ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 1955 http://www.s-gabriel.org/1955 ************************************ 25 Feb 2000 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for an 11th-14th century Irish woman, and if some form of is appropriate for her father. Here is what we have found. You also asked for clarification of a detail in our previous letter to you [1]. We had recommend against using , but had included it in the summary to our letter. Including the name in the summary was a mistake, and we apologize for the confusion. (with an acute accent mark on the 'e') is a fine choice for the last century or two of your period. It is a Gaelic adaptation of , a variant of which was brought to Ireland by the Anglo-Normans. , pronounced \SHEE-bayl\, was adopted into Gaelic shortly after the Norman settlement in the 13th century [2]. The Norman name or was similarly adopted into Gaelic not long after the Normans arrived in Ireland. The two versions of the name, pronounced differently, gave rise to two Gaelic forms and [2]. They were pronounced essentially the same as their English roots. We have found examples of Gaels using in the mid-14th century [3]. is a plausible name for the last two centuries or so of your period. It is most likely to have been used in an area of Ireland where English influence was particularly strong. 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, Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, Amant le Marinier, Talan Gwynek, Blaise de Cormeilles, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Raquel Buenaventura, Antonio Miguel Santos de Borja, and Affrick nin Kenneoch. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 25 Feb 2000 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Academy of Saint Gabriel report 1877 http://www.panix.com/~gabriel/public-bin/showfinal.cgi?1877 [2] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), s.nn. Ricard, Sibe/al. We actually aren't sure whether was used by Gaelic-speakers: It might have been used in Gaelic documents only to identify English-speaking women named or . However, we can recommend the name with that slight reservation. [3] Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "Women's Names in the Annals of Connacht: 1224-1544" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 2000). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/mari/AnnalsConnacht/