| Laurel: | Date: (year.month.date) | Precedent: |
| François la Flamme | 2001.11 | There was some question whether the elements combined in WykeBeck are a reasonable combination. Given the multiple forms of Wickford (meaning 'ford by a wych elm' or 'ford by a dairy farm') found by the College, the combination in WykeBeck would mean 'brook by a wych elm' or 'brook by a dairy farm' and seems reasonable. Regarding the submitter's request for authenticity, Bardsley dates the form Wyckham to 1572 (p. 810 s.n. Wickham), and Humphrey Byrkbecke to 1583 (p. 104 s.n. Birkbeck). Given these examples, Annys Wyckbecke would be an authentic form close to her submitted name.[Annys of WykeBeck, 11/01, R-Trimaris] |
| Jaelle of Armida | 1998.01 | [Brandon de Loire] The submitter explains Aramis as a constructed name from the Hebrew Aram and the French ending -is. This is, in fact, not a period form of name construction, and barring documentation of Aramis as a period name, it must be returned. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR January 1998, p. 21) |
| Jaelle of Armida | 1997.07 | [registering the given name Jessica] [Jessica Marten] The Rules for Submission state "New name elements, whether invented by the submitter or borrowed from a literary source, may be used if they follow the rules for name formation from a linguistic tradition compatible with the domain of the Society and the name elements used." (Rule II.3, Invented Names) Elizabethan English qualifies as a linguistic tradition compatible with the domain of the SCA. Shakespeare qualifies as a period author and the Merchant of Venice just fits into our time period (ignoring the "gray" period from 1601 to 1650). The character in the play is human. Jessica may be "modern" according to Withycombe, but it is an acceptable SCA given name according to our rules. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1997, p. 5) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1993.06 | [Of the Purple Moonstone] We have stated (LoAR of July 92) that "we should continue to accept [of the <adjective> <noun> bynames], so long as they aren't complete nonsense." Purple Moonstone is complete nonsense. Moonstone is a form of albite (plagioclase feldspar), and is only found in white, grey, and very light blue (Sorrell's Minerals of the World, p.220). I agree that modern synthetic stones can be given the opalescence of natural moonstone in any color, including purple --- but such synthetics are, by definition, not period. (Katherine of the Moonstone, June, 1993, pg. 5) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1993.05 | We have in the past returned such epithets as Fyrlocc, on the grounds that they didn't follow known period models for English bynames. However, given the recent documentation of Pyrsokomos "flame-hair" as a valid Greek epithet, we are now inclined to permit its lingua franca translation -- but only for names where the original Greek epithet would be acceptable. The submitter will have to demonstrate regular period interaction between Ireland and Greece before this name meets that criterion -- or else show the construction follows period English models. (Fiona Flamehair, May, 1993, pg. 14) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1993.01 | [Firehawk] As Lady Badger notes, fire is a variant spelling of ME fere, "fierce". "Fierce hawk" is not an unreasonable byname, though the total combination of name elements is on the ragged edge of acceptability. (Gaius Firehawk MacLeod, January, 1993, pg. 13) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1993.01 | There was some controversy as to whether Ælfra is a valid Anglo-Saxon name. Certainly Ælf- is a documented prototheme; Searle ( Onomasticon Anglosaxonicum) cites -ra as a deuterotheme, giving Burra and Ceolra as examples of its use. Searle's scholarship has been questioned by modern authorities, but it seems that Bur- is a valid prototheme as well, a variant spelling of Burg-, Burh-: there is at least one example of its use, Burric. This lends credence to Burra being a thematic name --- and -ra a valid deuterotheme. At any rate, I am willing to give it the benefit of the doubt in this case. (Ælfra Long, January, 1993, pg. 9) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.11 | [Firebow] The byname was justified as an epithet for one whose bow was decorated with flames of fire (analogous to Longsword). Most of the commenters found that argument implausible. However, fire also appears to be a variant spelling of OE fere, "bold, fierce, proud", and Proudbow is a much less implausible construction. (Brendan Firebow, November, 1992, pg. 7) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.11 | The OED confirms maied as a variant form of mead, "meadow"; ironmaied would be a field where iron could be found (a meteorite fall, or an outcropping of iron ore). The toponymic, though strongly reminiscent of the Iron Maiden, does appear to be a valid construction; and if the submitter can live with the inevitable jokes, so can we. (Darbie of Ironmaid, November, 1992, pg. 2) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.10 | [Serpentsbane] Given the OED's period citations of hensbane and wolfsbane, this does not seem an unreasonable construction. (Thomas Serpentsbane, October, 1992, pg. 17) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.10 | The OED cites instances of horsekeeper and swinekeeper in period; wolfkeeper looks equally acceptable. (Hertha Wolfkeeper, October, 1992, pg. 18) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.10 | There are only a bare handful of Melusines registered, and the only documentation is post-1650; I think I can safely disallow the name, pending evidence that it's period. I'd be willing to believe it a variant form of Melisenda, Millicent --- but as it's also the name of a mythical monster, I'd like to see some evidence of its period use by humans. (Melusine d'Argent, October, 1992, pg. 21) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [Bee-Taymer] The OED cites tamer as "one who domesticates [animals]", so it could conceivably apply to bees. Still, Beeward is the more authentic epithet for the occupation. (Rhonda the Bee-Taymer, September, 1992, pg. 15) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [Dagon] Morlet (vol.II, p.64) cites Dago as an early French given name. Given examples of such names adding the suffix -on (Talo/Talon, Hugo/Hugon, Malo/Malon, etc.), Dagon is at least plausible (Dagon Robert Fenwick, September, 1992, pg. 16) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [Kökejin of the Iron Horde] The Mongol hordes were evidently named for colors, not materials; the Golden Horde wasn't so named because of an abundance of the precious metal. The White Horde and the Blue Horde, cited by Lord Clarion, reinforce this naming pattern. The OED cites the adjective iron "having the appearance of iron; of the colour of iron" from 1613, within our 50-year "grey zone" on documentation; Iron Horde is acceptable only as a very late-period translation of a Mongol term. The more period term for "iron-colored" would be irony. [see also Mochi of the Iron Horde, same page] (Kökejin of the Iron Horde, September, 1992, pg. 20) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [MacFlandry] The surname does not appear to be correctly constructed. The LOI attempted to justify MacFlandry as meaning "son of the man from Flanders". There are examples in Black of MacX surnames, where X is an ethnic name: e.g., MacBrabner, "son of the Brabanter", and MacBretny, "son of the Breton". Based on those names, we could accept "son of the man from Flanders" --- but unfortunately, the term for "man from Flanders" is Fleming, which sounds nothing like Flanders (or Flandry). The surname de Flandre, also cited in the documentation, means "of Flanders"; Mac (de) Flandre would mean "son of Flanders", which (except in a metaphoric sense) is impossible. Either Lyulf de Flandry or Lyulf MacFleming would be a valid construction; MacFlandry is not. (Lyulf MacFlandry, September, 1992, pg. 43) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [Melisaundre] The given name was ...justified as a hybrid of Melisande and Alisaundre. Unfortunately, French names aren't thematic (as, e.g., Old Norse names are); melding the first half of one French name with the last half of another doesn't usually yield a valid given name. (In this case, the two names aren't even derived from the same source: Melisande is ultimately German in origin, and Alisaundre derives from the Greek.) While it might be plausible that one name would change due to the other's influence, we'd like to see some evidence of this; pending such evidence, we've substituted the documented name Melisenda. (Melisenda Brigitte Nazaire d'Avignon, September, 1992, pg. 24) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | [Shieldbane] Several commenters suggested that the use of -bane with inanimate objects was post-period. However, the OED does give instances of the verb bane used with inanimate objects such as bones (in 1568) and voyages (in 1639, within our 50-year "grey zone" for documentation). The construction, I concede, owes more to historical novels than to historical evidence --- Breakshield would be a more plausible construction in this case --- but I don't believe the usage is sufficient grounds for returning a name. (Gareth Shieldbane, September, 1992, pg. 19) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | Several commenters suggested that the use of -bane with inanimate objects was post-period. However, the OED does give instances of the verb bane used with inanimate objects such as bones (in 1568) and voyages (in 1639, within our 50-year "grey zone" for documentation). The construction, I concede, owes more to historical novels than to historical evidence ...but I don't believe the usage is sufficient grounds for returning a name. (Damian Bladesbane, September, 1992, pg. 31) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.09 | The submitter, on his submission forms, tried to justify MacFlandry as "a made-up Scots-sounding name", ...The name [however] cannot be considered "made-up" when it's documented from period elements; it's the incorrect grammar, not the choice of elements, that mandates the return. (Lyulf MacFlandry, September, 1992, pg. 43) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.08 | [the Ravenhaired] The OED cites examples of Shakespeare using raven as a color: e.g. eyes "raven-black", or "raven-colored love". It is more poetic than was normal for period descriptives, but seems acceptable. (Elizabeth Canynges the Ravenhaired., August, 1992, pg. 14) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.08 | It had been previously ruled (LoAR of 29 March 87) that the protheme Cwen- "woman, queen" was presumptuous, and unacceptable for SCA use. I agree that, as an independent element, it presents problems on a par with, say, Earl as a given name. It is a common and well-documented Anglo-Saxon name theme, however, and when correctly used, should not imply rank to a reasonable listener. I therefore reverse the current policy, and formally rule that the protheme Cwen- is acceptable for Anglo-Saxon constructions. (Cwenfolcyn de Hauteville, August, 1992, pg. 8) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.08 | The byname was submitted as the Mischief Maker. According to the OED, in period idiom, one would not make mischief; one would either do mischief or be mischief. We have used the latter meaning here [by registering the Mischief], as closer to both period form and his desired meaning. It would be well, however, to tell the submitter that "mischief" was a much stronger term in period; "evil" would be closer to the same meaning today. (Morgan the Mischief, August, 1992, pg. 6) |
| Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme | 1992.07 | There are numerous period examples of bynames of the form of the [noun], and even of the [adjective] [noun]: Götz of the Iron Hand (1480-1562) springs to mind as an example of the latter. Given that, we should continue to accept such names, so long as they aren't complete nonsense. (Ingrid of the Blue Snows, July, 1992, pg. 13) |
| Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) | 1991.11 | [Willowind Manor] "We have also dropped the 'coined place name'. We need some kind of documentation that Willowind is formed in a period manner or otherwise based in period practice." (LoAR 11/91 p.14). |
| Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane | 1989.12.31 | [Kavien] Although said to be a made-up name, it does not follow the naming practises of German, which appears to be the only identifiable language in the name: the ending is that of a participle and the only [similar] words we were able to find in German were imports from other languages.... The only commenter to find anything at all close to this form ... located it as a surname derived from a place name. All in all it fails to meet the requirements for a made-up name under the old rules and the strictures on Invented Names in the new rules (II.3). (LoAR 31 Dec 89, p. 6) |
| Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane | 1988.06 | While NR10a is somewhat ambiguous, the more general requirement of a primary language in NR3 also applies and there was prior precedent for applying the naming practises of the primary language to a made-up name. As the name was stated to be constructed according to Welsh practise, it had to be judged in those terms. [The principal herald] noted in the submission that medieval Welsh did not form dithematic names. If this is interpreted ... to mean that it does not form "mix and match" names as did Old English, for instance, this is correct.... We do feel that constructs in Welsh must be approached with a greater degree of care, not merely because of the requirements of mutation, but also because the dithematic constructs which are documented in period appear to have recoverable meaning: a name like "war peace", which is perfectly acceptable in the Germanic tradition, would apparently not have occurred.... We have been persuaded by additional evidence that the summarized evidence originally presented led us to conclude erroneously that the component portions of the names were not separable name elements in period Welsh. If the components appear in multiple Welsh names, then the name becomes considerably more plausible. We ... conclude that the new evidence has nudged it this side of "compatibility". (LoAR Jun 88, p. 13) |
| Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane | 1987.08 | As the "coined form" ... would, if it existed, be a diminutive of the [Name], it was not acceptable for registration. Instead, we have substituted the radical form ... itself, which is attested as a given name as early as 1180. (LoAR Aug 87, p. 7) |
| Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane | 1987.08 | The given name was stated to be "the Irish name Rowan as it would be spelled by a French monk or priest after only hearing it once." Unfortunately, not only is this somewhat debatable, but this is also a documented period English spelling for the name of the French city of Rouen (Reaney, p. 296). Therefore, it cannot be accepted as a constructed variant. (LoAR Aug 87, p. 15) |
| Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane | 1986.09.27 | The submitted middle name ..., which was stated to be made-up, has been dropped since our rules demand that manufactured names match the dominant language of the name and this seems compatible with neither [the language of the given] nor [language of the surname]. (LoAR 27 Sep 86, p. 3) |
| Baldwin of Erebor | 1984.10.31 | "Coined" means that a name is made up, not that its provenance is unknown. There is nothing wrong with asking the College of Arms for assistance in substantiating an applicant's claim, but you should make an effort to find out what the submitter had in mind, and to pass this information on in your letter of intent. [BoE, 31 Oct 84, p.20] |
| Baldwin of Erebor | 1984.12.02 | If part of a name is made up, this fact should ... be noted [in the LoI]. It is unfair to the heralds who are attempting to catch grammar and translation errors not to warn them that the next word they see won't be in any of their dictionaries. [BoE, cvr ltr, 2 Dec 84, p.2] |
| Wilhelm von Schlüssel | 1981.02.24 | If a person submits a name for which no source is given or can be found, then it is up to that person to convince us that the name is in period or is compatible with period usage if it is a modified name. If someone created a name by translating something in English, then the burden is on them to show that their translation is correct and that the form of the name is period usage. It is quite acceptable to mutate an existing name if you can convince us that the mutation is proper to our period. Some changes were done and some were not. Changes in spelling that do not change the pronunciation are acceptable, as names were a verbal tradition and were spelled phonetically during much of our period. Changes in spelling that change the pronunciation of the name are different. Here one must demonstrate that this sort of change could have been done in our period. WVS [35] [CL 24 Feb 81], p. 4 |
| Wilhelm von Schlüssel | 1981.08.13 | Made-up names must now be consistent with period naming practices and must satisfy all of the other rules on names. Therefore, if a person makes up a name and it turns out that, quite by coincidence, it is also the name of a god, a place, or a surname, then the made-up name will not be acceptable. It doesn't matter how you arrived at the name: it still must pass all of the other rules. WVS [49] [CL 13 Aug 81], p. 3 |
| Wilhelm von Schlüssel | 1981.05.12 | Society names must either be made of names that were used by mortals in our period or that are created names that are acceptable variants of period names or are in keeping with period name construction. Names were coined in period, and so they may be coined now, but only in keeping with period practices. Names from fictional sources may be used if they satisfy the requirement of being in keeping with period practices. Names which are out of period but are in keeping with period practices should also be allowed, as the date of creation shouldn't matter if the name is in keeping. WVS [41] [CL 12 May 81], p. 4 |
| Wilhelm von Schlüssel | 1980.05.15 | It is acceptable to make up a name. you don't have to contrive derivations for made-up names, just say that it is a made-up name. WVS [17] [LoAR 15 May 80], p. 6 |
| 1972.11.12 | N. is coined, and no language at all. (KFW, 12 Nov 72 [35], p. 1) [The name was approved.] |