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[Sorry if you've already received this note; but it may have been corrupted and we wanted to make sure you got it.]
Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel!
You asked for our opinion of "Estienne de Nantes" as a Breton name that would fit both a 12th century woman and a 15th century man. You also asked us to suggest some references on period Brittany. Here is what we have found.
We think that you've chosen your name well. The general form of the name is entirely appropriate. The data in the 1292 census of Paris is not directly applicable to 12th and 15th century Britanny, of course, but it is at least a plausible guide to names that might have been used in those times. The form <Estienne> certainly remained in use at least as a masculine name until quite late in our period [1].
We can improve the picture of usage in the earlier period. Breton records mention an <Estephan> c.1100, <Stephan> 9th c., and three examples of <Stephanus> c.1100 [2]. These examples are all masculine names from Latin documents. Latin documents from elsewhere in France include the following forms [3]:
Masculine Feminine
Stephanus (7-11th c.) Stephana (9-11th c.) Steffanus (8th c.) Stevana (10th c.) Stefan Stephania (11th c.)
Istef[anus]
Istf[anus]
Sthef[anus]
Stefanius
Judging from this sample of data, the early form seems to have retained the internal \f\ sound; <Estephan> or <Stefan> seem more likely 12th century forms than <Estienne>.
In medieval French as in Latin, gender played a significant role in grammar. In general, masculine names were clearly distinguishable from feminine names, as they are in the lists above. The Paris census shows us that there are exceptions to this rule and that <Estienne> was one exception; but we caution you against assuming that this example is typical.
Your byname, <de Nantes>, is appropriate for both periods. It is likely that the spelling of the place name <Nantes> changed between the 12th century and modern times, but we can't tell you with certainty what spelling was used in the two centuries that interest you: We just don't have enough period examples. Here's what we do know: In the 6th century the name was recorded as <Namnetus>, a Latinization of the Breton name <Namnetes> [4]. We find two 12th century Latin genitive forms of the name: <Nannetis> and <Nannetes> [5]. (The genitive is a grammatical case used to express possession, i.e. "Peter's" as opposed to "Peter".) We don't know whether these Latin forms reflect contemporary Old French usage. The best we can say is that there is a reasonable chance that <Nantes> or something similar was in use by this time. If your name had been written in the 12th century, it would have been written in Latin, perhaps in the form <Stephanus> or <Stephana Nannetensis>.
French in the 15th century was much more similar to modern French, so it is likely that the 15th century form of <Nantes> is the same as the modern form.
A great deal of the good literature about Brittany is in French. One English-language book that seems to have a good overview of the history (and is currently in print) is _The Bretons_ by Patrick Galliou and Michael Jones (Blackwell, 1991). A more scholarly but more narrowly focussed book is _Ducal Brittany: 1364-1399: Relations with England and France during the Reign of Duke John IV_ by Michael Jones (London: Oxford University Press, 1970).
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 Tangwystyl ferch Morgant Glasfryn and Talan Gwynek.
For the Academy,
Arval Benicoeur
References
[1] Cateline de la Mor, Sixteenth Century Norman Names (SCA: KWHS
Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/cateline/norman16.html
[2] de Courson, Aurélien, _Cartulaire de L'Abbaye de Redon en Bretagne_
(Paris: Imprimerie Imperiale, 1863).
[3] Morlet, Marie-Therese, Dictionnaire E/tymologique des Noms de Famille
(Librairie Académique Perrin, 1997).
[4] Dauzat, Albert & Ch. Rostaing, Dictionnaire Etymologique des Noms de
Lieux de la France (Paris: Librairie Larousse, 1963).
[5] Delisle, Leopold, ed., _Rouleaux des Morts du IXe au XVe Siecle_ (New
York: Johnson Reprint Corporation, 1968 [1866]).