ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 873 http://www.s-gabriel.org/873 *********************************** ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Some of the Academy's early reports * * contain errors that we haven't yet * * corrected. Please use it with caution. * * * ************************************************* From: "S Friedemann" 9 Apr 1998 Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked about the feminine name , wanting to know what time period it could have been used in and ways that it could be spelled. You also wanted to know if you could use a 'golden' apple on your arms. Here is the information we have found. We could not find in any of our sources, and are curious to know where you originally found it. We did find some similar names, though, that you might be interested in. was a Cornish name found in the twelfth to thirteenth centuries [1,2]. The Puritans used , , and in the sixteenth century. [3,4] is a form of the Scottish surname recorded as , , in 1526 [5]. The same name is found in modern Ireland [6], but probably was not used there in period. We did not find examples of any form of in period Scotland, and was not likely used by anyone except a native Scottish person. Based on our evidence, we conclude that the two names could not have been used by any single person in period. A golden apple could have been used in heraldry in many times and places in our period. Without knowing when and where you want to set your persona, we can't say whether it would be appropriate for your arms. It's a fairly unusual charge, so we recommend that you consider very simple designs. and would be excellent period armory, and both appear to be clear of SCA conflict. We hope that this letter has been useful to you. Please write us again if any part of it has been unclear, or if you have any other questions. Research and commentary on this letter was provided by Arval Benicoeur, Felix MacAvidy, and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Aryanhwy Prytydes merch Catmael Caermyrdin ------------------------------------------ References: [1] Withycombe, E.G., _The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names_, 3rd ed. (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988). [2] Nicolaa de Bracton, "A Statistical Survey of Given Names in Essex Co., England, 1182-1272", Known World Heraldic Symposium Proceedings 1995 (SCA Inc.) [3] Dunkling, Leslie and William Gosling. The New American Dictionary of First Names (New York: Signet Books, 1983). [4] Bardsley, Charles Wareing. Curiosities of Puritan Nomenclature (Detroit: Gale Research Company, 1970). [5] Black, George F., _The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning and History_, (New York: The New York Public Library, 1986). [6] MacLysaght, Edward, _The Surnames of Ireland_ (Dublin: Irish Academic Press Ltd., 1985, ISBN 0-7165-2366-3).