ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2991 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2991 ************************************ ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Later research turned up additional * * information relevant to this report. * * See the end of the letter for details. * * * ************************************************* 6 Feb 2005 From: Aryanhwy merch Catmael Greetings from the Academy of S. Gabriel! You wanted to know if is an appropriate name for a Japanese man living in the Heian period. Here is what we have found. The Heian period is from 794 to 1184. We found only in the Muromachi period (1333-1573) [1], so it is not the best choice. We can recommend other multi-syllable names starting with that are appropriate for the Heian period: [1,6] Akihiro \ah-kee-hee-roh\ Akinaga \ah-kee-nah-gah\ Arimori \ah-ree-moh-ree\ Ariyasu \ah-ree-yah-soo\ Atsumori \ah-tsoo-moh-ree\ Atsuyori \a-tsoo-yoh-ree\ You might also be interested in the name , \ah-kee-moh-ree\ [6], which we find in the Kamakura period, 1184-1333. [1] was the name of a family descended from Fujiwara Tadamichi (1097-1164). The first use of the name was by Sanetsune, Tadamichi's grandson. [2] Sanetsune's dates are unknown, but it is clear that the family name was not used before the mid-12th century [3]. In the 12th and 13th centuries, many noble houses adopted family names based on the name of one of their principal estates; the Daigo family was one such. [4] Their name remained in use until modern times. [5] The name was pronounced \dye-goh\, where the vowel in \dye\ is the diphthong \AH-ee\. is possibly appropriate for a Heian man; we cannot say for sure. is definitely a fine choice. is fine for the 14th century on. 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 Mari neyn Brian, Talan Gwynek, Juliana de Luna, Arval Benicoeur, and Mor inghean Chathail. For the Academy, -Aryanhwy merch Catmael, 06 February 2005 -- References: [1] Solveig Throndardottir, _Name Construction in Mediaeval Japan_ (Carlsbad, N. Mex.: The Outlaw Press, 1994; Potboiler Press, 1999, 2004), pp.331-2 [2] E. Papinot, Historical and Geographical Dictionary of Japan (Rutland, Vermont: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1972), pp.63, 98. [3] was also the posthumous name of a 9th-10th century emperor; a 13th century emperor adopted the name "the latter Daigo" in his honor. Simon Cozens, "Go-Daigo" (WWW: privately published). http://www.compsoc.net/~gemini/simons/historyweb/go-daigo.html [4] Herbert Plutschow, _Japan's Name Culture: The Significance of Names in a Religious, Political, and Social Context_, (Kent: Japan Library, 1995), p. 109. [5] Uchida, Katsuhiro "Japanese Paratroop Operations in WW II" (WWW: J-Aircraft.com, 2001) http://www.j-aircraft.com/faq/japanese_paratroop_operations_in.htm This discusses WWI Vice Admiral Marquis Daigo Tadashige, born 1891: "His family belongs to "Ancient Court Noble" from Kyoto. His ancestors came to Tokyo from Kyoto with Emperor Meiji the Great in 1860's." [6] A few notes on these pronunciations: The verges on the soft German \ch\ as in . The is palatalized before in all of the names. The is more of \gh\, (like the sound in ), than \g\. Lastly, the is most similar to the vowel found in Russian . More precisely, it is the vowel you get by pronouncing the in with your lips positioned as if you were saying as in . ------- Correction by Aryanwy, 01 August 2006 - Corrected pronunciation of .