ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 869 http://www.s-gabriel.org/869 *********************************** ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Some of the Academy's early reports * * contain errors that we haven't yet * * corrected. Please use it with caution. * * * ************************************************* 1 Apr 1998 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for information about names in Brittany between 1300 and 1550, particulary those associated with Brythonic Celts and Gauls. Here is what we have found. We do have some information on Breton names, but before I go into the details, I need to clear up a mis-understanding. By 1300, the terms "Celts" and "Gauls" have no relevence to Breton culture or language. The people of late-period Brittany were French. Many of them spoke Breton and some Breton names continued to be used in the region, but in most respects they were culturally integrated with the rest of northern France. In particular, their naming practices were generally very similar to those in other parts of France. Our only source specifically for Breton names covers the 9th to the 11th centuries. In this data, the names seem to be similar to those found in other parts of northern France. Frankish, Latin, biblical, and saints' names predominate, with a number of Breton-origin names. Here is a partial list of feminine given names from that period [1]. The letter in the first column identifies the source of each name: B = Breton, F = Frankish, L = Latin, T = New Testament. B Aanor F Abanhildisin F Acfrudis F Aganildis F Aginhilt F Agonildis F Amelina T Anna B Aourken B Argantan B Argantlon F Arminna F Arminult F Auda F Austroberta F Barza F Bernegarda F Berta F Bertissa L Bona L Clara L Claricia B Cleroc L Constantia F Dagolena B Deroch B Driken B Ennoguent F Ermengarda F Flothelt F Fredeburg F Frededana Since these documents were written in Latin, many of the names are latinized. In these documents, women were usually identified either by relationship to a husband or father or by occupation. For example: Agonildis venditrix "Agonild the Merchant" Frededana Arluini uxor "Frededana, Arluin's wife" Bona filia Alberici "Bona, Alberic's daughter" The same patterns are found in early medieval names throughout France. Of course, all these examples are drawn from records several centuries earlier than your period. Based on other French evidence, we believe that by your period, Breton naming had become even more similar to naming in the rest of northern France. Most Frankish and native Breton names probably dropped out of use, while biblical and saints' names became increasingly popular. By the end of your period, inherited surnames had probably become predominants in Brittany. Thus, we expect that a typical Breton woman of your period would have had a typical French name. We don't have a good list of French women's names from the 14th or 15th centuries, but we do have a couple lists that you could use for guidance. In the late 13th century, the following names were common [3]: Marie Isabelle Blanche Marguerite Agnes You can find a list of 16th century northern French names on the web at http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/cateline/norman16.html 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 Talan Gwynek and Elisabeth de Rossignol. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] De Courson, M. Aure/lien, _Cartulaire de L'Abbaye de Redon en Bretagne_ (Paris: Imprimerie Imperiale, 1963). [2] Cateline de la Mor, Sixteenth Century Norman Names (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997) http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/cateline/norman16.html [3] Arval Benicoeur, "French Names from Two Thirteenth Century Chronicles" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). http://www.panix.com/~mittle/names/crusades/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -