ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 445
http://www.s-gabriel.org/445
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* NOTE: Some of the Academy's early reports     *
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17 Jun 1997
From:  (Josh Mittleman)

Note: This may not be identical to the report we sent out.

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Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!

You asked for our opinion of the French name "Raphael de St.Germaine", and
of arms using a "full silver rose" on a black field.  

We believe that your name is basically correct and could have occurred in
France at any time from the 13th century onward. 

The name "Raphael" was occasionally used in France in our period, but it is
possible that it was considered a Jewish name.  We found only one example
of the name used by a Christian in France: It appears as "Rafahel" some
time before 1300 [1].  By contrast, we found two mid-14th century examples
of Jews using this name:

   Samuel Rapha{e"}l" (1348)
   Raffa{e"}l fils de Lyonnet de Chartres" (1349) [2]

{e"} represents an e with an umlaut.  In the first case, Raphael is used as
a patronymic, i.e. it was the name of Samuel's father.  

If you do not want a Jewish persona, you may want to consider a different
name.  Other sources suggest that the name was more common in period Italy
[3, 4].

Your surname, "de St. Germaine" is nearly correct.  Our refernces show a
long list of French places named after Saint Germain [5].  We have two
suggestions to correct the name.

The abbreviation "St."  was not used in period, so far as we can tell.
We recommend that you spell out the word "Saint" or that you abbreviate it
"S.", a form which is well-documented in period French records [5].  The
College of Arms does not register abbreviations, so if you submit your name
for registration, it will be registered with the "Saint" written out in
full.  However, it is entirely appropriate and historically accurate to
write your name in its full form on formal occasions and in an abbreviated
form in day-to-day use.

The French name of Saint German is spelled "Saint Germain", without a
final 'e' on the name.  The final 'e' makes it feminine, so it is not a
reasonable spelling variant.  We found examples of the name spelled
"Germain" recorded in 1296, 1450, and 1466 [5, 6]. 

In summary: "Raphael" was probably occasionally used in France from the
13th century onward, but was not common and may have been used almost
exclusively by the Jewish population.  We do not recommend it as a typical
period French name, but it is a plausible choice.  The surname "de Saint
Germain" is correct for any part of this period.


Your choice of arms, "Sable, a rose slipped and leaved argent", is an
excellent starting point.  However, that particular design is too similar
to a number of existing pieces of armory.  The closest conflicts are a
badge owned by the kingdom of An Tir "A rose argent, barbed and seeded,
slipped and leaved proper"; the Society arms of Iain Alisdair Padruig
Seamus Andrea Stilbhard MacMhurich de Rannocha "Gyronny of eight Or and
gules, a rose argent barbed and seeded proper"; and the historical badge of
the English House of York "A rose argent".  We will need to discuss
possible variations on your design in order to find something that you like
and that is free of conflict.

There are lots of good ways to use roses in medieval-style armory while
avoiding these conflicts.  Indeed, there are so many possibilities that we
can't list them all.  You will probably find it helpful at this point to
spend a little time looking at pictures of medieval arms.  The very best,
easily-available source is a book by Joseph Foster, "The Dictionary of
Heraldry" (New York: Arch Cape Press, 1989).  It is a compilation of arms
listed in many period rolls of arms, with several thousand illustrations.
You can find a smaller collection of pictures of medieval arms on the web
at 

   http://people.delphi.com/ivanor/zroadt0.htm

These arms are German in origin, but the many of them would also be
appropriate to French heraldry.  As you look at these arms, pay attention
to how the individual charges are used to form complete designs, and look
for a design that appeals to you.

You told us that you want to use a rose with leaves and stem.  That is a
perfectly correct heraldic charge.  However, we do want to point out that
the heraldic rose is a open rose, very stylized, drawn as if viewed from
above.  It looks quite different from any natural rose, and particularly
different from the modern tulip-shaped rose.  You can find a picture of a
heraldic rose in any book on heraldry.  Natural roses were not used in
medieval arms, so we strongly recommend that you use the heraldic rose.

I hope this letter has been helpful.

For the Academy,

  Arval Benicoeur

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References

[1] Morlet, Marie-Therese, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de
    l'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siecle, v.ii (Paris: Centre National de
    la Recherche Scientifique, 1972)

[2] Seror, Les Noms des Juifs de France au Moyen Age.  (Can someone send me
    the full citation?)

[3] Withycombe, E.G., The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 3rd
    ed. (Oxford University Press)

[4] De Felice, Emidio, Dizionario dei Cognomi Italiani (Arnoldo Mondadori
    Editore, 1978)

[5] Dauzat and Rostaing, Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Lieux de la
    France (Paris, 1963)

[6] Colm Dubh, An Index to the Given Names in the 1292 Census of Paris,
    Known World Heraldic Symposium Proceedings (SCA, 1996)