/main.html [3] Solveig Throndardottir, "A Roll of Japanese Armory" (WWW: Academy of Saint Gabriel). Examples of butterflies: Ikeda Nobukage 1562 (plate 5), Ikeda Terumasa 1600 (plate 8), Seki Kazumasa 1600 (plate 11). http://www.s-gabriel.org/heraldry/solveig/kamon/