ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2980 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2980 ************************************ 22 Dec 2004 From: Aryanhwy merch Catmael Greetings from the Academy of S. Gabriel! You asked for information about the byname , particularly whether the spelling was used in England before 1600. Here is what we have found. It was. The byname derives from the Old English word for . [1] We found examples of it throughout the medieval period in various parts of England, including: [1,2] Sperewe 1160-5 London Sparewe 1185 Norfolk, 1273 Cambridgeshire Sparuwe 1273 Oxford Sparwe 1273 Cambridgeshire Sparow 1325 Yorkshire Sparowe 1379 Yorkshire Sparrow 1529-30 London Sparrowe 1572 London Sparrows were popularly considered especially amorous, and someone could have been called as a joke on his lecherous behavior. [3] If you would like to pick an English given name that would be appropriate to use with this byname, we recommend the articles linked here: Medieval Names Archive: English Names http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/english.shtml We hope that this letter has been useful to you and that you won't hesitate to write us again if any part was unclear or if you have further questions. Research and commentary on this letter was provided by Maridonna Benvenuti, Arval Benicoeur, and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, -Aryanhwy merch Catmael, 22 December 2004 -- References: [1] Reaney, P. H., & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995). s.n. Sparrow [2] Bardsley, Charles, _A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames_ (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1980). s.n. Sparrow [3] Reaney, P. H., _The Origin of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge and Kegan Paul, 1967, reprint 1980). p. 269. Chaucer characterized the Somenour with the line 'As hoot he was and lecherous as a sparwe'. The tradition was still alive in Shakespeare's day: in 'Measure for Measure' Lucio, speaking of the apparently austere Angelo, says, 'Sparrows must not build in his house-eaves, because they are lecherous'.