|
Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!
You asked about the suitability of the name <Syric> or <Siric> for a 9th century Saxon persona. You also indicated some interest in an early period Old Norse name.
First we should clear up a possible confusion. We suspect that by 'Saxon' you mean the people and language of 9th century England. The people are often called 'Anglo-Saxons', and the language is sometimes called 'Anglo-Saxon', though 'Old English' is probably a less confusing term for it. At that time the Saxons were a Germanic tribe occupying a substantial territory in northern Germany, mostly between the Ems and Elbe rivers. Their language, which is called Old Saxon, is a close relative of Old English.
Names very close to <Syric> and <Siric> can be found in England, Scandinavia, and Germany, though only in England are they found as early as the 9th century.
There was an Old English name <Sigeric> that appears in Domesday Book as <Syric>, <Siric>, <Siricus>, <Seric>, and <Sericus>. [4] It continued in use at least into the early 13th century, appearing in such forms as <Syricus>, <Siricus>, and <Siric>. [6, 8] In general these forms seem to be more characteristic of the 11th and 12th centuries. In the 9th century the older <Sigeric> would have been more common, at least in writing. However, there is evidence that <Siric> (or <Siricus>) occurs as early as the late 8th century [7], so it would certainly not be out of place for a 9th century Anglo-Saxon persona.
There was also a related Old Norse name <Sigríkr>, though it does not seem to have been particularly common. (The slash represents an acute accent on the previous vowel.) This spelling is derived from usage in the saga period c.1100-1300, but so far as we can tell it would also be a reasonable approximation to a 9th century version of the name. (A 9th century written version, however, would normally have been written in runes, probably in a form that would be transliterated <sihrikR> or <sikrikR>. For more information on runes you could consult [3, 9, 10].) Forms closer to what you're now using appear a bit later in the Scandinavian countries. In Norway and Iceland the name appears as <Sirikr> or <Sirekr> in the 12th and 13th centuries, and in Denmark it appears as <Sirik> and <Syrik> in the 15th century. [5, 2]
Since you're already using <Siric>, you might also like to know that yet another related name is found in the 13th century as <Sirik> or <Siricus> along the German coast from Bremen to Stralsund. [1]
Once you decide on a given name, you'll want to consider a byname, a second name that distinguishes you from any other Siric. What form this should take depends very much on what culture you choose for your persona.
It's quite likely that a 9th century Anglo-Saxon persona wouldn't have had one at all. However, if you wish to register your name with the SCA College of Arms, you'll have to have one. Fortunately, they were occasionally used. One well-documented type is the patronymic, a name that tells who your father was.. For instance, if your father's name was <Bada>, or <Godwine>, you might be known as <Siric Badan sunu>, or <Siric Godwines sunu>.
Most of our evidence for 9th century Old Norse bynames comes from runic memorial stones, and we don't know whether this very specialized genre gives a good picture of actual usage. The evidence does indicate that straightforward nicknames were used, like <hinn Rau{dh}i> 'the Red', and it's probable that patronymics were also in use. (Here '{dh}' stands for the letter 'edh', a 'd' with a stroke through the upright. Runic versions would be somewhat different.) Later, when the Old Norse name might have appeared as <Sirikr>, patronymics were very common; the citation <Sirikr Olafs son> 1312 is typical. [5]
For a 12th century English or 13th century North German persona many different types of bynames are possible. If you are interested in such a persona, we'd be happy to continue to work with you to find something suitable.
In this letter we've concentrated on the name that you're already using, so we realize that we may have left some of your original questions unanswered. You may also have questions about bynames. If you do have any further questions, please don't hesitate to write us for more information.
Arval Benicoeur, Hartmann Rogge, Lindorm Eriksson, and Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn also contributed to this letter.
For the Academy,
Talan Gwynek
[1] Bahlow, Hans, _Deutsches Namenlexikon_ (Baden-Baden: Suhrkamp Taschenbuch Verlag, 1985).
[2] _Danmarks Gamle Personnavne_. I: Fornavne. G. Knudsen, M. Kristensen, & R. Hornby, eds. (Copenhagen, 1941-48).
[3] Elliott, R.W.V., _Runes_ (New York: Philosophical Library Inc., 1959).
[4] Feilitzen, O. von, _The Pre-Conquest Personal Names of Domesday Book_ (Uppsala: 1937).
[5] Lind, E.H., _Norsk-Islandska Dopnamn ock Fingerade Namn fran Medeltiden_ (Uppsala: 1905-1915).
[6] Reaney, P.H. & R.M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991).
[7] Searle, W. G., _Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum_ (Cambridge: At the University Press, 1897).
[8] Seltén, B., _The Anglo-Saxon Heritage in Middle English Personal Names: East Anglia 1100-1399_ (Lund: CWK Gleerup, 1972, 1979).
[9] URL: <http://www.kuai.se/%7Egriffon/runes/futhark/>
[10] URL: <http://johan.eng.umu.se/pages/OldNorseFuthark.html>