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Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!
You asked for our opinion of "Pharamond de Manse aux Meadows" as a late-period Burgundian name. Here is what we have found.
"Pharamond", more frequently spelled with an 'F', is an Old French name which derived from the Frankish name "Faramund". The name is recorded in early medieval France in various forms in the 9th, 10th and 11th centuries: "Faramundus", "Faramondus", "Faramond", "Feremundus" [1]. It is recorded once in 13th century English records, "Pharamund de Boloynne", 1273 [2]. This example is very likely a Frenchman living in England or an Englishman of recent French descent, so we feel confident that "Faramund" was in use in France at this date. There are a few modern French surnames derived from this name [3], so it apparently survived later in our period as well. But it was definitely a rare name. The spelling with "Ph" seems to be an English variant, not typical of French usage.
The surname "de Manse aux Meadows" is not correct French and is not an appropriate construction for a 16th century Burgundian persona.
In the 16th century, the French were no longer using descriptive bynames in the medieval manner. They used inherited surnames much as they do today. A 16th century man's surname only meant that his father had the same surname. While a 14th century man who lived in a house in the meadows might have been known by a surname which identified his home, a 16th century man probably would not. Late-period surnames were shorter, simpler, and rarely literal in their meaning.
The French word "manse" means a certain kind of small feudal holding. This spelling is first recorded in 1732, but the word was in use at least since the 12th century [4]. We could not find any place names or surnames derived from this word [3, 5], but it is plausible that such names existed. A surname like "de la Manse" would be a reasonable choice for a 16th century persona. However, please note that the word "manse" means "house" only in English, not in French.
The word "meadow" is English, not French. It is not correct to include it in an otherwise French name. The French word for "meadows" is "prés". ("é" indicates an 'e' with a sharp accent.) The surname "des Prés" is quite common in France today and was common in the 16th century as well [3].
If you set your persona two or three centuries earlier, then the compound surname "de la Manse des Prés" is possible. It isn't likely -- such complicated bynames were very rare -- but it is possible. But it is not plausible as a 16th century surname. Therefore, we suggest that you call yourself "Faramond de la Manse" or "Faramond des Prés".
I hope this letter has been useful. Please write us again if any part of it has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Talan Gwynek.
For the Academy,
Arval Benicoeur
References
[1] Marie-Therese Morlet, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de
l'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siecle, vol III (Paris: Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique, 1972).
[2] Charles Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames
(Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1980).
[3] Albert Dauzat, Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Famille et
Prenoms de France (Paris: Libraire Larousse, 1987).
[4] Paul Robert, "Le Petit Robert 1: Dictionnaire alphabétique et
analogique de la langue franc,ais (Paris: Le Robert, 1985)
[5] Dauzat & Rostaing, Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de Lieux de la
France (Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1963).