ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 3337 http://www.s-gabriel.org/3337 ************************************ 17 Jul 2007 From: Aryanhwy merch Catmael Greetings from the Academy of S. Gabriel! You wanted to know if is an authentic name for a French woman living any time before 1600. Here is what we have found. , where the / represents an acute accent over the previous name, is the French form of the Greek name , which is the name of two saints. One saint lived in Antioch in the early 4th century; the other is almost certainly legendary. [1] We haven't found any evidence that was used before modern times, so we cannot recommend this as suitable re-creation for any pre-1600 era of France. [8] The surname was originally a patronymic byname, that is, one which indicated the bearer's father's given name. can be found throughout France from at least the 13th century onward; we find it in Paris in 1292, 1421, 1423, and 1438 [2,3], and in Bordeaux between 1470 and 1520. [4] In the 16th century, the name occurs in Brittany, Normandy, and Artois. [5,6,7] It is hence a fine choice for your byname if you place your persona any time between the late 13th century and the 16th century. For alternatives to which could be authentically combined with the byname , we recommend that you browse the names listed in sources [2-7]. 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 Coblaith Mhuimhneach and Maridonna Benvenuti. For the Academy, -Aryanhwy merch Catmael, 17 July 2007 -- References: [1] "Catholic Online Saints Index", (WWW: Catholic Online, 2000). http://saints.catholic.org/stsindex.html [2] Colm Dubh, "An Index to the Given Names in the 1292 Census of Paris", Proceedings of the Known World Heraldic Symposium 1996 (SCA: Montgomery, Alabama; WWW: SCA, Inc., 1997). http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/paris.html [3] Friedemann, Sara L., "French Names from Paris, 1421, 1423 & 1438" (WWW: privately published, 2002-2003). http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/french/paris1423.html [4] Friedemann, Sara L., "Names Found in Commercial Documents from Bordeaux, 1470-1520" (WWW: privately published, 2000). http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/french/bordeaux.html [5] Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, "Given Names from Brittany, 1384-1600" (WWW: Academy of S. Gabriel, 2001) http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/latebreton/ [6] Cateline de la Mor, "Sixteenth Century Norman Names" (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: Academy of Saint Gabriel, 1997). http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/cateline/norman16.html [7] Uckelman, Sara L., "Names from Artois, 1601" (WWW: Self-published, 2002, 2004). http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/french/french1601.html [8] The name doesn't even occur in Dauzat, Albert, _Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Famille et Prenoms de France_ (Paris: Libraire Larousse, 1987).