Multigender Celtic Names, including early names from France & the British Isles

Anglicised Irish

Names Found in Anglicized Irish Documents by Mari ingen Briain meic Donnchada lists Owny, also spelled Owney, in the masculine and feminine lists. We also find Giles in the feminine list, which was known as a masculine name elsewhere in the British Isles.

In Anglicized Irish contexts in the 16th century, it appears that family names were sometimes used the same way by men and women, for example "Rose O'Scalle". Some more examples are to be found at http://medievalscotland.org/kmo/Woulfe/.

Irish Gaelic

Mari Elspeth nic Bryan’s Index of Names in Irish Annals includes the following given names that seem to have been used by more than one gender:

Ailbe, Cainnech, Cellach, Flann, Gormán, Máel Fabaill, Máel Muire

I found a few descriptive bynames listed as used by men and women.

Ballach (freckled), Caomhanach  (connected with the O Caemhain family), an Einigh (the hospitable), Mór (big), Óc / Óg (young).

It is likely that many others could be inferred from the list at http://medievalscotland.org/kmo/AnnalsIndex/DescriptiveBynames/Alpha.shtml, noting that in some cases spelling is adjusted in a gendered way.

It would be reasonable to use Irish Gaelic given names with family names, at least for 16th century, as is documented in the Anglicized Irish section, with some more examples to be found at http://medievalscotland.org/kmo/AnnalsIndex/FamilyNames/

Scottish

Multiple languages were spoken in Scotland during SCA period. For a summary, please see Medieval Names Archive: Scottish Names. For Scots Gaelic names, the above reference for Irish Gaelic can be used. For Scots (a dialect of English) names, please see the section “English Names, including Old English, Anglo-Norman, and Scots” of this article.

Welsh

Given names

The following names have the same or similar spelling occurring as variants of more common male and female names. Except where noted they are from the Dyffryn Clwyd Court Roll Database, 1294-1422 (A. D. M. Barrell).

The following were listed as “sex unknown”. In some cases I have taken a guess as to what more common name this could possibly be a form of and noted its usual gender assignment.

Cheny, Colede (Colette? F), Edyrin (Edwin? M), Geeclyn, Grad, Hilla/Hylla/Hylle (Helye? M, from Elias), Ious (Jois/Joyce?, M&F, a 7th c Breton saint), Kenerews(Generys? F), Lambe, Loken, Lyle, Meuken, Moruc (Merrick? M), Morwel, Tangharet (Angharat? F), Welkan, Welyn, Weyan.

We could also give an honourable mention to Morgan and Meredith. These appear to have been male names in period but are read differently by people today.

And we can give a dishonourable mention to any name in the English section, as there was considerable crossover: many people using an unmistakably Welsh given name have a byname of English origin and vice versa.

"Names and Naming Practices in the Merioneth Lay Subsidy Roll 1292-3”, by Heather Rose Jones, gives Gwir as a 13th century Welsh name appearing as masculine and feminine.

Bynames

Pre-16th century: While most people used a gendered patronymic byname, it wasn’t uncommon for people to use a personal descriptive nickname or a placename for a byname. There’s a good reference at A Simple Guide to Constructing 13th Century Welsh Names. A longer list of descriptive bynames and analysis of multiple byname styles can be found at Bynames in the charters of the Abbey of Ystrad Marchell, 1176-1283.

16th century: In addition to the options above, many people had unmarked patronymic bynames (using just their father’s first name as byname), and others were starting to use fixed inherited bynames. A uniquely Welsh pattern for surnames emerges from the fusion of the patronymic marker ap/ab with the byname, forming: Bowen, Powell, Penry, Parry, Beynon, Price. We also find patronymic bynames formed by adding an -s to the father’s name: Hoells, Evans, Jones. (A Simple Guide to Constructing 13th Century Welsh Names)

Cornish, 9th-10th century

A list of “names where there is no basis for even making an educated guess as to gender”:

Anaudat, Artaca, Dengel, Duihon, Ewsannec, Guelet, Guencor, Guenguerthlon, Guenneret, Halbiu, Iofa, Iudhent, Louhelic, Luncen, Milian, Perem, Rannoeu, Rumun, Sulcen, Sulleisoc, Sulmed.

Cornish (and Other) Personal Names from the 10th Century Bodmin Manumissions, Heather Rose Jones

Manx

From Manx Names in the Early 16th Century, by Heather Rose Jones, we find the given name Cristen, and that bynames could involve unmarked patronymic surnames or locatives.

Breton

Given Names from Brittany, 1384-1600 has a number of names for which the author could not positively assign a gender, which may be sufficiently ambigous for our purposes, even though further research may reveal an assigned gender. Especially: Anthonine, Armelle, Bertho, Guenguen, Jacquine, Eonne, Mateline, Mahe.

Early Names of Britain and France

A Consideration of Pictish Names has one ambiguous entry: “Tancorix (f but could also be m)”.

Early Medieval Breton Names has inconclusive debate on the gender of “Beladore” / “Belado”.

Celtic Personal Names of Roman Britain (CPNRB) has 600(!) names for which the authors listed gender as ‘uncertain’. It also has a list of Celtic name elements with possible meanings. Additional research is recommended to construct a plausible, correctly formed byname to use with these.

Article compiled by Clare Drake based on original research and articles by A. D. M. Barrell, Heather Rose Jones, Kathleen M. O'Brien, Constanza of Thamesreach and S.L. Uckelman