Filling out the Forms - Branch Name Forms

Branch Name

The Branch Name is the group's registered name. If the group doesn't have a registered name, then put the name it is trying to register here. Pay attention to capitalization and accents; certain options lower on the page will restrict how we can modify the name (if necessary). For characters that can't be found on a standard English keyboard, please use Da'ud notation (a system for writing non-Latin alphabet characters using regular letters and punctuation). Please do not write the name all in capitals; use both upper and lower case.

Do not forget to include the designator (Canton, Shire, Barony, Principality, Kingdom, etc.) in your name. If a group changes status (such as going from Shire to Barony), the designator will change as well.

The Laurel office uses the Branch Name to file all the branch's paperwork now and in the future. This is why it must register a name at the same time as or before it can register arms, orders, badges, or household names.

Name being Submitted

The Name being Submitted is the name the group is submitting, unless it has not registered its name yet. This line is used when the group is trying to change its SCA name, register order names, or register a household name.

If you are submitting your name for the first time, leave this blank.

Legal Name of Contact

This is the modern-world name of the person the kingdom should contact regarding the submission - usually the group herald, seneschal, baron/ess, or king/queen. This is the person who is notified of the results of the group's submission.

Address

This is the contact's modern-world address. Many kingdoms will notify you via mail when the group's submission is sent to Laurel, accepted, or returned. Please pay special attention to the postal/zip code you use; if this code is incorrect, the notification will be returned to the kingdom and you will not receive it.

Phone Number

This is the modern-world phone number of the contact. The kingdom may call if they need more information regarding how the group's submission is processed.

E-mail Address

This is the e-mail address of the contact. Many kingdoms have chosen to begin notifying submitters of the results of their submissions by e-mail.

Date Submitted

This is the date you put the submission into the mail.

Consulting Herald

This is the Society name of the herald who helped you with your submission. For group submissions, we really recommend working closely with a herald. Group names and order names need to be constructed using patterns found in our period. Working with a herald increases the likelihood that the construction will be acceptable and the submission will not need to be returned. If a group's name is returned, their path out of incipiency will be delayed.

Herald's E-mail/Phone

This is the e-mail address or phone number for the herald who helped with the group's submission.

Name(s) previously submitted but not registered

This is list of any names you have previously tried to register of the same type as you are submitting now.

Kingdom submitted from

This is name of the kingdom that you tried to register the returned name in.

Date Returned

This is the date the previous submission was returned. If you are not sure, provide any information you might have as it will be helpful.

Name Type

This is the administrative category to the type of submission:

• Primary - Primary Society name. Each branch may only have one primary Society name.
• Order/Award - The name of an order or award the group wishes to register. Baronies and above are the only groups that may register order or award names.
• Household - A name for a household, guild or company.
• Other - When the submission does not fit in the above categories, check this box and describe what it is.

Action Type

This is the type of administrative action:

• New - The submission is new; no submission of this type has been made. Full payment must be made.
• Resubmission - This submission is in response to a return of an action type and where the original was returned. Resubmissions may not require payment; talk to a herald for your kingdom's policy.
• Change - Indicates that you are changing an item, usually a primary name. You will need to indicate what you want done with the old submission.
• Appeal - Indicates that you think an item was returned in error and that you are requesting that the item be considered again. If the return was a kingdom return, this will require the kingdom to forward the item to Laurel.
• Other - If you can't figure out what type of action it is, check this box and describe.

Name Processing Criteria

These two boxes indicate what degree of changes you will allow if Laurel needs to change your name to register it. In most cases, it is best to allow Laurel to make whatever changes are needed. Laurel will make the smallest changes possible.

Major changes include adding or removing words (such as "of", "green", and "cliff"), changing the language of a name phrase (for instance, from German to Dutch), and changing the order the name phrases are in.

Minor changes include changing the capitalization of words, adding or removing accents (provided this does not change the language of the word), and minor spelling changes.

If there are only specific changes that the group will allow, please list them in the Documentation section. Please understand that if changes not allowed are required, the name will be returned.

Care Most About

If the name must be changed, the heralds want to know what is most important to the group about the name so they can keep the name as intact as possible. Please explain what about the aspect of the name is most important after you check a box. If the heralds don't know what is important about the sound, for example, they can't try to keep it as intact as possible.

Authenticity

This box should only be checked if the groups wants the name to be changed to be as authentic as possible. If this box is checked, the heralds will do additional research to find the forms of the name that are as close to the specified time period as possible. In many cases, this will mean that the name will be changed.

Documentation

The Documentation section allows the group to do two things: tell us where they found the pieces of their name and to tell us what name they are trying to get. This is where they can tell us if they have a preferred spelling that they can't document. They can also be more specific about which changes they will accept so the heralds can register the name and what ones they won't.

Summarizing documentation is really not all that difficult. Heraldry.sca.org has lots of links to help document the group's name: the Names page and Appendix H are your friends. Be honest in the summary; kingdom heralds and the College of Arms will review the summary and add more information they can find to support the submission. Again, it is highly recommended that the group work with an experienced herald to document the name. Most group names are constructed and supporting the construction together with the name phrases must meet very specific requirements.

Books

Write the names of all the authors, the name of the book, the heading the item is found under (often the modern form of the name in a name dictionary)/the page number, and a quick summary of what the source says. Appendix H gives some abbreviations for sources you could use as well.

If the source is not listed in Appendix H, provide copies of the title page, the copyright page, and the page(s) you are citing.

Web Sites

Write the name of the author, the title of the page, the URL of the page, the date you used the page, and a quick summary of what the source says.

If the URL of the source does not start with "heraldry.sca.org" or "www.sca.org/heraldry," please provide a copy of the first printed page and any page that contain the information you are citing. Make sure the print out includes the URL, the title, and the date the information was printed.