ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2655 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2655 ************************************ 9 Jan 2003 From: Josh Mittleman Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for an Englishman living between 1300 and 1550. This letter is a brief answer to your question. You've chosen an excellent name for the end of your period, but it may not be a good choice earlier. , of course, was common throughout your period [1]. However, the only examples we've found of are quite late: 1576 in Lincolnshire and 1601 in Lancashire [2, 3]. A similar spelling, , appeared in Tynemouth, Northumberland, in 1609 [6]. The name was originally a variant of a surname derived from the placename or [4]. We found no earlier example of either of these names with a rather than a . If you want a name suited for the 14th or 15th century, you might use one of these spellings: William de Longetone 1332 [4] Robertus de Langeton 1379 [2] Langeton 1316, 1327, 1384, 1420 [5] 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 Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Mari neyn Brian, Adelaide de Beaumont, Talan Gwynek, and Maridonna Benvenuti. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 9 Jan 2003 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Withycombe, E.G., _The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names_, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988), s.n. William. [2] Bardsley, Charles, _A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames_ (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1980), s.n. Langton. [3] Hitching, F. K., and S. Hitching, _References to English Surnames in 1601 and 1602_. (Walton-on-Thames, 1910-11; Baltimore: republished for the Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998, ISBN 0-8603-0181-3), p.xlvi. [4] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.nn. Longton, Langton. [5] Ekwall, Eilert, _The Concise Oxford Dictionary of English Place-names_, 4th edition (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1991), s.n. Langton. [6] Julie Stampnitzky, "Surnames in Durham and Northumberland, 1521-1615" (WWW: privately published, 2001). http://www.yucs.org/~jules/names/parish/surnames.html