ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2256 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2256 ************************************ 6 Mar 2001 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a 10th or 11th century Irishman. Here's a brief report on what we have found. As we noted in preliminary correspondance, is a Gaelic borrowing of the Anglo-Norman , so it could not have been used before the arrival of the Normans in the 12th century. In fact, we haven't found examples of it until the 14th century, when it was common. Early spellings also included and [1, 2]. It was pronounced \SHAHN\, though the last spelling may represent \SHOW-@n\ (and a borrowing of rather than ). The \@\ in the second pronunciation represents a schwa, the sound of the in . We can't recommend any form of this name as good re-creation before 1300. Your client may be interested in the similar but unrelated name . This native Gaelic name, derived from the Gaelic word for "old", would be an excellent choice for the 10th or 11th century [1, 3]. If he prefers to use a form of the name , then he might consider , the early medieval Gaelic adaptation of the Latin [4]. was pronounced \SHEN-ahn\, was pronounced \YOAN~\, where \N~\ represents the sound of the in the French and Italian . is a misspelling of the Gaelic clan name that would typically have been spelled in the 10th or 11th century, by the 14th century. In the earlier period, it was probably pronounced roughly \OO-@ DOHN-doo-vahn~\, where \OH\ represents the vowel in and \oo\ the vowel in . By the end of the 14th century, it probably had reduced to \OH DOHN-@-vahn~\. The byname derived from the masculine given name or [1, 5], and was the medieval precursor of the modern (anglicized) surname . At the beginning of the 10th century, Irish bynames of this type were used literally to identify a man's grandfather, i.e. "Donnduba/n's grandson". By the end of the 11th century, they came to identify a man's ancestor less specifically, "Donnduba/n's descendent", and eventually were understood simply to indicate clan membership. would be a fine 14th century Irish name, most likely in the southwest. If your client prefers a 10th or 11th century name, we can recommend or and suggest he place his persona in Limerick [6]. We hope this brief 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 Mari neyn Brian, Talan Gwynek, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, Adelaide de Beaumont, Aryanhwy merch Catmael, and Juliana de Luna. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 6 Mar 2001 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), s.nn. Seaan, Seana/n, Donnduba/n. [2] Cournane, Mavis, Vibeke Dijkman, and Ivonne Tummers, "Annals of Connacht" (WWW: CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of University College, Cork, Ireland, 1997), entries 1315.8, 1316.5, 1419.33, etc. http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/G100011. [3] Annals of Connacht, entry 1030.16 has . [4] Josh Mittleman, "Concerning the Names Iain, Ian, and Eoin" in The Problem Names Project (WWW: Sharon L. Krossa, 1999). http://www.medievalscotland.org/problem/names/iain.shtml [5] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh, ed., "Annals of Tigernach" (WWW: CELT: Corpus of Electronic Texts: a project of University College, Cork, Ireland, 1996), entry T996.4. http://www.ucc.ie/celt/online/G100002/ [6] Your client may be interested in this information about Clan O'Donovan: The O'Donovans, who belong to the royal race of Munster, were originally chiefs of Ui Cairbre Aidhbha, a district lying along the banks of the River Maigue, in the present Co. Limerick. Their principal stronghold was at Bruree. About the year 1178, however, they were driven from Ui Cairbre and forced to take refuge in South-west Cork where, with the aid of their old allies, the O'Mahonys, they effected a settlement in O'Driscoll's country of Corca Laoighdhe, to which they gave their clan-name of Ui Cairbre, and where they retained considerable power and extensive possessions down to the close of the Jacobite wars. A branch of the family settled in Co. Wexford; and from another branch, settled in Kilkenny, the celebrated Irish antiquarian and scholar, Dr. John O'Donovan, was descended. Woulfe, Patrick, _Sloinnte Gaedheal is Gall: Irish Names and Surnames_ (Kansas City: Irish Genealogical Foundation), s.n. O/ Donnabha/in.