ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1664 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1664 ************************************ 4 May 1999 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a woman in Italy, and particularly in Sicily, between 1450 and 1550. Here is what we have found. Double given names (or middle names) were far less common in our period than they are today. They appeared in northern Italy earlier than most places, with examples showing up at the beginning of the Renaissance, and we believe they were not uncommon in Italy by the late 15th century. However, even at the end of our period, most people in Italy had only one given name. may be a special case. It is of course the full Italian name of Saint Mary of Magdala, and it came into use as a compound given name in some parts of Europe by the end of the 16th century [1]. The two elements were both common on their own, at least in northern Italy: was one of the most popular women's names in 15th century Florence, and also common [2]. However, we haven't found any evidence that the compound was used in Italy before 1600. We wouldn't be surprised to see it, especially in the 16th century, but we can't recommend it as the best re-creation. The rest of your name, , is a fine choice for your period. This is exactly the form we would expect for an Italian surname based on a placename. The town itself existed as early as the 12th century [3], and its name probably took its modern form by the 16th century. Therefore, we can recommend or as excellent choices for your period. is plausible, but not as clearly appropriate. We 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 Walraven van Nijmegen and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 4 May 1999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Maria Magdalena of Austria married Cosimo II dei' Medici in 1608. Gene Brucker, _Florence: the golden age, 1138-1737 (New York: Abbeville Press, 1984). [2] Arval Benicoeur, "Feminine Given Names from the Online Catasto of Florence of 1427" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1998). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/arval/catasto [3] "Monreale", Britannica On-line, accessed 27 April 1999. http://www.eb.com:180/bol/topic?eu=54763&sctn=1#s_top