ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1783 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1783 ************************************ 15 Oct 1999 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for an Anglo-Saxon man of Norse descent living in the 8th to 10th centuries. Here is what we have found. (with an accent on the 'o') appears to be a modern invention, created by compounding the native Scandinavian element with , a Scandinavian form of the biblical name [1]. Biblical names like didn't come into use in Scandinavia until the 11th century [2, 3]. We have not found compounds between Norse elements and foreign ones until modern times, and we have no evidence that this one existed in our period. We recommend against using it as a medieval name. There are a number of similar-sounding names that you could consider. The modern Icelandic derives from Old Norse , and in fact we find one masculine name built from that element: . Quite a few more names are built from the related element , including , , , , , , , and [2, 4, 6]. The symbol {dh} represents the letter edh, which is pronounced like the in , and written like a backward '6' with a bar across the upright. You said you want a name for an Anglo-Saxon; that opens several other possibilities. was a relatively common Anglo-Saxon (Old English) name and is related to Danish . Other similar Old English names include , , , , [5]. All of these names are appropriate for England in your period. In both English and Norse cultures in your period, a man was usually known by his given name alone most of the time. In formal circumstances, he was generally identified as his father's son. For example, "Sigur{dh}r son of Thorsteinn>" in Old Norse and <{AE}lfric {AE}lfwines sunu> "{AE}lfric son of {AE}lfwine" in late 10th century Old English [7]. The symbol {AE} represents the letter aesc, written as an and an joined together. If you'd like our help building the rest of your name, please write us again. 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 Maridonna Benevenuti, Tangywstyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Hartmann Rogge, Juliana de Luna, Talan Gwynek, Justin Greywolf, and Lindorm Eriksson. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 15 Oct 1999 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] You'll notice that the list of 19th and 20th century surnames that you mentioned in your letter, http://fjarhitun.is/~halfdan/html/surnames.htm, includes several other compounds of , including , , . [2] Lind, E.H., _Norsk-Isla:ndska Dopnamn ock Fingerade Namn fra*n Medeltiden_ (Uppsala & Leipzig: 1905-1915, sup. Oslo, Uppsala and Kobenhavn: 1931), s.n. Io/han and elsewhere. [3] Kruken, Kristoffer, ed. _Norsk personnamnleksikon_, 2nd ed. (Oslo: Det Norske Samlaget, 1995), s.n. Jon. [4] Fellows Jensen, Gillian, _Scandinavian Personal Names in Lincolnshire and Yorkshire_ (Copenhagen: 1968). [5] Searle, William George, _Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum_ (Cambridge University Press: Cambridge, 1897). [6] Fleck, G. (aka Geirr Bassi Haraldsson), _The Old Norse Name_, Studia Marklandica (series) (Olney, Maryland: Yggsalr Press, 1977). [7] Tengvik, Goesta, _Old English Bynames_ (Uppsala: Almqvist & Wiksells Boktryckeri-A.-B., 1938), p.149.