ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 900 http://www.s-gabriel.org/900 *********************************** ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Some of the Academy's early reports * * contain errors that we haven't yet * * corrected. Please use it with caution. * * * ************************************************* 14 Apr 1998 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for assistance choosing a woman's Viking name and for an opinion on your design for your arms. Here is what we have found. You wrote that you are interested in both Viking and Celtic culture. Viking culture existed from the 8th to the 11th century primarily in Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Iceland, the Baltic rim, and the northern parts of the British Isles including Mann. Viking raiders, traders, and merchants ranged far afield, to the Caspian Sea, Byzantium, much of western Europe, and the New World. If you want to set your persona in a time and place where the Viking culture interacted with Gaelic culture, we recommend Ireland, northern Scotland, or Mann. Mann would be a particularly interesting choice: It was Gaelic speaking, but was ruled by Norse lords until the 12th century. Manx names show strongly influence from both cultures. If you would like to choose a Manx name, let us know and we can provide some more information. You can find some articles on Viking culture on the web at Viking Resources for the Re-enactor http://www.cs.vassar.edu/~capriest/vikresource.html We can think of no historically plausible way that a Viking woman could have learned anything about Middle Eastern drumming -- there is no evidence that any Middle Eastern music was carried back to Scandinavia by Viking travellers -- but you shouldn't worry too much about this. Your persona history doesn't have to encompass everything that interests you in the Society; it's just a focal point for your re-creations. It's best to start by building a historically-plausible persona and choose a name to fit it. If you like, you can think of yourself as a traveller in a land (the Society) with many strange customs. And as a traveller, you'll certainly want to try out some of those customs! You said you'd like a name beginning with and including an . Here are some Old Norse feminine names that fit those criteria, along with their pronunciations [1]: Ka{dh}li/n \KAHDH-leen\ Kolfinna \COAL-fin-nah\ Katla \KAHT-lah\ Kolgri/ma \COAL-gree-mah\ Katri/n \KAHT-reen\ Kol{th}erna \COAL-thehr-nah\ Ka/ra \KAAH-rah\ Krafla \KRAHF-lah\ Kjalvo,r \KYAHL-vor\ A few notes: * {dh} represents the letter edh, which is properly written like a backward <6> with a short bar across the curved upright. It is pronounced like the in \this\, represented in the pronunciations by \dh\. * {th} represents the letter thorn, which is written like a lower-case superimposed on a lower-case

, so that you have one long upright with a single loop. It is pronounced like the in \thing\, represented in the pronunciations by \th\. * The slash represents an accent on the preceding letter. It marks a long (in duration) vowel sound. For example is pronounced like the vowel in , but is like the vowel in [1]. * The comma in represents a backward hook hanging from the bottom of the . The letter is pronounced like the vowel in or the British pronunication of . The unmarked is pronounced like the in French , not very different from the English , but shorter [1]. In Viking culture, a woman was most often known as her father's daughter. If you chose the name and your father's name were , then you would have been called . I chose an example here where your name and your father's name share an initial syllable; this was not uncommon in Viking society. In the early part of the Viking period, your name would have been written in runes rather than in the Roman alphabet. If you would like to know the runic spelling of your name, please write us again. Before I discuss the lovely arms you've designed, I would like to point out that people in the Viking world did not use arms. Heraldic arms were invented in northern France in the late 12th century. It spread rapidly and some examples appear in parts of Scandinavia in the late 13th century [2], but this was after the Viking period. If you want a Viking persona, then you'll have to decide whether you want to use heraldry. We have a short article that you may find useful: What Do I Use for Arms if my Persona Wouldn't Have Used Arms? http://www.itd.umich.edu/~ximenez/s.gabriel/faq/nonheraldic.html The arms you described can be blazoned "Azure, three piles in point argent, each charged with a key azure." These are very nice arms, very appropriate for most of western Europe in the late Middle Ages or Renaissance and entirely compatible with Society culture. If you decide to register arms, this design would be a fine choice. 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 Aryanhwy Prytydes merch Catmael Caermyrdin, Lindorm Eriksson, Talan Gwynek, Zenobia Naphtali, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, and Charles O'Connor. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Fleck, G. (aka Geirr Bassi Haraldsson), _The Old Norse Name_, Studia Marklandica (series) (Olney, Maryland: Yggsalr Press, 1977). [2] Brault, Gerard J., _Early Blazon_ (Oxford: Clarendon Press,, 1972). - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -