Collected Precedents of the S.C.A.: Compatible


Name Precedents: Compatible


Given Names:


Bynames:


Placenames:


Order/Award Names:


Laurel: Date: (year.month.date) Precedent:
 
General Issues
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.01 [Rhonwen Briana MacLean] Rhonwen does not seem to have been used by human beings in our period; it is the modern Welsh form of a name used by Geoffrey of Monmouth for a fictional character. Briana is a modern name that does not appear to have been used at all in period. Both have been ruled `SCA-compatible'; in accordance with current practice, we are therefore registering the name. However, we consider the use of one these names a `weirdness'; use of two is excessively weird and will be grounds for return as of the May, 1996, Laurel Meeting. For more information please see the Cover Letter. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR January 1996, p. 8)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.01 This month's submission of the name Rhonwen Briana MacLean (Atlantia) raised in almost its purest form the question of just what is meant by `SCA-compatibility' of a name. (Ceridwen Rhiannon MacLean might have posed the question a little more bluntly.) Does `SCA-compatibility' give a name the same status as an attested period name, or does it represent a kind of second-class onomastic citizenship?

In actual usage the term SCA-compatible, when applied to a name, appears to mean `not used by human beings in period (so far as we know), but too popular in the SCA to be disallowed'. Thus, use of one of these names is (on the best available evidence) a non-period practice. We allow many practices that were non-existent or nearly so in period, both in our names and in our armory, but in general we stigmatize them as `weirdnesses' and do not allow too many of them to be combined in a single name or armory. They are `compatible' in the sense that they are not completely disallowed, but they are still not considered fully acceptable. It is consistent with this approach to allow a name to include a single `SCA-compatible' element but no more; each such element added to a name further removes it from the realm of authentic period practice. Indeed, we see no reason to distinguish between `SCA-compatible' names and other non-period names permitted under the provisions of RfS II.4 (Legal Names): both are allowed as concessions to modern sensibilities despite their inauthentic nature.

Beginning with the 5/96 meeting, therefore, use of two individually permissible non-period elements in a single name will be considered two `weirdnesses' and will be grounds for return. Such elements include non-period names allowed under the Legal Name Allowance as well as those names, apparently not used by human beings in period, that have been declared `SCA-compatible', e.g., Briana, Ceridwen (in several variants), Gwendolen/Guendolen, R(h)onwen, and Rowena. (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter to the January 1996 LoAR, pp. 3-4)

Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.06 [Returning Ryuugatani, Shire of.] There was a fair amount of commentary with the belief that a Japanese place-name does not appear to fall within the defined scope of the Society, which is pre-17th Century Western culture (RfS I.1. See also "Scope of the Society: Period and Culture" in the Organizational Handbook, pp. 74-75). "Its domain includes Europe and areas that had contact with Europe during this period." (RfS I.1.) It was noted that while there was clearly some contact in very late period between Europe and Japan, and evidence that some few Japanese actually visited Europe, the contact between Europe and Japan was not great enough to justify a Japanese place-name in pre-17th C. Europe. [6/94, p.17]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.01 [I]t has been noted many times in the past that prior registration in the SCA does not constitute adequate documentation. [1/94, p.17]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.12.11 "There was much discussion [on a particular submission] regarding the propriety of continuing the registration of Elvish names of any kind. Mistress Alisoun, shortly before stepping down as Laurel, expanded the allowance of Elvish from Sindarin only to include Quenya as well. The overwhelming majority of recent commentary on this issue by the College, however, was in favor of banning the registration of any Elvish names in the future. I am therefore proposing such a ban, to become effective as of the February, 1992 Laurel meeting. Unless a significant number of the members of the College (or the Society as a whole) feel differently, and write to tell me about it, on and after that date we will no longer register Elvish names." (CL 11/12/91 p.2).
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1988.04.23 Adding an undocumented suffix form ['d'] to an out-of-period name does not make an acceptable Society name. (LoAR 23 Apr 88, p. 8)
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1988.04.23 The fact that the name was registered previously in the Society is more or less irrelevant with regard to [Name]: at the time when the name ... was registered (1975), the forms did not even have a space for name documentation! (LoAR 23 Apr 88, p. 14)
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1981.07.29 Names from Darkover are not acceptable. WVS [48] [LoAR 29 Jul 81], p. 11
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1981.03.10 Groups (territorial branches, offices, guilds, clans, brotherhoods, etc.) that are not personal households may not make use of names or words or languages from fantasy sources in the name of the group. Specifically, a group name may not make use of the languages of Middle Earth ... This does not in any way restrict the use of words or names from fantasy for use by individuals or for the names of personal households. WVS [37] [CL 10 Mar 81], p. 1
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1981.02.24 If a name is in use today or if any source can be found of its use in the real world at some time, then it may be used and assumed allowable unless we can find something wrong with it or prove that it is out of period. Most, but not all, names in use today are in fact period names. Therefore, if you can cite a source for a name, you get the benefit of the doubt on that name. If somebody shows that such a name violates one of our rules, then it shall not be allowed. If it is shown that such a name is out of period, then it shall not be allowed unless it has been previously used and registered by the College more than once. I feel that if a name is otherwise acceptable and is only inadmissible because it is first cited in the late 1600's and if it has been previously registered several times, [then] we should go on using it. Registered use in the SCA is therefore almost as good as use in period. WVS [35] [CL 24 Feb 81], p. [34]
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1980.10.20 It is the consensus of the College of Arms that we continue to allow the use of names and place names from fiction and mythology. So be it. The fantasy source must be compatible with our period. A culture with post sixteenth century technology is not compatible. The fiction must be about a place where mortals dwelled and the name or place used must not violate the prohibition against claiming to be non-mortal. If the fiction deals with events on Earth it must be using a pre-1600 time period. Barbarian tales of the far future are not compatible. WVS [26] [CL 20 Oct 80], p. 2
 
Adendra
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.03 [Registering Aodh Marland.] Submitted as Aodh Adendra Marland, the very lengthy appeal made interesting reading. However, it was not shown that Greek bynames were used in the Gaelic countries (although the point was made for Latin bynames). Nor was it shown that "tree-less" falls into any existing pattern of classical bynames used in the Middle Ages. As a consequence we have dropped the problematic element in order to register the name. [3/94, p.3]
 
Aislinn
François la Flamme 2003.06 The submitter requested authenticity for Irish. The given name Aislinn is SCA-compatible and so is registerable. However, no evidence has yet been found that Aislinn was used as a given name in period. Lacking such evidence, we were unable to make this name authentic for Irish as requested by the submitter. [Aislinn inghean an Bhaird, 06/2003 LoAR, A-Middle]
François la Flamme 2002.05 Aislinn was ruled SCA compatible in August 2000. [Aislinn ingen Rónáin, 05/2002, A-Middle]
François la Flamme 2001.08 Aislinn was ruled SCA-compatible in the August 2000 LoAR. [Aislinn Fiona of Rumm, 08/01, R-An Tir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 Aislinn was ruled SCA compatible in August 2000. [Aislinn O'Carlin, 07/01, A-Calontir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.08 ... the question was raised whether Aislinn was a medieval name, and if not, whether it should be considered SCA compatible. While evidence suggests that the name is post-period, the name has been registered over 30 times in the past two decades, with at least one registration each year save one. This suggests that the name is commonly enough used to be considered SCA compatible. [Aislinn inghean Mhaoilbhrighde, 08/00, A-Atlantia]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.08 The question was raised whether Aislinn was a medieval name, and if not, whether it should be considered SCA compatible. While evidence suggests that the name is post-period, the name has been registered over 30 times in the past two decades, with at least one registration each year save one. This suggests that the name is commonly enough used to be considered SCA compatible. [Aislinn inghean an Shionnach, 08/00, A-Meridies]
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1988.08 [Aislinn] It is not necessary to support the given name on the grounds of "compatibility": it has amply been documented as a period given name in the past. (LoAR Aug 88, p. 1)
 
Alana
François la Flamme 2003.11 The submitter requested authenticity for 14th C Welsh. While Alana has been found as a rare woman's name in Latin records of English people, it has not been found as a name used by Welsh women. Lacking such evidence, we were unable to make this name authentic for the submitter's requested culture. [Alana Caernarfon, 11/2003, A-East]
François la Flamme 2002.08 The name Alana has [...] been found in period. Gage's LoC dated 15 Jun 2001 references this information: "Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn cited (1381) [Robertus filius Radulfi] and [Alana filia eius]. This citation is from: Fenwick, Carolyn C. Poll Taxes of 1377, 1379, and 1381, Part 1: Bedfordshire-Leicestershire p. 112." [Morgana of the Mists, 08/02, R-Meridies]
François la Flamme 2001.09 The submitter requested authenticity for Irish language/culture. As we have no evidence of the name Alana in Ireland, we were unable to make this name authentic. [Alana MacLeland, 09/01, A-Æthelmearc]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.06 In December I noted that in period Latin inflections do not appear to have been used to change the gender of Welsh (and for that matter Gaelic) names. That is, such feminizations as Briana, Morgana, and Alana are, so far as we know, post-period inventions. The first of these has been declared 'SCA-compatible' on account of its great popularity. As I noted in December, the other two have enjoyed less popularity and are represented by significantly fewer registrations. I called for commentary on whether to continue to allow these and other similarly-formed names for which there is no evidence of period use, promising a decision in May. As things turned out, May was an uncommonly busy month, and the matter was delayed until this month. At any rate the question stimulated little controversy (or even discussion), so a decision is not difficult: the names Morgana and Alana, as well as any other similarly feminized masculine names for which there is no evidence of period use (and which have not already been declared 'SCA-compatible'), are not considered 'SCA-compatible'. In other words, the argument based on the Latin/Romance practice of using inflectional endings to change the gender of a name is not automatically valid; it must be supported either by evidence of period use of the specific name or by evidence that the practice was in general use in the linguistic culture of that name. (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter to the June 1996 LoAR, p. 2)
 
Alec
Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme 1992.12 No documentation has been presented to show Alec as a period diminutive of Alexander; indeed, such evidence as exists suggests it to be a purely modern diminutive. Without evidence of period use, we cannot register Alec. (Alec Tristan d'Avignon, December, 1992, pg. 16)
 
Allasan
François la Flamme 2001.10 [...] the submitter requested authenticity for Scottish Gaelic. The name Allasan was documented as a Scottish Gaelic feminine name using the article "Some Scottish Gaelic Feminine Names" (http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/scotgaelfem/). This article has been updated and the name Allasan removed with the comment:
We had previously listed Allasan here; after further research, we have concluded that it was a mistake to include it. We have found no convincing evidence that this name was used in Scottish Gaelic before modern times.
As stated in the Cover Letter for the September 2001 LoAR, we will discontinue registering Allasan beginning at the decision meeting in April 2002.

As we were unable to find documentation for Allasan in Scottish Gaelic in period, we were unable to make this name authentic. [Allasan bhán inghean Fhaoláin, 10/01, A-Atlantia]
François la Flamme 2001.09 The name Allasan has been documented as a Scottish Gaelic feminine name using the article "Some Scottish Gaelic Feminine Names" at http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/scotgaelfem/. This article has been updated and the name Allasan removed with the comment:
We had previously listed Allasan here; after further research, we have concluded that it was a mistake to include it. We have found no convincing evidence that this name was used in Scottish Gaelic before modern times.
The problem here is that Allasan is a modern Gaelic name. Evidence for Scottish Gaelic names in period is very hard to find, as most documents were written in Scots or Latin. The Academy of Saint Gabriel article in question is a compilation of information from many sources, to try to determine what feminine given names were in use in Scottish Gaelic in period by examining Gaels whose names were recorded in Latin, Scots, et cetera. Recently, the Academy re-reviewed the evidence that led to the inclusion of Allasan in that article and came to the conclusion that there is no convincing evidence that a form of Alison was used by Scottish Gaels in any spelling during our period.

Given this new information, barring other documentation of the spelling Allasan as a period name, we will discontinue registering this name beginning at the decision meeting in April of 2002. This does not affect the registerability of the Scots form Alesone or other documented forms of Alison in other languages. [09/01, CL]
François la Flamme 2001.09 Submitted as Allasan Woulfe, the submitter requested authenticity for Irish Gaelic language/culture and allows minor changes. Unfortunately, neither Allasan nor Woulfe is Irish Gaelic. [...]

The name Allasan was documented as a Scottish Gaelic feminine name using the article "Some Scottish Gaelic Feminine Names" at http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/scotgaelfem/. This article has been updated and the name Allasan removed with the comment:
We had previously listed Allasan here; after further research, we have concluded that it was a mistake to include it. We have found no convincing evidence that this name was used in Scottish Gaelic before modern times.
The problem here is that Allasan is a modern Gaelic name. Evidence for Scottish Gaelic names in period is very hard to find as most documents were written in Scots or Latin. The Academy of Saint Gabriel article in question is a compilation of information from many sources to try and determine what feminine given names were in use in Scottish Gaelic in period by examining Gaels whose names were recorded in Latin, Scots, etc. Recently, the Academy re-reviewed the evidence that led to the inclusion of Allasan in that article and came to the conclusion that there is no convincing evidence that a form of Alison was used by Scottish Gaels in any spelling during our period. Given this new information, barring other documentation of the spelling Allasan being used as a period name, we will discontinue registering this name beginning at the decision meeting in April of 2002. This does not affect the registerability of the Scots form Alesone or other documented forms of Alison in other languages.

Regarding this submission, no evidence has been found that the name Alison migrated into Ireland in any form. The Annals of Connacht list two isolated instances of the name Alis in 1267 and 1285. We would have made this change, but felt that the change from Allasan to Alis was a major change. [Allasan Wulf, 09/01, A-Ansteorra]
 
Amber
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.06 The name Amber has had a checkered history in the SCA, but at present it is not considered 'SCA- compatible', and its use was disallowed in the 3/94 Cover Letter. Three months later the use of Cedric was also disallowed, and in the 4/96 Cover Letter Myrddin was disallowed. (In each case the reasons can be found in the appropriate Cover Letter.) (CL 6/96)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.03 As several commenters noted in the discussion of Amber Lang in the attached LoAR, the registration of Amber as a given name in the SCA has been based on faulty evidence. Unless new evidence is found demonstrating the use of Amber as a given name in period, we will cease to register it after the Laurel meeting held in July 1994. [3/94c]
Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme 1993.01 Given that Amber has explicitly been ruled SCA-compatible [BoE, 3 Feb 85], and has been accepted slightly more than a year ago (Dec 91), I'm not inclined to disallow Amber at this time. (Amber Blackwood, January, 1993, pg. 12)
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.02.03 There are ... seven Ambers in the files, one Ambra, and one Ambre. At this point, I am inclined to consider all three forms SCA-legal. [BoE, 3 Feb 85, p.10]
 
Angelina
Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme 1992.09 Angelina is a period given name: Butler's Lives of the Saints notes the Blessed Angelina of Marsciano, b.1377. (Angeline Aldwyne, September, 1992, pg. 2)
 
Annalies
François la Flamme 2001.10 The compound name Annalies was ruled registerable in 10/99:
Colm Dubh found a citation of Annalies in 1634 (Wilfred Seibicke, Historisches Deutsches Vornamenbuch), which is in our "gray area" of documentation. Therefore we will allow the compound given name. We will, however, only allow it in the listed spelling (barring documentation that another spelling is a valid period variant). [Annalies Grossmund, 10/99, A-Calontir]
[Annalies Maria von Marburg, 09/01, A-Caid]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 Colm Dubh found a citation of Annalies in 1634 (Wilfred Seibicke, Historisches Deutsches Vornamenbuch), which is in our "gray area" of documentation. Therefore we will allow the compound given name. We will, however, only allow it in the listed spelling (barring documentation that another spelling is a valid period variant). [Annalies Grossmund, 10/99, A-Calontir]
 
Arielle
Jaelle of Armida 1997.04 [registering the given name Arielle (Arielle the Golden)] The name Ariel is found in the Bible, in Ezra, as the name of a male leader. While no one could produce documentation showing that Arielle is a period name, Hebrew names of this sort are frequently feminized by adding an "a" or an "e" at the end. For instance, Rafael bcomes Rafaelle, Gabriel becomes Gabrielle, Uriel becomes Urielle, Michael becomes Michaela, etc. Since our sources for period Hebrew names give us many more for men than for women, we are registering this as a compatible name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1997, p. 2)
 
Baildrin
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.11 The dated documentation for Baildrin only lists it in the genitive form; however, no one could determine the nominative form and it is possible that the name was a foreign borrowing and has the same nominative as genitive form. Therefore, we are giving the submitter the benefit of the doubt. [Baildrin MacEinri, 11/99, A-East]
 
Barrett
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.08 [Barrett] "It may be that not every name in Withycombe is documented as well as it should be as a given name in Period. The given here is one example of that. Lord Laurel is, however, extremely reluctant to start going through all of our standard names sources making lists of exceptions, which lists will never be as widely distributed as the source books are. (Look at the trouble we have getting people to stop using entire books, like Kolatch, and it might give you an idea of the magnitude of the problem as I see it.)" [Note: this decision does not necessarily seem compatible with current or past precedent: note the decision on 'Tirion' on the LoAr of 8/91 p.16] (LoAR 8/91 p.7).
 
Brandon
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.07 "While Brandon is a surname in period, it is also a documented variant spelling of Brendan (also, Brandan), so this spelling is allowable in a given name." (LoAR 7/91 p.1).
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1987.07.26 While the rules clearly agree ... that documentation is required for period use when a name is demonstrably a place name in period (which Brandon is, as early as 975!), the consensus of opinion in the College was that it would be reasonable to add Brandon to the handfull of out-of-period names (Fiona, Corwin, etc.) that are accepted in Society use since only an "a" and "o" separate it from the acceptable "Brendan" and the pronunciation of the two names in the dialects that predominate in modern America are nearly identical. (LoAR 26 Jul 87, pp. 10-11)
 
Branwen
François la Flamme 2001.11 Branwen was ruled SCA compatible in June of 1996. Reaney & Wilson (p. 61 s.n. Brangwin) date Brangwayna to 1250, and various surname forms to later. However, this is not a form of Branwen, but rather of Brangwain, which is a different name. Therefore, Branwen is not registerable as a documented name, thought it remains SCA compatible. [Branwen ferch Gwythyr, 11/01, A-East]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.06 Note that for all its popularity in the SCA, Branwen has not yet been shown to have been used by human beings in our period. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR June 1996, p. 1)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.06 What Names Are 'SCA-Compatible'?... Having found that my own baronial herald was slightly confused on the subject of 'SCA-compatibility', I thought that it might be helpful to list the status of some of the most common names that have been considered under this rubric. The post-period English name Fiona, which is not to be confused with the period Irish name Fíona (earlier Fíne), has long been considered 'SCA-compatible'. So have the names Cer(r)idwen (Ker(r)idwen), Rhiannon, Bronwen, Branwen, Rowen(a), and Rhonwen, all of which may be found in Welsh myth and legend, but none of which seems to have been in actual use by real people in our period. Guendolen/Gwendolen, a name based on a misreading of a masculine name and attested only in fiction, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 8/95 Cover Letter; more modern spellings of the name were disallowed. Brian(n)a, a modern feminization of Brian that follows no known period model, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 12/95 Cover Letter.
 
Brenna
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.04 Brenna is not Gaelic, but is justfiable as possibly Italian. This makes the name acceptable by itself, but not with the rest of the name. [Brenna Michaela Sine Macghie of Clan MacKay, 04/2000, R-Atenveldt]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.10 Brenna is only marginally justifiable for the Classical Mediterranean area. It's use in an Anglo-Irish name as one of two given names becomes two steps beyond period practice, as Anglo-Irish names did not use double given names in period. (Da'ud ibn Auda, LoAR October 1994, p. 17)
 
Briallen
Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme 1992.08 Briallen is the Welsh for "primrose", and does not seem to have been a given name in period; nor does it belong to a class of common nouns that were regularly used as names in period Welsh. (Briallen o Llanrwst, August, 1992, pg. 22)
 
Bronwen
François la Flamme 2004.01 This name is being returned for a combination of issues.

Briana is a literary feminine given found in Spanish and English in late period (see the Cover Letter for the December 2001 LoAR for details). Bronwen is an SCA-compatible Welsh feminine given name. Regarding Du Bois, the LoI stated:

Du Bois is found in "French Surnames from Paris, 1421, 1423 & 1438" by Aryanhwy merch Catmael (http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/paris1423surnames.html), with this spelling dated to 1421 and 1423.

In fact, the spelling dated to 1421 and 1423 in that source is du Bois not Du Bois.

Therefore, this name has one weirdness for an element (Bronwen) that is SCA compatible. Additionally, this name (at best) combines Welsh, English, and French in a single name. The LoI did not address whether such a combination complies with RfS III.1, which states in part, "Each name as a whole should be compatible with the culture of a single time and place". At best, such a combination is a weirdness. Alternatively, it is not registerable. Regardless, this name has one weirdness for use of the SCA-compatible element and at least one weirdness for the lingual combination, and is, therefore, not registerable.

As the submitter allowed no major changes, we were unable to drop the element Bronwen and register her name as Briana du Bois. [Briana Bronwen Du Bois, 01/2004, R-Outlands]

François la Flamme 2002.11 Bronwen was upheld as SCA compatible in the Cover Letter for the December 1995 LoAR. Since F. K. & S. Hitching, References to English Surnames in 1601 and 1602 (p. xlv), date Frasier to 1602, this name may be viewed as a mix of an SCA compatible Welsh given name and an English surname. Therefore, this name has a weirdness for use of an SCA compatible element. Since mixing Welsh and English in a single name carries no weirdness, this name does not have a second weirdness and is registerable. [Bronwen Fraser, 11/2002, A-Ansteorra]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.12 ... Bronwen has been declared SCA-compatible... [Bronwen Gwehyddes Anglesey, 12/99, A-An Tir]
Jaelle of Armida 1996.09 Note: the name Bronwen has been ruled to be SCA compatible. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR September 1996, p. 3)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.12 What Names Are 'SCA-Compatible'?... Having found that my own baronial herald was slightly confused on the subject of 'SCA-compatibility', I thought that it might be helpful to list the status of some of the most common names that have been considered under this rubric. The post-period English name Fiona, which is not to be confused with the period Irish name Fíona (earlier Fíne), has long been considered 'SCA-compatible'. So have the names Cer(r)idwen (Ker(r)idwen), Rhiannon, Bronwen, Branwen, Rowen(a), and Rhonwen, all of which may be found in Welsh myth and legend, but none of which seems to have been in actual use by real people in our period. Guendolen/Gwendolen, a name based on a misreading of a masculine name and attested only in fiction, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 8/95 Cover Letter; more modern spellings of the name were disallowed. Brian(n)a, a modern feminization of Brian that follows no known period model, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 12/95 Cover Letter.
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.02 Submitted as Bronwyn [N], all of the submitter's own documentation (save one) gave the given as Bronwen; that one (Dunkling and Gosling's The Facts On File Dictionary of First Names) notes only that "Bronwyn is a common variant. Both forms steadily used since the end of the 19th century." There is no evidence that Bronwyn is a period variant of Bronwen. (It would in any case be a masculine name, having the masculine -wyn ending.) (Da'ud ibn Auda, LoAR February 1995, p. 6)
 
Caitlyn
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.08 [returning Caitlyn] The given is documented only as Caitlin (even in the submitter's own documentation -- photocopies from Today's Best Baby Names by Alfred J. Kolatch!), and Irish does not use the English "i/y" switch. (Caitlyn of Dolwyddelan, 8/94 p. 19)
 
Candace
François la Flamme 2003.06 Submitted as Candace Margreta van Zanten, the submitter provided documentation for Candace as an English given name from c. 1624. The LoI summarizes the original reason for return of the submitter's name along with the new documentation:

The lady has tried to register Candace for some time, but the reason for its original return in 1989 was that, while Candace appears in the Bible (Acts viii.27), it also appears to be a dynastic title for the queens of Ethiopia (the Roman writer Pliny uses this term as well).

She has found a citation for Candace's use as an English given name c. 1624, within the CoA's grey period of names, in The Visitations of Cornwall, comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1530, 1573, and 1620 by John Lambrick Vivian, a publication comprising the Heralds' Visitations of 1531, 1564, & 1620, with additions by Lieutenant_Colonel J.L. Vivian. Henry S. Eland, Exeter, 1895; the family pedigree with Candace is found on p. 69, amount midway down the page. This documents a Candace Carew, born c. 1624, to John Carew of Penwarne and Alice Hilman. (http://www.uk_genealogy.org.uk/england/Cornwall/visitations/index.html). While this page does not show her birth date, I am enclosing to Laurel an appendix page from a genealogical service that demonstrates the same relationship, with dates, to her father (b. c. 1584), her mother (c.1588-1631), and her marriage to Hugh Trevan(n)ion; as her mother died in 1631, Candace's birth must precede this, and this is within the grey area.

This example is sufficient to grant the submitter the benefit of the doubt on this name. It must be noted that Candace, like Regina, was used as a title. Therefore, it may be used as a given name "provided there is no suggestion of territorial claim or explicit assertion of rank" (RfS VI.1). Specifications regarding a "suggestion of territorial claim or explicit assertion of rank" were included in the precedent:

The College is opposed to the use of titles in names. We have received documentation that Regina specifically was a common given name in our period. Therefore, we will allow the use of Regina as a given name so long as there is no indication in the name that a claim to royalty exists. This means that Regina must be the first word of the Society name and that the Society name may not be in Latin, and that the word Regina may not be followed by any translation of "of X," where X is a place name, as that could indicate that the person was queen of that place. This use of Regina does not imply permission to use any other titles as names (e.g., you still can't have Earl or Rex). WVS [63] [LoAR 26 Feb 82], p. 7

In a similar manner, Candace must be the first element of the Society name, which it is in the submitted name, and Candace "may not be followed by any translation of 'of X,' where X is a place name, as that could indicate that the person was queen of that place." In the submitted name, van Zanten means 'of Zanten', and so violates the requirement that Candace not be followed by any translation of 'of [placename]'. Effectively, the submitted name translates to 'Queen Margaret of Zanten', and, so, is not registerable. We have dropped the particle van 'of' in order to remove the suggestion of territorial claim.

[Viola Thornhaven, 06/2003 LoAR, A-Atenveldt]
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1990.07 "Unfortunately, no one could document Candace as other than a name which became a title for Ethiopian queens. We need evidence that it was used as a name in period by others before it can be registered." (LoAR 7/90 p.13).
 
Carmen
François la Flamme 2002.10 Carmen was documented from De Felice Dizionario dei nomi Italiani (p. 100 s.n. Carm�la). Carmen, like Mercedes, originated as a devotional name referring to the Virgin Mary. Mercedes was ruled unregisterable in the precedents:
The submitter documented the given name from De Felice, I Nomi Degli Italiani; however, De Felice notes that Mercedes entered Italy from Spain. Because Mercedes is not found in Spain until well after 1600, the name could not have been found in period Italy. [Mercedes Amici, 01/00, R-Æthelmearc]

Unfortunately, no documentation has been presented, and none could be found to show Mercedes as a period given name. The best that was found was María de las Mercedes, from 1690. This is well past our grey area, and does not even document Mercedes as a stand alone name. Barring documentation that Mercedes was used as a given name in period, this must be returned. [Mercedes de Cerda�a, 09/98, R-Ansteorra]

Lacking evidence that Carmen was used in period, this name is not registerable. [Carmen Salazar, 10/2002, R-Ansteorra]

 
Catriona
François la Flamme 2001.10 Submitted as Catriona of Whitemoor, the LoI stated that the submitter preferred the spelling Catriona which she believed to be "the English version of the period Irish Name". However, documented English spellings do not contain an "o". The spelling Catriona is neither Gaelic nor English. The closest Gaelic spelling is Caitríona. The closest English spelling is Catrina. As no documentation has been provided and none could be found for the spelling Catriona, it is not registerable. [Catrina of Whitemoor, 10/01, A-Meridies]
Jaelle of Armida 1997.08 Submitted as Catriona Ravenbourne, this mixes English and Gaelic orthography in the same name. We have changed the given name into an attested English form [Catrina] that differs by one letter from the submitted form. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR August 1997, p. 8)
 
Cedric
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.06 As with the name Amber, discussed in the Cover Letter with the March 1994 LoAR, our prior registrations of Cedric appear to have been based on the supposition that there was an OE prototheme Ced-, which there does not appear to be, though it was a reasonable enough supposition on the basis of the evidence then available. Such supposition appears to have been superseded by further research. (As for Cedrych, (Gruffudd, 21) refers it to Ceidrych, which '[c]ould be a form of "Caradog" but is the name of a river in Carmarthenshire. (Bartrum, 149) has a Keidyrch, but no Ceidrych.) As a consequence, unless and until new research appears giving better historical support to the name, after the September 1994 Laurel meeting we will no longer register Cedric. [6/94c, p.2]
 
Concepcion
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.08 Submitted as Rosalinda Lucinda Concepcion Mondragon de la Vega. No dates at all were found for adduced for Concepcion. The reference in Hanks and Hodges referred to the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception, and not the name Concepcion. Lacking adequate documentation we have dropped the problematic element. (Da'ud ibn Auda, LoAR August 1994, p. 12)
 
Cordelia
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.04 Contrary to the assertion in the LoI, Cordelia has not been declared 'SCA-compatible'; rather, in the 11/95 registration of Cordelia Wynne  (Calontir) the more generous judgement was made that on the available evidence the name had to be given the benefit of the doubt. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR April 1996, p. 7)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.11 Cordelia must be given the benefit of the doubt: according to Withycombe, it was in actual use by 1636, and close variants can be found in period, at least in literature. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR November 1995, p. 6)
 
Corwin, Corwyn, Corwynn
François la Flamme 2002.09 Registerability of the Name Corwynn

An item this month raised discussion regarding exactly which spellings of Corwin are considered SCA compatible. The name Corwin is SCA compatible in the spellings Corwin and Corwyn. The spelling Corwynn has only been registered twice, once in a name in 1975 and once as part of a holding name in 1999. As the spelling Corwynn does not have the same level of popularity as Corwin and Corwyn, we will discontinue registering the form Corwynn beginning with the April 2003 decision meeting. [09/02 Cover Letter]

François la Flamme 2002.09 This name has two weirdnesses. There is one weirdness for use of an element (in this case Corwyn) that is only SCA compatible. Corwyn is a variant of Corwin, which is an English surname that is SCA compatible as a given name. There is a second weirdness for combining English and Scots in a name (per the ruling for Katrina Rosehearty in the LoAR of September 2001). [Corwyn MacCamie, 09/2002 LoAR, R-Calontir]
François la Flamme 2001.11 Corwin was ruled SCA-compatible in the cover letter for the December 1985 LoAR. [Corwin of Saxony, 11/01, A-Ansteorra]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.07 ... the name already has a weirdness with the use of Corwynn, which is undocumented but SCA compatible, � [Corwynn the Lost, 07/99, R-Atenveldt]
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1989.11.26 The standing precedent in the College (stated by Baldwin of Erebor, February, 1985) dictates that the name Corwin may not be used in conjunction with roses of any tincture. (LoAR 26 Nov 89, p. 35)
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.12.29 Corwin and Fiona... have been registered a dozen or more times over a span of five or more years, many of them recent. Corwin is a surname being used as a given name. Fiona is an out-of-period feminization of a period masculine given name. Both names occur in modern fantasy stories, and so tend to be accepted without question by the membership of the SCA; and neither has been explicitly barred by Laurel (although some restrictions have been placed on Corwin). [BoE, cvr ltr, 29 Dec 85, p.5]
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.04.14 There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]
Karina of the Far West 1978.11.20 If the name Corwin is used, do not use a unicorn. (KFW, 20 Nov 78 [23], p. 1)
 
Curstaidh
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1993.12a [Returning Curstaidh.] While the submitter allowed minor changes to the name, and while Lord Palimpsest could document the form Kirsty ..., we felt that such a change exceeded the permissible "minor changes to grammar/spelling only". [12a/93, p.15]
 
Cwen, Cwen-
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1992.02 [Cwenwyn] "Given the many attestations of 'Cwen' both alone and as a protheme in Period, I believe that we should give it the same allowance that we do the name Regina: so long as it is not used in a name in such a way as to imply landedness, it will be acceptable for registration." (LoAR 2/92 p.12).
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1987.03.29 [Cwen Tegan of the Far Pines] "Cwen" is the standard Anglo-Saxon title for Queen approved for use in the Society and was actually used in Old English in the specific sense of the ruler's wife (and in at least one case in the sense of a queen regnant). Therefore, I must reaffirm the ban on the use of "cwen" as an element in Society names. (LoAR 29 Mar 87, p. 13-14)
 
Deirdre
Shauna of Carrick Point 2004.04 By longstanding precedent, the Gaelic name Deirdre is SCA-compatible. [Deirdre Oilithreach, 04/04, A-Caid]
François la Flamme 2003.10 [...] Deirdre is SCA compatible. [...] [Deirdre of Saint Brendan, 10/2003, A-Æthelmearc]
François la Flamme 2002.02 The submitter requested authenticity for Irish-German and allowed any changes. Lacking documentation that these two cultures had significant contact, combining Irish and German elements in a single name is not registerable. Deirdre was documented from Withycombe (p. 81 s.n. Deirdre). However, this entry says that "its use as a christian name is quite recent, dating from the 'Celtic Revival' (Yeat's Deirdre 1907, Synge's Deirdre of the Sorrows 1910)." However, the spelling Deirdre has long been SCA compatible. As it is a Gaelic given name, it is not registerable in combination with German elements per the precedent:
[Hagen Seanaeiche] the combination of German forename and Gaelic byname needs justification, at the very least. None of the commenters noted any German/Gaelic interaction in period (see, e.g., RfS III.1., "As a rule of thumb, languages should be used together only if there was substantial contact between the cultures that spoke those languages." (Hagen Seanaeiche, Caid-R, LoAR 12/94)
Black (p. 204 s.n. Deirdre) dates Deredere to 1166. Given that the source Black cites for this reference, Deirdre is a Latinized form of a Gaelic given name. Barring documentation of significant contact between Scottish Gaelic and German cultures, a name mixing Gaelic (including Latinized Gaelic) and German in a name is not registerable. [Deirdre Mueller von Thurn, 02/02, R-Calontir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.05 Submitted as Derdriu ingen Murcada , it was noted in commentary that Ó Corrain and Maguire indicate that Derdriu is mythological. However, Black, sub Deirdre , has Derdere, wife of Cospatric Earl in 1166; this leads us to believe that the name is registerable. We have lenited the patronymic, though, to match documentation and to make it grammatically correct. [Derdriu ingen Mhurchadha, 05/00, A-Middle]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.03 Deirdre is SCA-compatible. [Deirdre inghean Dhomhnaill mhic Maidecc, 03/00, A-Caid]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.01 Deirdre is SCA compatible. [Deirdre inghean Ghiolla Ruaidh, 01/00, A-Ansteorra]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.011 Deirdre is SCA compatible. [Deirdre the Wench, 11/99, A-Outlands]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 Deirdre is SCA compatible. [Deirdre Fallon, 10/99, A-Atlantia]
Jaelle of Armida 1998.03 [Deirdre Gilbride] Deirdre has been ruled SCA compatible. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR March 1998, p. 1)
 
Dona
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1992.02 "Dona is not the same as the title Doña, and therefore is not subject to restriction as a title." (LoAR 2/92 p.15).
 
Ean
François la Flamme 2001.11 Submitted as Ean Echbán MacCináeda, the submitter requested authenticity for "1200-1600 Scotland or Ireland (Gaelic)" and allowed any changes. The form Ean is documented only as part of the byname M'Ean in Scots. As such, it is not evidence for the use of Ean as a given name in either Scots or Gaelic, since Scots bynames are derived from phonetic renderings of Gaelic patronymic bynames, which use genitive forms that can differ significantly in spelling and pronounciation from nominative forms. Since the submitter gave his intended meaning as 'John, owner of a white horse, son of Cinaed', we have changed the given name to the standard Early Modern Gaelic (post-1200) form Eoin. [Eoin an Eich Ghil mac Cionaodha, 11/01, A-Trimaris]
 
Emry
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.12 Submitted as Emry Lioncourt, the only documentation for the given name was from the Info Base of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. However, as noted before, the goals of the LDS are such that their data cannot be considered reliable for the purposes of documenting spelling variants. [Emery Lioncourt, 12/00, A-An Tir]
 
Erin
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1981.02.23 Erin (Erinn) ("from Ireland") could be used as a surname, but its use as a given name is out of period. WVS [36] [LoAR 23 Feb 81], p. 7
 
Esther
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.05 ... Esther would appear to be constructed in a period manner � it is a Biblical name, and Biblical names were used in England. We can therefore register the name. [Esther Millar, 05/00, A-Outlands]
 
Evangeline
François la Flamme 2003.12 Note: Evangeline is her legal given name. [Evangeline Bajolet, 12/03, A-Calontir]
François la Flamme 2002.09 Evangeline was submitted under the Legal Name Allowance. However, no documentation was provided supporting Evangeline as the submitter's legal name. Lacking such support, this name is not registerable under that allowance. Bright Leaf provided information regarding the name Evangeline:

According to Withycombe, p. 113 (s.n. Evangeline), this given name was invented by Longfellow for his famous poem in 1847. I do not, however, think that it sounds obtrusively modern since it resembles period names that such as Engelina (1250) and Evangeliste 1583 - both found in Andreanna Innes's article, "An Index of Period Given Names Contained in A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames by Charles Bardsley."

Evangeline is not obtrusively modern. Therefore, if documentation is provided that Evangeline is the submitter's legal name, it would be registerable under the Legal Name Allowance. [Evangeline Bajolet de Roubidoux, 09/2002 LoAR, R-Calontir]

Jaelle of Armida 1997.07 No evidence was presented and none could be found for Evangeline as a period name. We have substituted the closest period form. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1997, p. 7)
 
Fína
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.04 Submitted as Fína ingen Áeda, the given name is only documented as Fíne. The example cited from the Academy of Saint Gabriel letter was a misreading of the listing for this name in Ó Corráin and Maguire, Irish Names. [Fíne ingen Áeda, 04/00, A-Middle]
 
Fiona
François la Flamme 2002.06 Note: Fiona was ruled SCA compatible in April of 1981 and upheld in the December 1995 cover letter. [Fiona Ann the Fair, 06/2002, A-Atenveldt]
François la Flamme 2001.11 Fiona was ruled SCA compatible in April of 1981 and upheld in the December 1995 cover letter. [Fiona Harpar, 11/01, A-Æthelmearc]
François la Flamme 2001.10 The given name Fiona has been ruled SCA-compatible. [Aislinn Fiona of Rumm, 08/01, R-An Tir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 Fiona is SCA compatible. [Fiona of Artemisia, 07/01, A-Artemisia]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 Submitted as Fionna McClancy, the given name has only been ruled as SCA compatible in the spelling Fiona. We have changed the name accordingly. [Fiona McClancy, 07/01, A-Calontir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.08 Fiona is SCA compatible. [Fiona MacLeod, 08/99, A-Atenveldt]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.12 What Names Are 'SCA-Compatible'?... Having found that my own baronial herald was slightly confused on the subject of 'SCA-compatibility', I thought that it might be helpful to list the status of some of the most common names that have been considered under this rubric. The post-period English name Fiona, which is not to be confused with the period Irish name Fíona (earlier Fíne), has long been considered 'SCA-compatible'. So have the names Cer(r)idwen (Ker(r)idwen), Rhiannon, Bronwen, Branwen, Rowen(a), and Rhonwen, all of which may be found in Welsh myth and legend, but none of which seems to have been in actual use by real people in our period. Guendolen/Gwendolen, a name based on a misreading of a masculine name and attested only in fiction, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 8/95 Cover Letter; more modern spellings of the name were disallowed. Brian(n)a, a modern feminization of Brian that follows no known period model, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 12/95 Cover Letter.
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1992.02 [Ffiona] "Given the acceptance (admittedly, on a special basis) of Fiona, we did not feel that we could reasonably disallow this variant." (LoAR 2/92 p.8)
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.12.29 Corwin and Fiona... have been registered a dozen or more times over a span of five or more years, many of them recent. Corwin is a surname being used as a given name. Fiona is an out-of-period feminization of a period masculine given name. Both names occur in modern fantasy stories, and so tend to be accepted without question by the membership of the SCA; and neither has been explicitly barred by Laurel (although some restrictions have been placed on Corwin). [BoE, cvr ltr, 29 Dec 85, p.5]
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.04.14 There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1981.04.20 Although the name Fiona is out of period, we have three uses of it already registered. Unless the College objects, I will let three previous registrations of a name in the SCA constitute period usage in the SCA, so long as the name does not violate any of the other rules. WVS [40] [LoAR 20 Apr 81], p. 5
 
Galen
Jaelle of Armida 1998.02 [Galen Stuart] Some questions were raised as to how well known a classical Greek physician would be in medieval England. Writings by Galen or attributed to him formed much of the basis of the medieval medical literature (Siraisi, Medieval and Early Renaissance Medicine: An Introduction to Knowledge and Practice, pp. 6, 10, 71-72, etc). Even very late in period, Galen was so familiar to the popular audience that Shakespeare used his name as a shorthand tag to denote a doctor (Merry Wives of Windsor, Act II, Scene 3). (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR February 1998, p. 2)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.04 [Galen] The medical writings of Claudius Galenus, better known as Galen, were known in the Middle Ages, and there are a few examples of English use of Classical names c. 1200, so we are giving the name the benefit of the doubt. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR April 1996, p. 2)
 
Garth
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1990.07 "Geirr Bassi, p.10, notes Garthr (with a thorn), which in common practice would drop the final 'r', making Garth a reasonable form. This is a departure from previous rulings, based on new documentation." (LoAR 7/90 p.5).
 
Geaspar
Jaelle of Armida 1999.03 [Geaspar O'Murchadha] This is being returned for lack of documentation for the given name. The only documentation presented was from The Book of Irish Names, which is not a reliable source. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR March 1999, pp. 10, 14)
 
Glyn
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.07 "Glyn appears to be a placename and a surname in period, but not a given name. We will need evidence of its use as a given name in period before we can register it." (LoAR 7/91 p.24).
 
Graham
Jaelle of Armida 1998.04 [Graham of the Bright Hills] Note: Graham is the submitter's legal given name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1998, p. 4)
 
Gretchen
Baldwin of Erebor 1986.05.18 Gretchen is a diminutive of the given name Margaret, and does not appear to have been used as an independent given name during the Middle Ages. Precedent is to say, "Register 'Margaret' as your formal name, and have your friends call you Gretchen." [BoE, 18 May 86, p.17]
 
Guendolen, Gwendolen
François la Flamme 2002.08 Submitted as Gwendolyn of Wight, the spelling Gwendolyn was ruled not to be SCA compatible in the August 1995 Cover Letter:

Wherefore art thou Gwendolyn? Two submissions this month raised the question of the name Gwendolyn. To quote Harpy Herald: 'Gwendolyn is a modern spelling variant of the name of a fictional character (Guendolen) in the Historia Regum Brittaniae whose name is based on a misreading of the masculine name Guendoleu. The name was not in common use in period, in my experience, although it certainly is in the SCA. We should probably just go ahead and declare it in the same category as Ceridwen and Rhiannon as "not historically justifiable but too deeply rooted to get rid of without a fuss".' The name is certainly quite common in the SCA: in one spelling or another it has been registered to more than 50 different people. Given this level of popularity, I am reluctant to ban the name outright despite the lack of any real justification for it. I am equally reluctant to extend the allowance to modern forms of the name, however. Therefore the name will henceforth be considered `SCA-compatible' in the forms Guendolen and Gwendolen but not the modern Gwendolyn, and the underlying principle will be extended to any other forms that are proposed. (This decision can be thought of as an extension of the `Rule of Two Weirdnesses': the name itself is one weirdness, and a modern spelling is another.) (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter with the August 1995, p. 2)

We have changed the given name to an SCA-compatible spelling in order to register this name.

Additionally, the submitter requested authenticity for the 12th to 13th C (no language or culture specified). Lacking evidence that Gwendolen was used by humans in period, we were unable to make this name authentic. [Gwendolen of Wight, 08/2002, A-Meridies]

François la Flamme 2002.03 Submitted as Gwendolyn Dolfin, the spelling Gwendolyn was ruled not to be SCA compatible in the August 1995 Cover Letter:

Wherefore art thou Gwendolyn? Two submissions this month raised the question of the name Gwendolyn. To quote Harpy Herald: 'Gwendolyn is a modern spelling variant of the name of a fictional character (Guendolen) in the Historia Regum Brittaniae whose name is based on a misreading of the masculine name Guendoleu. The name was not in common use in period, in my experience, although it certainly is in the SCA. We should probably just go ahead and declare it in the same category as Ceridwen and Rhiannon as "not historically justifiable but too deeply rooted to get rid of without a fuss".' The name is certainly quite common in the SCA: in one spelling or another it has been registered to more than 50 different people. Given this level of popularity, I am reluctant to ban the name outright despite the lack of any real justification for it. I am equally reluctant to extend the allowance to modern forms of the name, however. Therefore the name will henceforth be considered `SCA-compatible' in the forms Guendolen and Gwendolen but not the modern Gwendolyn, and the underlying principle will be extended to any other forms that are proposed. (This decision can be thought of as an extension of the `Rule of Two Weirdnesses': the name itself is one weirdness, and a modern spelling is another.) (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter with the August 1995, p. 2)

We have changed the given name to an SCA-compatible spelling in order to register this name. [Gwendolen Dolfin, 03/2002, A-Æthelmearc]

Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 Furthermore, as of the LoAR cover letter of August, 1995, we do not accept the spelling Gwendolyn, although we do accept Gwendolen. [Gwendolyn of the Isle of Wight, 11/99, R-Meridies]
Jaelle of Armida 1996.12 Submitted as Gwendolyn Kirkcaldy of Fawdonside, Gwendolyn is a modern form that has been ruled unacceptable. We have substituted the spelling which has been ruled SCA-compatible. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR December 1996, p. 11)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.12 What Names Are 'SCA-Compatible'?... Having found that my own baronial herald was slightly confused on the subject of 'SCA-compatibility', I thought that it might be helpful to list the status of some of the most common names that have been considered under this rubric. The post-period English name Fiona, which is not to be confused with the period Irish name Fíona (earlier Fíne), has long been considered 'SCA-compatible'. So have the names Cer(r)idwen (Ker(r)idwen), Rhiannon, Bronwen, Branwen, Rowen(a), and Rhonwen, all of which may be found in Welsh myth and legend, but none of which seems to have been in actual use by real people in our period. Guendolen/Gwendolen, a name based on a misreading of a masculine name and attested only in fiction, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 8/95 Cover Letter; more modern spellings of the name were disallowed. Brian(n)a, a modern feminization of Brian that follows no known period model, was declared 'SCA-compatible' in the 12/95 Cover Letter.
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.08 Wherefore art thou Gwendolyn? Two submissions this month raised the question of the name Gwendolyn. To quote Harpy Herald: `Gwendolyn is a modern spelling variant of the name of a fictional character (Guendolen) in the Historia Regum Brittaniae whose name is based on a misreading of the masculine name Guendoleu. The name was not in common use in period, in my experience, although it certainly is in the SCA. We should probably just go ahead and declare it in the same category as Ceridwen and Rhiannon as "not historically justifiable but too deeply rooted to get rid of without a fuss".' The name is certainly quite common in the SCA: in one spelling or another it has been registered to more than 50 different people. Given this level of popularity, I am reluctant to ban the name outright despite the lack of any real justification for it. I am equally reluctant to extend the allowance to modern forms of the name, however. Therefore the name will henceforth be considered `SCA-compatible' in the forms Guendolen and Gwendolen but not the modern Gwendolyn, and the underlying principle will be extended to any other forms that are proposed. (This decision can be thought of as an extension of the `Rule of Two Weirdnesses': the name itself is one weirdness, and a modern spelling is another.) (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter with the August 1995, p. 2)
 
Gweneth, Gwineth, Gwyneth, Gwynneth
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.02 ... Gwyneth has been ruled SCA compatible. [Gwyneth Lewelyne, 02/01, A-Atlantia]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.08 Submitted on the LoI as Gwineth of Iona, the given name was originally submitted as Gwyneth. As Jaelle of Armida, then Laurel, wrote in the November 1997 LoAR,
Morgan & Morgan note the feminine Welsh given name Gwineth in 1577. Therefore, Gwyneth is acceptable as a plausible variant of that name.
We have therefore chagned the name back to the submitted form. [Gwyneth of Iona, 08/00, A-Caid]
Jaelle of Armida 1999.06 [Gweneth ferch Morgan] No acceptable documentation was presented for Gweneth. However, since Morgan and Morgan's Welsh Surnames has Gwineth dated to 1577 and Gwentt dated to 1629, Gweneth is a reasonable period form. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR June 1999, p. 2)
Jaelle of Armida 1997.11 Morgan & Morgan note the feminine Welsh given name Gwineth in 1577. Therefore, Gwyneth is acceptable as a plausible variant of that name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR November 1997, p. 1)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.03 [Gwynneth] The only period evidence available for the given name is the citation Gwineth ver' Robert 1577 given by Morgan & Morgan, s.n. Gwynedd. However, they show that the surname Gwynedd occasionally appears with nn in the 16th century. The names are probably not related, but this orthographic variation still offers some support for the possibility that Gwynneth is an acceptable variant of the attested given name. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR March 1996, p. 4)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1993.12b [Returning Gwynedd Fairfax.] Gwynedd, though found in Withycombe's Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, is only noted there as an undated, modern form. The closest documentable period given name is Gwineth. [12b/93, p.13]
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1987.02.28 The name Gwyneth was almost certainly a late derivation from the geographic name Gwynedd and was not a given name in period. I have to agree that Gwynedd, which is the usual spelling for the place, should not be allowed in the Society as a given name. However, the name Gwyneth seems to have acquired a separate existence in the Society and has been registered at least twenty times (as Gwyneth or Gwynaeth) including more than one occurrence within the last year. I have to conclude that Gwyneth should belong to that select group of non-period names like Corwin or Fiona that the Society at large has elected as being "compatible". (LoAR 28 Feb 87, p. 2)
 
Gwythyr, Gwither
François la Flamme 2001.11 There was some discussion that Gwythyr might be a name that was not used by real humans in period. Morgan and Morgan (p. 119 s.n. Gwythyr) date Rees Gwither to 1584, so the submitted name is registerable. It has one weirdness for using an SCA compatible given name. [Branwen ferch Gwythyr, 11/01, A-East]
 
Ian, Iain
Shauna of Carrick Point 2004.05 Ian has been ruled SCA-compatible. [Ian Gordon, 05/04, A-Meridies]
François la Flamme 2003.10 Submitted as Ian MacPherson of Lee, the submitter requested authenticity for Scottish and allowed any changes. Ian is a post-period Scots form of John. Aryanhwy merch Catmael found period Scots forms of this name:

Effrick neyn Kennyeoch's article "Early 16th Century Scottish Lowland Names" (http://www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/lowland16/) lists a number of forms of <John>. The most common spelling is <Johne>.

Additionally, Symon Freser of Lovat's article "13th & 14th Century Scottish Names" (http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/symonFreser/scottish14/) lists other Scots forms of this name: Ihon, Ihone, Iohn, and Iohne.

As Iohn is the closest of these to the submitted Ian, we have changed the given name to Iohn in order to meet the submitter's request for authenticity. [Iohn MacPherson of Lee, 10/2003, A-An Tir]

François la Flamme 2003.02 Submitted as Iain MacPhilip, this name had two weirdnesses, which has been reason for return. There was one weirdness for use of an SCA-compatible name (Iain). There was also a weirdness for combining Gaelic and Scots (a language closely related to English) in a name. As the submitter allows any changes, we have changed the Gaelic form Iain to the Scots form Ian in order to render this name a single language. As the form Ian MacPhilip has only a single weirdness for use of the SCA-compatible name Ian, it is registerable. [Ian MacPhilip, 02/2003 LoAR, A-Calontir]
François la Flamme 2002.09 Submitted as Iain mac Caradoc, the submitter requested authenticity for 15th C Scots and allowed any changes. Iain is a Gaelic masculine given name, ruled SCA compatible in April 1997. However, no evidence has yet been found that it was used in period. The submitted byname mac Caradoc combined the Scots or Anglicized Irish particle mac with the Welsh name Caradoc. RfS III.1.a requires linguistic consistency in a single name phrase. Therefore, the phrase mac Caradoc is in violation of this rule and is not registerable. No examples were found of any form of Caradoc in either Gaelic or Scots (a language closely related to English). Therefore, we have changed the byname to the form Cradoc, which is a plausible form based on the examples of Philip Craddoc dated to 1205 and Robert Cradock dated to 1301, both in England, in Reaney & Wilson (p. 114 s.n. Craddock). Morgan & Morgan (p. 67 s.n. Caradog) explain that the change in this name from Caradoc to Cradoc forms is due to an accent shift in early Welsh. Use of an element that is only SCA compatible (Iain in this case) counts as a weirdness. Combining English and Gaelic in a single name is also a weirdness. To avoid having two weirdnesses in this name, which would cause the return of this name, we have changed the given name to the form Ian, which is also SCA compatible. Since Ian is Scots, and mixing Scots and English in a single name carries no weirdness for the lingual mix, Ian Cradoc is a registerable form of the submitted name. [Ian Cradoc, 09/2002 LoAR, A-Atenveldt]
François la Flamme 2001.10 Ian has been ruled SCA-compatible. [Ian MacClennan, 08/01, A-Caid]
François la Flamme 2001.10 Ian was ruled SCA-compatible in April of 1997. [Ian Duncanson, 09/01, A-Caid]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.07 ... the name Iain, while ruled SCA compatible, is not attested in period. [Iain Bán Menzies, 07/00, R-Atlantia]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 Arval Benicoeur's article, "Concerning the Names Iain, Ian, and Eoin" mentions the name Eithne ingen Iain i nOchtur Aird in a 12th century Irish Gaelic document. There are other references to Iain (as a genitive form), but they were part of religious names. Nevertheless given the single citation, combined with the fact that Iain is otherwise SCA compatible, we will registered names containing mac Iain or inghean Iain. [Gavin MacIain, 10/99, A-Ansteorra]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 Submitted as Ian MacEanruig, that name contains two weirdnesses: it uses a post-period anglicization of a Gaelic name and mixes Gaelic and English orthographies. [Ian MacHenrik, 10/99, A-An Tir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.09 [Ian Marcaiche] This name contains two weirdness: an SCA-compatible given name, and the combination of English and Gaelic orthographies in one name. [Ian Marcaiche, 09/99, R-Outlands]
Jaelle of Armida 1998.02 [Ian Griffen the Archer] Submitted as Iain Griffen the Archer, Iain is a Gaelic spelling of which cannot be combined with an English name. We have substituted the Anglicized spelling, Ian. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR February 1998, p. 2)
Jaelle of Armida 1997.04 [registering the given name Ian] [Ian Mac Tawisch] It is not clear as to whether this spelling of Ian is a period form. While we would like to see some conclusive research on this subject, we also feel that this is a name that is popular in the SCA. Since it has been registered over 100 times, we are declaring it SCA compatible, and hope that further research will prove that this was unnecessary. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1997, p. 11)
Jaelle of Armida 1997.04 registering the given name Iain] [Iain Kyle the Red] It is not clear as to whether this spelling of Iain is a period form. While we would like to see some conclusive research on this subject, we also feel that this is a name that is popular in the SCA. Since it has been registered over 40 times, we are declaring it SCA compatible, and hope that further research will prove that this was unnecessary. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1997, p. 8)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.04 It seems increasingly doubtful that English Ian is a period form. (The status of Gaelic Iain is less clear.) Black has relevant information in his articles on Macaneduff, Macanemoyll, Macian, Mackain, Mackean, and Iain, in his introduction, and doubtless elsewhere as well. In these we find Mackaneduff 1498 'son of black John'; here the John element is the part spelled ane. In 1559 we find the same spelling in M'Anevoill 'son of bald John'. Mackain and Mackean are forms of Macian; some actual citations are McAan and McAyn 1519, M'Ean 1538, M'Kaine 1601, M'Kane 1480, Makkaane 1570, and McKeane 1600. Finally, Black notes that Iain replaced an older Eoin but unfortunately does not say when this occurred. The English spellings suggest a variety of pronunciations ranging from 'ay-un' to '(y)ahn', but not modern 'EE-un'. Whatever the pronunciation, however, it appears that the usual English spellings were Ean and Ane when the name wasn't simply replaced by John. (This last seems to have been usual in the case of given names.) On the available evidence, Ian doesn't rate the benefit of the doubt, but much of the evidence is fairly indirect; can anyone add to it? (Talan Gwynek, Cover Letter to the April 1996 LoAR, pp. 2-3)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.04 There is by now considerable evidence that Ian is a post-period form, and in future we may not wish to accept it; see the Cover Letter for more details. For now, however, we have given the name the benefit of the doubt. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR April 1996, p. 10)
 
Iona, Ione
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.08 Iona is the name of an island, and not a given name. Ione, of which it was suggested Iona may be a variant, is a 19th Century name and is therefore post-period. A variant would then be even more modern. (Da'ud ibn Auda, LoAR August 1994, p. 17)
 
Jackline
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1991.06 [Jackline] "The presence of Jacklin and Jakelina in Withycombe lend credence to this spelling of the given name." (LoAR 6/91 p.3).
 
Jay
Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme 1993.06 Jay is documented only as a noun and surname in period; as it's the client's mundane given name, it was submitted under the aegis of Rule II.4. Such submissions, while usually acceptable, can be returned if the name is "obtrusively modern". We find Jay to be obtrusively modern, by virtue of its sound: it sounds like an initial, as in J. P. Morgan, and thus post-period.

We might have considered this acceptable as a "bird name", akin to Robin, had we been shown a common pattern of usage that birds were used as given names in period. But we could think of no examples offhand, save Robin; and one can make a good case that the bird's name derived from the given name (a diminutive of Robert) rather than the reverse. Without period examples, Jay must be considered intrusively modern, and unacceptable even under the Legal Name Allowance. (Jay MacPhunn, June, 1993, pg. 23)

 
Jesus
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1990.04.29 This name caused a certain amount of controversy since it is by no means clear that "Jesus" was used by ordinary individuals in period and there is some evidence from Dauzat that it may have been "taboo" during the medieval period. (LoAR 29 Apr 90, p. 3)
 
Josephine
Jaelle of Armida 1998.04 [Josephine Ysabelle de Laval] According to Withycombe 'The Empress Josephine, who is responsible for the modern vogue of the name, was actually named Marie Josèphe Rose, Josephine being a pet-name.' Barring documentation that Josephine is a period given name, it cannot not used. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1998, p. 19)
 
Kaleigh
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.03 [Returning Kaleigh Hayes.] Kaleigh is not at all a reasonable English respelling of the Irish Ceallach. As Palimpsest noted, "Ceallach is and was pronounced with a final hard ch as in German ach or Gaelic loch; when this sound occurs in English, it is generally rendered ch, so it's unlikely that any Englishing would differ much from the Irish spellings." [3/94, p.20]
 
Kathleen
François la Flamme 2002.03 From Pelican: Regarding the Name Kathleen

Two submissions this month raised discussion regarding whether or not Kathleen is a period name.

Kathleen is an Anglicized Irish form of the Gaelic name Caitilín, which itself derives from the Old French Cateline. Forms of Caitilín have been found in Gaelic dating to the early 15th C and later. This leaves a limited amount of time for Caitilín to become firmly established enough to generate the Anglicized form Kathleen. At this time, no documentation has been found that Kathleen was used in period.

Kathleen has been registered 45 times in the last two decades with at least one registration in every year except two. This demonstrates consistent popularity of the name. Regarding recent popularity of the name, there are two submissions this month that include Kathleen as a given name. Additionally, it was registered once in 2001, once in 1999, and four times in 1998. Given this level of popularity, it is reasonable to consider Kathleen SCA compatible. [Cover Letter for the 03/2002 LoAR]

 
Kendra
François la Flamme 2003.07 From Pelican: Regarding SCA-Compatible Status of the Name "Kendra"

The name Kendra was ruled SCA compatible:

Kendra long since joined the select list of names which, like Fiona and Gwyneth, have been deemed "compatible", although they cannot be documented in period. (LoAR 26 Apr 87, p. 6)

However, this name has not retained popularity. It has been registered a total of 16 times, with the last registration being in 1992. Given the lack of popularity of this name, we will discontinue registration of Kendra with the February 2004 decision meeting. [Cover Letter for the 07/2003 LoAR]

Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1987.04.26 Kendra long since joined the select list of names which, like Fiona and Gwyneth, have been deemed "compatible", although they cannot be documented in period. (LoAR 26 Apr 87, p. 6)
 
Laurel
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.11 Laurel has not been shown to be period, but it is her modern given name. As a given name it is no more presumptuous than Rose, which we have registered many times (and as recently as 6/95): the names of Society orders are neither titles nor styles of address. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR November 1995, p. 10)
 
Lavender
Jaelle of Armida 1996.11 Please instruct the submitter that while we have no documentation for Lavender as a given name, the form [N] the Lavendere, should be registerable since Reaney & Wilson, under the heading. Lavender, have la Lavendere 1268. The byname is from Old French lavandiere 'one who washes, washerwoman, laundress'. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR November 1996, p. 4)
 
Lili
François la Flamme 2001.11 [Lili] There is a precedent regarding the spelling Lili:
Submitted as Lili of Eastham, no documentation was provided for the spelling of the given name. We have therefore changed it to a form dated to 1247 in Reaney and Wilson's A Dictionary of English Surnames. [Lilie of Eastham, 11/00, A-East].
As no evidence was provided and none was found that the spelling Lili is a period variant, this precedent still stands. [Lilie Manevy, 11/01, A-Caid]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.11 Submitted as Lili of Eastham, no documentation was provided for the spelling of the given name. We have therefore changed it to a form dated to 1247 in Reaney and Wilson's A Dictionary of English Surnames. [Lilie of Eastham, 11/00, A-East]
 
Lilith
Jaelle of Armida 1998.02 [Lleulyth o'r Cymry verch Llewfron mab Dafydd] While the submitter says that Welsh adopted names from the bible, and that Lleulyth is Welsh version of Lilith. However Lilith is not a Biblical name -- she appears in non-canonical Jewish folklore, but not the version of the texts generally available in Europe during the medieval period. Nor does she fall in the class of figures whose names were borrowed for use. It is possible that somewhere in a period Welsh text, there is a reference to Lilith, however it does not occur in any of the texts cited by the submitter. No one in the college has any documentation for Lleulyth as a period Welsh name (whether connected with Lilith or not), nor can it be justified on the basis of existing compound name elements. And, the submitter did not provide any documentation for it, outside of her assertion. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR February 1998, p. 21)
 
Lindsay
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 We were given no evidence that Lindsay was a given name in period. [Lindsay MacBean, 10/99, R-Calontir]
 
Lorrain, Lorraine
Jaelle of Armida 1997.07 During our period, Lorrain is locative, meaning `of or from Lorraine', and not a given name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1997, p. 19)
 
Lynnea
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.11 "Lynnea is a post-period Swedish name from the surname Linnæus." [The name was returned for this reason] (LoAR 11/91 p.18).
 
Maire
Jaelle of Armida 1998.07 [Maire nic Ardhghail] Note: while the use of Maire is rare in period Gaelic names, there are a few dated examples. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1998, p. 8)
 
Malik
François la Flamme 2003.10 Malik was documented as a Russian masculine given name dated to 1506 in this spelling in Wickenden (2nd ed., s.n. Malik, http://heraldry.sca.org/paul/). Malik is also found in the alternate titles list as an Arabic equivalent for 'king'. RfS VI.1 "Names Claiming Rank" states in part:

Titles like Earl and Duke generally may not be used as Society names, even if the title is the submitters legal name. Names documented to have been used in period may be used, even if they were derived from titles, provided there is no suggestion of territorial claim or explicit assertion of rank. For example, Regina the Laundress is acceptable but Regina of Germany is not.

As Malik is documented as a Russian masculine given name found in period, it is registerable "provided there is no suggestion of territorial claim or explicit assertion of rank". The byname Medvedchik was documented as a Russian byname, possibly meaning 'bear keeper' dated to 1542 in Wickenden (2nd ed., s.n. Medvedchik). Therefore, the submitted name means 'Malik [the] bear keeper', which does not suggest "territorial claim" and is not an "explicit assertion of rank". As such, this name is registerable. [Malik Medvedchik, 10/2003, A-Artemisia]

 
Mavis
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.03 [Returning Mavis Isleen Reynebaud of Falcon's Keep.] Mavis is not documented before 1891. Isleen is unlikely as a period Englishing of the Irish name Aisling, which would more likely be Anglicized as Ashling. The submitter permitted only minor changes, and we believed the changes necessary to register some form of the name went beyond this allowance. [3/94, p.15]
 
Meabh, Medbh
François la Flamme 2003.02 Listed on the LoI as Medb ingen Mathghamhain, this name was submitted as Medbh inghean Mathghamhain and was changed at Kingdom to match documented forms.

The byname ingen Mathghamhain combined the Middle Irish (c. 900 to c. 1200) ingen with the Early Modern Irish (c. 1200 to c. 1700) Mathghamhain, and so violated RfS III.1.a, which requires linguistic consistency in a name phrase. Additionally, Mathghamhain is a nominative form, not a genitive form as required by Gaelic grammar in a byname. The fully Middle Irish form of this name is Medb ingen Mathgamna. The fully Early Modern Irish form of this name is Meadhbh inghean Mhathghamhna. As the Early Modern Irish form is the closer of these to the originally submitted form of this name, we have changed this name to that form in order to register this name. [Meadbh inghean Mhathghamhna, 02/2003 LoAR, A-Caid]

François la Flamme 2001.08 Listed on the LoI as Méabh inghean Thaidg ua Domnaill, the submitter requested authenticity for 14th to 15th C Irish. The submitter documented Méabh from Ó Corráin & Maguire (p. 135 s. n. Medb). When multiple forms are listed after the colon in headers in OCM, the first form after the colon is usually a period form and the latter forms are usually modern. In this case, Méabh is almost certainly modern as it does not follow period spelling conventions. [Meadhbh inghean Thaidhg uí Domhnaill, 08/01, A-Atlantia]
Jaelle of Armida 1999.03 [Medbh Gillacon] The name is being returned for lack of documentation for the given name. The documentation for the given name was taken from The Book of Irish Names, which is not a reliable source. Furthermore, the form there was not Medbh, but Meadhbh. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR March 1999, p. 10)
 
Megan, Meggan, Meghan
François la Flamme 2003.07 From Pelican: Regarding SCA-Compatible Status of Forms of the Name "Megan"

Issues were raised this month regarding the SCA-compatible status of forms of the name Megan. There is a precedent that states:

There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]

There are two significant factors that come into play when judging whether or not a name should be considered SCA compatible: number of registrations and continual popularity. SCA-compatible names that fall out of popularity may have their SCA-compatible status discontinued.

There are several forms of Megan that need to be addressed. These are:

  • Meggan: The spelling Meggan has been registered twice; once in 1971 and once in 1979. Given the lack of popularity of this form, we will discontinue registration of Meggan with the February 2004 decision meeting.

  • Meghan: The spelling Meghan has been registered 19 times, with the most recent registration being in September of 1993. An additional registration appears this month. Therefore, this name was moderately popular for a time, but has generally fallen out of popularity. Due to the lack of continual popularity of this name, we will discontinue registration of Meghan beginning with the February 2004 decision meeting.

  • Megan: The spelling Megan has been registered 39 times, most recently in 1998. In the few years up through 1998, the number of registerations of Megan per year were: 1998 (1), 1997 (2), 1996 (1), 1995 (3). Therefore, the form Megan was declared SCA compatible in 1985 and maintained a low level of popularity through 1998, when it was last registered. While this level of registration does not demonstrate sufficient continued interest in this name to warrant its retaining SCA-compatible status, three submissions this month included some form of the name Megan (one Megan, one Meghan, and one Megen). Given this level of interest in the name in general, we are continuing the SCA-compatible status of Megan for now. Its status may be reevaluated in the future to determine if Megan continues to be popular or not.

  • Megen: The spelling Megen is dated to 1547 in Wyllyam Salesbury's A Dictionary in Englyshe and Welshe (London: John Waley, 1547). Therefore, this form is registerable as a rare, but documented, Welsh feminine given name.

[Cover Letter for the 07/2003 LoAR]
François la Flamme 2003.07 Listed on the LoI as Megen de la Beche, this name was submitted as Megan de la Beche and changed at Kingdom, with the submitter's consent, because no documentation could be found that Megan was a name in period. Further information from the submitter, forwarded by Kingdom, indicates that she now prefers the documented form Megen. Therefore, we have registered this name as listed on the LoI.

The spelling Megan was ruled SCA compatible in the precedent:

There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]

Further discussion regarding registerability of various spellings of Megan is included in the Cover Letter with this LoAR.

The submitter requested authenticity for the 12th to 14th C. Lacking evidence that any form of Megen was in use in during that time period, we were unable to make this name authentic per the submitter's request. [Megen de la Beche, 07/2003 LoAR, A-Artemisia]

François la Flamme 2003.07 Listed on the LoI as Megen Forde, this name was submitted as Meghan Forde and changed at Kingdom, with the submitter's consent, because no documentation could be found that Meghan was a name in period.

The spelling Meghan was ruled SCA compatible in the precedent:

There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]

However, the spelling Meghan has not been registered since 1993. Therefore, there is insufficient popularity of Meghan to warrant this form retaining SCA-compatible status. We will discontinue registration of the form Meghan beginning with the February 2004 decision meeting. Further discussion regarding registerability of various spellings of Megan is included in the Cover Letter with this LoAR.

The submitter requested authenticity for "family names from Ireland" and 14th C Irish-Norman. Lacking evidence that any form of Meghan was in use in Ireland in period, we were unable to make this name authentic for the submitter's requested time and culture. [Meghan Forde, 07/2003 LoAR, A-Artemisia]

Jaelle of Armida 1998.08 [Megan of Westfield] Submitted as Tadgán of Westfield, the LoI states that the submitter preferred the name Megan but had no documentation. Since documentation has been provided from William Salesbury's A Dictionary of English and Welsh Names, we have changed it to the submitter's preferred form. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR August 1998)
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.04.14 There are some twenty Megans, Meghans, and Meggans already registered. As with Fiona and Corwin, I consider the name to be so much a part of SCA culture as to be acceptable, even if it is recent coinage. [BoE, 14 Apr 85, p.4]
 
Mercedes
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.01 [Mercedes] The submitter documented the given name from De Felice, I Nomi Degli Italiani; however, De Felice notes that Mercedes entered Italy from Spain. Because Mercedes is not found in Spain until well after 1600, the name could not have been found in period Italy. [Mercedes Amici, 01/00, R-Æthelmearc]
Jaelle of Armida 1998.09 [Mercedes de Cerdaña] Unfortunately, no documentation has been presented, and none could be found to show Mercedes as a period given name. The best that was found was María de las Mercedes, from 1690. This is well past our grey area, and does not even document Mercedes as a stand alone name. Barring documentation that Mercedes was used as a given name in period, this must be returned. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR September 1998)
 
Michaela
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.04 [Isabeau Michaela Hawke (submitted as Mikaela)] Even as Michaela the name is somewhat problematic, since no one has yet demonstrated that it was actually used in period. In the earlier Middle Ages it may have been a Latin documentary feminine form for a woman named Michael, but there is neither evidence nor good argument for its use at the end of our period. Nevertheless, we have recently (12/95, Michaela della Isola, Middle) given it the benefit of the doubt, so we are unwilling to return it outright. To minimize the anomalies while doing the least possible violence to the name, we have therefore simply substituted the more standard spelling. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR April 1996, p. 3)
 
Moira
Shauna of Carrick Point 2004.05 The given name Moira (which may be viewed as either Scots or Anglicized Irish) has been ruled SCA compatible. [Moira O'Connor, 05/04, A-West]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.09 Moira is SCA compatible. [Moira MacGregor, 09/99, A-Outlands]
Jaelle of Armida 1998.01 [Moira of the Meadows] Moyra is an undocumented variant spelling of the Anglicized spelling of the Gaelic equivalent of Mary. Since the Gaelic form of Mary was a rare usage during our period, we do not feel that the Anglicized form was used enough to form variant spellings. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR January 1998, p. 4)
Jaelle of Armida 1997.06 [Moira MacVey] No evidence has been presented that Moira is a period name. However, given its usage in the SCA we are ruling it SCA compatible. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR June 1997, p. 7)
Jaelle of Armida 1997.04 No evidence has been presented that Moira is a period name. However, given its usage in the SCA we are ruling it SCA compatible. (Moira MacVey, 6/97 p. 7)
 
Moriah
Alisoun MacCoul of Elphane 1986.12.28 The name Moriah has been returned previously ... on the grounds that it is a Biblical place name, the mountain where Abraham prepared to sacrifice Isaac, and not a form used in period as a given name. No evidence has been presented to contravene that precedent. (LoAR 28 Dec 86, p. 17)
 
Mungo
François la Flamme 2001.12 ... Cornelian found evidence for the name Mungo in The Court Book of the Barony of Carnwath, 1523-1524, which includes:
The quhilk day my l[ord] foloit mungo morpet & Jhon vyld & Jhon anderson on the tane part & mungo lows on the toder part for the tylin of his grund with violent blud...
Cornelian notes this section as dating to 1525. This quote documents the name Mungo in the names mungo morpet and mungo lows. These examples are enough to support Mungo as a 16th C Scots masculine given name. [Mungo Maglinchie, 12/01, A-Atlantia]
François la Flamme 2001.11 Submitted as Mungo Amadan Mor, it was changed to Cosmungo Amadan Mor at kingdom because Mungo was documented only as a nickname for the 6th C saint. Cornelian found evidence for the name Mungo in The Court Book of the Barony of Carnwath, 1523-1524, which includes:
The quhilk day my l[ord] foloit mungo morpet & Jhon vyld & Jhon anderson on the tane part & mungo lows on the toder part for the tylin of his grund with violent blud...
Cornelian notes this section as dating to 1525. This quote documents the name Mungo in the names mungo morpet and mungo lows. These examples are enough to support Mungo as a 16th C Scots masculine given name. [Mungo Mor, 11/01, A-West]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.01 No evidence was given showing that Mungo was ever used except as a nickname of the 6th century saint. We will accept the documented devotional form Cosmungo, but not the name itself barring evidence of its use as a given name (and not a nickname) in period. [Mungo Amadan Mor, 01/00, R-West]
 
Nanette
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.10 [Nanette] "Several commenters questioned whether or not the given is a period name. Barring strong evidence that it is not, we felt it best to give the submitter the benefit of the doubt." (LoAR 10/91 p.1).
 
Niamh
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.07 While there is no evidence that Niamh was actually used in period, it appears in period sagas, in some cases as the name of a human being. [Niamh ingen Maolán, 07/00, A-Meridies]
 
Phillida, Phyllida, Fillida
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.06 While a submission was returned in April 2000 because of lack of documentation for the given name Phyllida/Phillida, Argent Snail found a citation of a Fillida who was married in 1620. It therefore appears that the name did appear as a given name early enough to be registerable. [Phillida Parker, 06/01, A-Ealdoremere]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.04 Submitted as Phyllida Longacre of Ravenglass, Phyllida is the accusative singular form of the classical feminine name Phyllis. The earliest citation in English seems to be Phillida and Corydon by Nicholas Breton (1542 - 1626) who appears to have been trying to translate or at least emulate a poem by Propertius. In the original, the name Phyllis appears in the Latin accusative (Phyllida) and using this in translation is probably a misreading of the correct form of the name. As so often happens, a popular poem or song gave rise to a brief vogue for the name. It seems likely that the submitted form appeared as a given name after our period, so we have changed the given name to the documented period form. [Phyllis Longacre of Ravenglass, 04/00, A-Æthelmearc] [overturned, Phillida Parker, 06/01, A-Ealdoremere]
 
Regina
Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1982.02.26 [Regina.] The College is opposed to the use of titles in names. We have received documentation that Regina specifically was a common given name in our period. Therefore, we will allow the use of Regina as a given name so long as there is no indication in the name that a claim to royalty exists. This means that Regina must be the first word of the Society name and that the Society name may not be in Latin, and that the word Regina may not be followed by any translation of "of X," where X is a place name, as that could indicate that the person was queen of that place. This use of Regina does not imply permission to use any other titles as names (e.g., you still can't have Earl or Rex). WVS [63] [LoAR 26 Feb 82], p. 7
 
Rhiain
Jaelle of Armida 1996.12 While Rhiain is found in Gruffudd's Welsh Personal Names, no one was able to provide evidence that it is a period Welsh name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR December 1996, p. 13).
 
Roseanna
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1991.06 [Roseanna] "The presence of Rosianno in Morlet lends credence to this combination of Rose and Anna." (LoAR 6/91 p.10).
 
Rowan, Rowen
François la Flamme 2003.07 Rowan was submitted under the Legal Name Allowance as it is the submitter's legal given name. As there is no evidence that Rowan was used as a feminine name in period, it falls into the category of "non-period names allowed under the Legal Name Allowance" and its use carries a weirdness. (For a further explanation, see "From Pelican: A Clarification Regarding the Legal Name Allowance" in the Cover Letter to the February 2003 LoAR.)

Rowan is also SCA compatible as a feminine given name. Use of an SCA-compatible name element carries a weirdness.

So, whether Rowan is viewed as registerable to the submitter via the Legal Name Allowance or as an SCA-compatible name, its use in this name carries one weirdness.

No evidence has yet been found that two given names were used in Ireland. Two given names are registerable in an Anglicized Irish name (just as they are in Scots), but it carries a weirdness.

Therefore, the submitted name has two weirdnesses, which is cause for return. As the submitter allows no changes, we were unable to drop the second given name in order to register this name. [Rowan Katerina O'Flaherty, 07/2003 LoAR, R-Atenveldt]

François la Flamme 2003.04 The LoI noted that the submitter "is actually looking for Rowan, but believes that Roana is as close as she can get." Several commenters noted the ruling:

... Rowan is SCA compatible as a feminine given name, this name is registerable with a weirdness for use of an SCA compatible element. [Rowan Bridget Blackmoor, 01/02, A-Atenveldt]

Therefore, the name Rowen de Hauekrig is registerable. We examined the submitter's form to determine whether to register this name as Roana de Hauekrig or Rowen de Hauekrig. The submission form makes no mention anywhere of the name Rowan and notes that the submitter allows no major changes. Neither her form, nor the LoI states that the submitter specifically wishes her name changed from Roana to Rowan if documentation were found for Rowan. Lacking this instruction from the submitter, we have registered this name in the submitted form. [Roana de Hauekrig, 04/2003 LoAR, A-Middle]

François la Flamme 2002.09 Note: there was some confusion regarding the status of Rowan as an SCA-compatible name. Rowan, used as a feminine given name, is SCA compatible. Rowan, used as a masculine given name, is registerable as an Anglicized Irish masculine given name and so does not need SCA compatible status. [Rowan Buchanan, 09/2002 LoAR, A-West]
François la Flamme 2002.01 ... Rowan is SCA compatible as a feminine given name, this name is registerable with a weirdness for use of an SCA compatible element. [Rowan Bridget Blackmoor, 01/02, A-Atenveldt]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.12 Rowan is SCA compatible. [Rowan of Hakesleah, 12/99, A-West]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.09 [Rowen the Shiftless] Rowen is a documented period spelling of a name used by Geoffrey of Monmouth for a fictional character; it was not used by human beings in our period but is considered `SCA-compatible'. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR September 1995, p. 3)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.10 "Rowen is a later form of the old English name Hrodwen, and is perfectly acceptable as such." (LoAR 10/91 p.2).
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.10.20 A quick check of the files turned up six previous instances of Rowan as a given name. Dunkling & Gosling (p.370) and Patrick Woulfe (Irish Names for Children, p.34) equate it with Irish Ruadh, a saint who died c.584. (Farmer 349). [BoE, 20 Oct 85, p.3]
 
Ryan
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.09.15 Ryan appears to have begun life as an Irish surname, and was not used as a given name until recent times. [BoE, 15 Sept 85, p.6]
 
Sapphira
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1992.02 [Sapphira] "As I have been loath to do with Withycombe and other of our 'standard' names sources, I do not wish to start going through the Bible and making lists of exceptions to the names documented therefrom. Yes, as a number of commenters noted, the name Sapphira has sufficient negative connotations in the Bible itself that it is unlikely to have been used as a name in Period. The fact remains, however, that it was in the 'pool' of available Biblical names, and it should remain available to members of the SCA until and unless proven 'guilty' of sufficient impossibility or sufficient offense to warrant banning it." (LoAR 2/92 p.10).
 
Sarina
Jaelle of Armida 1997.08 While the LoI cited a source for Sarina as a first name, no photocopies of the documentation were provided. Furthermore, while the LoI asserted that Sarina was a given name, no dated reference was provided. Absence documentation that Sarina is a period given name, we are forced to return it. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR August 1997, p. 24)
 
Shaun
Jaelle of Armida 1999.04 [Shaun of the Forrest] Shaun is the submitter's legal first name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR April 1999, p. 3)
 
Tam
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.09 Submitted on the LoI as Tom MacGrimm, the name was changed to that form in Kingdom; it was originally submitted as Tam MacGrimm. However, Reaney and Wilson's Dictionary of English Surnames has "Peter Tamelyn 1327 SRsf. A double diminutive of Tam (Tom). cf. Tomlin." and "William Tamson 1395 EA (OS) iv (C); Walter Tampson 1641 PrSo; John Tampson 1642 PrD. 'Son of Tam', a variant of Tom, a pet-form of Thomas." Therefore Tam appears to be an acceptable given name. However, there is no documentation for adding mac to the documentable Grimm. We have therefore changed the given name back to the original form and removed mac from the byname. [Tam Grimm, 09/00, A-Outlands]
 
Tamsin, Tamsyn, Tamson, Tomasyn
François la Flamme 2001.11 Tamsin is found as a feminine given name in a burial record in 1601 in "Transcript from the Buckfastleigh Registers" (http://www.picknowl.com.au/homepages/bobm/webidx.htm). Bardsley dates the feminine given names Tamson to 1573 & 1574 (s.n. Tamplin), and Tomasyn to 1557 (s.n. Inkley). Given these examples, the submitted Tamsyn seems to be a plausible variant of Tamsin. [Tamsyn Seamarke, 11/01, A-Outlands]
 
Tara
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 1st year) 1994.01 [Returning Tara ni Connmhaigh.] The prior registration of Tara as a given name hinged on the statement "If the given name and the place name [Temair] are identical in Irish, and Tara is a valid anglicization of the latter, then it should be acceptable as an anglicization of the former." The problem is that Tara is not an acceptable Anglicization of Temair; only of the genitive case of the name: Temra (pronounced approximately 'tev-ra). Tara is not an Anglicization of Temair but rather an English name for the place derived specifically from the context in which it appears as a place name (e.g., "hill of Tara"). (A similar case occurs with Erin, as a poetic English name for Ireland is based on the genitive case (Éireann) of the Irish name Éire.) Since the given name Temair would not normally be found in the genitive, it is unlikely that it would be taken into English in the genitive form. [1/94, p.18]
Baldwin of Erebor 1985.09.15 The association of Tara with magic and with the kings of Ireland is strong enough that, pending solid evidence refuting it, I must proscribe Tara from SCA use. [BoE, 15 Sept 85, p.13]
 
Tegan
François la Flamme (2nd tenure) 2005.01 Submitted as Tegen of Liskeard, the submitter argued that this was a spelling variant of Tegan. We note that Heather Rose Jones, A Welsh Miscellany, published in 1993, lists the name Tegan. However, in the article, "Concerning the Name Tegan", written in 1998, she notes that "Tegan is found as an error for Tegau, the name of a female character appearing in Arthurian literature," so it is likely that the first citation reflects this error rather than a true documented form. The name Tegan has been registered over 40 times, including two registrations in 2004. Therefore Tegan is SCA-compatible. However, no documentation was submitted showing that Tegen is a reasonable variant of Tegan. Therefore, we have changed this name to Tegan of Liskeard. [Tegan of Liskeard, 01/2005, A-Atenveldt]
 
Terwyn
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1991.06 "Barring evidence that Terwyn is not period, we are giving the submitter the benefit of the doubt." (LoAR 6/91 p.3).
 
Tirion
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd year, 1st tenure) 1991.08 The lack of a date in the citation in Gruffudd and the fact that Tirion is documented as a placename in Period in celtic Remains, combined with the lack of any evidence of Tir- as an element in compound names forces us to request Period documentation of Tirion as a given before we can register it." (LoAR 8/91 p.16).
 
Trinity
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.10 [Trinity] So we have given names derived from four great ecclesiastical feasts. [Christmas, Easter, Pentacost, and Epiphany] (Withycombe mentions also Midwinter and Loveday, which are also day names but not ecclesiastical feasts.) The striking thing is that this is a very short list. This is not enough to constitute a plausible productive pattern, much less extended to nouveaux lesser feasts like Trinity Sunday. [Trinity Munro, 10/99, R-Æthelmearc]
 
Ulliam
François la Flamme 2002.02 [...] no documentation was presented for the spelling Ulliam rather than the normal Gaelic spelling Uilliam. [Ulliam Ó Raghailligh, 02/02, R-Atlantia]
 
Vanessa
Da'ud ibn Auda (1st year of 1st tenure) 1990.09 "No additional evidence was given to demonstrate that Vanessa either was a period name or that it should be considered SCA-compatible." [the name was returned] (LoAR 9/90 p.14).
 
Veronica
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.07 Withycombe actually says that Veronica was introduced into Scotland in the later 17th century and into England even later. As a consequence its use in an English name is post-period. (Da'ud ibn Auda, LoAR July 1994, p. 5)
 
Zarges
Jaelle of Armida 1998.08 [Zarges Rüdi] This is being returned for lack of documentation for the given name. The LoI documented Zarries and Zacharias, not Zarges. Since there was no documentation on the given name and no one could provide any, we are forced to return the name. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR August 1998)
 
Zoë
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.08 While Zoë is unattested in England until modern times, it is the name of a late Roman Christian martyr. Such names formed an available name pool in period practice and thus this is a plausible extrapolation. [Cassandra Zoë Paganel, 08/99, A-Caid]
 
the Healer
François la Flamme 2003.06 The documentation provided for the byname the Healer on the LoI was: "The [Oxford English Dictionary], p. 1273, dates this spelling of the word with the intended meaning to 1611." The OED (s.n. Healer) dates several uses of the word healer to period. However, this entry specifically states that the early use for this term was as a word meaning 'Saviour'. Of the period examples of healer given in this entry in the OED, only one seems to use healer in a context other than 'Saviour': "c1175 Lamb. Hom. 83 {gh}ef he hefde on his moder ibroken hire meidenhad, ne mihte nawiht brekere bon icloped helere." Talan Gwynek provided a translation for this entry: "If he has broken his mother's maidenhead, the breaker may in no way be called a healer."

Therefore, the main use of the word healer in period is as a synonym for Saviour and calling a person the Healer in period would typically have been interpreted as calling them the Saviour, a claim which violates RfS VI.2 "Names Claiming Powers", which states that "Names containing elements that allude to powers that the submitter does not possess are considered presumptuous."

Regarding the modern meaning "One who heals (wounds, diseases, the sick, etc.); a leach, doctor; also, one who heals spiritual infirmities" (OED, s.n. Healer), this is, at best, a rare meaning for healer in period and no evidence has been found that healer was used as an occupational byname in period. As such, the submitted byname the Healer falls into the same category as Oakencask, which appears in the precedent:

Since the Oxford English Dictionary first dates the term cask to the middle of the 16th century, and there are period descriptive names for barrelmakers, such as Tunn/Tunnewrytte, we find Oakencask highly unlikely. [James Oakencask the Just, 06/99, R-Atenveldt]

As there are documented period descriptive bynames for people who practiced medicine (see Reaney & Wilson s.nn. Barber, Blood, Dubbedent, Farmery, Leach, Leachman, Letcher, Myer, Nurse, Pestel, Physick, Sucker, Surgenor, Surgeon), and the primary meaning of healer in period was as a synonym for Saviour, this byname is highly unlikely to have been used in period. Therefore, as with the example of Oakencask cited above, this byname is not registerable.

As there have only been 5 registrations of the byname the Healer (with the last being in 1988), this byname does not have the same level of popularity as other bynames such as the Wanderer necessary for an element to be SCA compatible. [Kaires the Healer, 06/2003 LoAR, R-Caid]

Wilhelm von Schlüssel 1980.01.22 Only a mundane M.D. [can be] "the Healer." WVS [9] [LoAR 22 Jan 80], p. 3
 
the Lost
François la Flamme 2002.02 The English byname the Lost has been ruled SCA compatible. Use of an element which is only SCA compatible is a weirdness. [Ælfric the Lost, 02/02, R-An Tir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 ... we are reluctantly making the byname the Lost SCA compatible. [Jordan the Lost, 07/01, A-Calontir]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.07 [Corwynn the Lost] Although names of the form X the Lost has been registered in the past, English bynames were not formed from adjectival past participles, and previous Laurels have been returning names for that reason. Da'ud ibn Auda, in the September, 1994 LoAR, wrote: "[Modifying 'the Brown-eyed'] English bynames were not formed from adjectival past participles. We have substituted the documented form." Given that the name already has a weirdness with the use of Corwynn, which is undocumented but SCA compatible, we are not willing to give the byname the benefit of the doubt. The name must be returned barring documentation that such bynames were found. [Corwynn the Lost, 07/99, R-Atenveldt]
 
the Traveler, the Traveller
François la Flamme 2002.08 This name combines an Italian given name with an SCA compatible English byname. Combining an Italian given name and an English byname in the same name is registerable, though it is a weirdness. However, this name contains a second weirdness for use of an SCA compatible element (the Traveler). As the name has two weirdness, it is not registerable. [Nuzzio the Traveler, 08/2002, R-Meridies]
François la Flamme 2001.10 No evidence has been found that the bynames the Wanderer or the Traveler were used in English in period. However, they are both SCA compatible. Though the correct modern spelling is Traveler, the spelling that has been registered most often is Traveller. Therefore, this byname is registerable in both the spelling the Traveler and the Traveller. [Mihrimah the Traveler, 10/01, R-Ansteorra, returned for two weirdnesses]
 
the Wanderer
François la Flamme 2003.04 The submitter requested an authentic name for 14th to 16th C Polish with the meaning 'John the elder, who travels'. [...]

Nebuly found information information regarding the elements in this name:

[...] The word podró{z dot above}nika is the feminine form of podró{z dot above}nik, and so is grammatically out of place in an otherwise masculine name. I can find no evidence that this was a period byname, and think it unlikely a person would be known by two descriptive bynames. The only byname I've found with the submitter's intended meaning is Wandrownyk (SSNO, s.n. W{e,}drownik), but again I think the name "The older John, the wanderer" is unlikely for having two descriptive bynames.

This name would be registerable as Jan Starszy 'John the elder' or as Jan Wandrownyk 'John the wanderer'. However, both of these options are major changes. As the submitter did not allow major changes, we must return this name. [Jan Starszy Podró{z.}nika, 04/2003 LoAR, R-East]

François la Flamme 2002.09 Submitted as Agnieszka the Wanderer, the submitter requested authenticity for 13th C Polish. Nebuly found information about period forms of this name:

The submitted spelling Agnieszka is the standard modern spelling for that name in Polish. It is my experience working with the SSNO that soft consonants were not indicated in period spellings (there wouldn't be an i after n in the name), and this is supported by the spellings in the SSNO: Agnesca, Agneschka, Agneszka. Since the client asks for a 13th century name, I'd recommend changing the given name to Agneszka.

The byname the Wanderer is ruled SCA-compatible, and there is a period Polish equivalent. The Polish for "wanderer" is w�ndrownik, which appears under that heading in the SSNO in the name Stanek Wandrownyk, dated 1397.

The name is registerable as submitted, but if the client would likea fully authentic Polish name, the period feminine equivalent would be Agneszka Wandrownyka.

We have changed the given name to the form recommended by Nebuly in order to register this name and to partially meet the submitter's request for authenticity. As she only allowed minor changes, and changing the language of the byname from the English the Wanderer to the Polish Wandrownyka is a major change, we were unable to change the name to the completely Polish form recommended by Nebuly. The byname the Wanderer is a Lingua Anglica translation of the Polish byname found by Nebuly and therefore does not count as a weirdness. [Agneszka the Wanderer, 09/2002 LoAR, A-Meridies]

François la Flamme 2001.12 The byname the Wanderer is SCA compatible. This name has one weirdness for use of an SCA-compatible name phrase. Since the entire name is English, there is no additional weirdness for lingual mix and this name is registerable. [Joel the Wanderer, 12/01, A-Artemisia]
François la Flamme 2001.10 No evidence has been found that the bynames the Wanderer or the Traveler were used in English in period. However, they are both SCA compatible. Though the correct modern spelling is Traveler, the spelling that has been registered most often is Traveller. Therefore, this byname is registerable in both the spelling the Traveler and the Traveller. [Mihrimah the Traveler, 10/01, R-Ansteorra, returned for two weirdnesses]
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2001.07 [the Wanderer] She requested an authentic English name. However, the name is not authentic, as it combines a Gaelic given name with an SCA compatible byname. [Morag the Wanderer, 07/01, A-Artemisia]
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1996.05 [Wanderer] The byname, for all its enormous popularity in the SCA, remains unattested in English. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR May 1996, p. 5)
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1995.12 [registering Johan Gregor the Wanderer] Contrary to the assertion in the LoI, the Wanderer is not a standard English byname; it is a standard SCA byname for which no period citation has yet been found. (Talan Gwynek, LoAR December 1995, p. 8)
 
Dark-
Da'ud ibn Auda (2nd tenure, 2nd year) 1994.08 Though registered a number of times in the SCA, "dark" does not appear to be an element used in English placenames. You might tell the submitter that she would do better with Blackmoor or Swarthmoor. [The name was registered.] (Aveline of Darkmoore, 8/94 p. 5)
 
Dragon-
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.02 [Dragonhurst] No evidence was supplied that Dragon- was a period element in placenames. Drakehurst would be significantly more authentic. Nevertheless, a cursory search found over 30 SCA names with Dragon-<X> as locatives. Therefore Dragonhurst is SCA compatible. [Anne of Dragonhurst, 02/00, A-Middle]
 
Phoenix
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.03 Precedence bars the use of Phoenix in English in SCA group names. The return of the name Coombe Phoenix (March 1998) says -- The evidence that medieval English people were familiar with the legendary phoenix is not relevant unless one can demonstrate a pattern that they named places after legendary monsters. There are cultures where such a pattern might be demonstrated � Germany seems to be fairly prone to such things � but not for England...Therefore, barring evidence that Phoenix was used in English place-names, or at least that mythological animals were used, it cannot be used in English in SCA group names. [Phoenix River, Shire of, 03/00, R-Meridies]
Jaelle of Armida 1998.03 [Coombe Phoenix, Shire of] This is being returned for non-period construction. The use of coombe in otherwise-English place names is acceptable, since it is found in such names as Combwich, Combwell, Comhampton, Compton, Combrook, and presumably Coombe Hill, assuming that this isn't a reanalysis of some other element; all of which refer to the second element as being situated in a coombe. The use of coombe with an ownership element (indicating either the family owning it, or a nearby town it is associated with) can have the element follow or precede, as in: Combe Raleigh, Combe Hay, Combe Royal -- all of which have the owner following; or Abbas Combe, English Combe (from a personal name, not the adjective "English", according to Ekwall), Castle Combe -- with the owner preceding. We presume that the Coombe Fishacre in Devonshire is associated with the town of Fishacre, also in that shire (see Reaney & Wilson's entry for Fishacre). Combeinteignhead, as Ekwall notes, is simply identifying the location of this particular coombe (in Tenhide).

There are actually very few examples where an ordinary adjective or noun is used to modify coombe -- Ekwall's North Coombe and South Coombe fall in this category, and perhaps Castle Coombe, depending on how one interprets it. But these all have the modifier first and the modifiers are quite ordinary topography-related terms. Based on these patterns, Coombe Phoenix would be plausible as a period English placename only if Phoenix were either a period English family name, the name of an existing town, village, or structure, or a period English topographic term. The evidence that medieval English people were familiar with the legendary phoenix is not relevant unless one can demonstrate a pattern that they named places after legendary monsters. There are cultures where such a pattern might be demonstrated -- Germany seems to be fairly prone to such things -- but not for England. The example of Compton Scorpion is not an example of this, but rather an example of the habit of re-interpreting unfamiliar archaic name elements. Ekwall shows period citations of this place name as Compton Scorfen 1279, Compton Scorefen 1316. (Unfortunately Speed's 1611 atlas fails to provide an end-of-period example, unless the location is identical with his Fenny Compton.) The name has nothing to do with scorpions and very much to do with boggy ground. Therefore, barring evidence that Phoenix was used in English place-names, or at least that mythological animals were used, it cannot be used in English in SCA group names. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR March 1998)

 
Wyvern
Elsbeth Anne Roth 2000.06 No documentation was provided to demonstrate that Wyvernskeep is a reasonably constructed placename. The College could not provide such evidence either. [Edward of Wyvernskeep, 06/00, R-Calontir]
 
-crest
François la Flamme 2001.11 [crest and keep] The element crest falls into the same category as keep. In both cases, we do not have evidence of that element used in a formal place name in period, though we have evidence of each as a geographical element. Bardsley (p. 216 s.n. Crest) dates both Rogerus del Crest and Johannes del Crest to 1379. Bardsley (p. 441 s.n. Keep) dates William atte Kep to 18 Edw. I, Roger Kep to I Edw. III, and Richard atte Kippe to I Edw. III. Reaney & Wilson (p. 261 s.n. Keep) dates Thomas ate Kepe to 1327 and Roger de Kepe to 1332.

Keep has long been used as part of SCA branch names. The most recent registration is Crossrode Keep, Shire of (registered November 1999 via Ansteorra). This element is effectively regarded as SCA compatible as an element in an English place name. Given the forms in which it has been registered, spellings of the element Keep are registerable both as a separate element (such as Crossrode Keep), and as the final element in a compound place name (such as Northkeep). Registerable spellings include Keep and any alternate spellings which may be documented to period (including those listed above).

Similarly, there has been enough interest in the element crest, including as recently as 1999, to rule it SCA compatible in an English place name. Unlike keep, crest is not registerable as a separate element. So, Ravencrest is a registerable placename, though Ravenwood Crest, for example, is not. [Tristan Ravencrest, 11/01, A-Æthelmearc]
 
-haven
 
-keep / Keep
François la Flamme 2002.07 The submitter requested authenticity for 12th C English. The byname Ravenskeep was undocumented in the LoI except for noting its registration as a household name, which the submitter cannot claim under the Grandfather Clause. The element -keep was upheld as SCA compatible in the LoAR of November 2001:

Keep has long been used as part of SCA branch names. The most recent registration is Crossrode Keep, Shire of (registered November 1999 via Ansteorra). This element is effectively regarded as SCA compatible as an element in an English place name. Given the forms in which it has been registered, spellings of the element Keep are registerable both as a separate element (such as Crossrode Keep), and as the final element in a compound place name (such as Northkeep). [Tristan Ravencrest, Æthelmearc-A, LoAR 11/2001]

The College found evidence of English placenames that include Ravens- as a protheme, making Ravenkeep a registerable placename, with one weirdness for use of an SCA compatible element (-keep). [Michael of Ravenskeep, 07/2002, A-Outlands]

François la Flamme 2001.11 [crest and keep] The element crest falls into the same category as keep. In both cases, we do not have evidence of that element used in a formal place name in period, though we have evidence of each as a geographical element. Bardsley (p. 216 s.n. Crest) dates both Rogerus del Crest and Johannes del Crest to 1379. Bardsley (p. 441 s.n. Keep) dates William atte Kep to 18 Edw. I, Roger Kep to I Edw. III, and Richard atte Kippe to I Edw. III. Reaney & Wilson (p. 261 s.n. Keep) dates Thomas ate Kepe to 1327 and Roger de Kepe to 1332.

Keep has long been used as part of SCA branch names. The most recent registration is Crossrode Keep, Shire of (registered November 1999 via Ansteorra). This element is effectively regarded as SCA compatible as an element in an English place name. Given the forms in which it has been registered, spellings of the element Keep are registerable both as a separate element (such as Crossrode Keep), and as the final element in a compound place name (such as Northkeep). Registerable spellings include Keep and any alternate spellings which may be documented to period (including those listed above).

Similarly, there has been enough interest in the element crest, including as recently as 1999, to rule it SCA compatible in an English place name. Unlike keep, crest is not registerable as a separate element. So, Ravencrest is a registerable placename, though Ravenwood Crest, for example, is not. [Tristan Ravencrest, 11/01, A-Æthelmearc]
Jaelle of Armida 1997.07 [registering Sylvana Evelune de Aneslea] Submitted as Sylvana Evangeline of Ansley Keep, [...] There is no evidence for keep in period place�names; we have changed the place name to the closest period form. (Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1997, p. 7)
 
-rest
François la Flamme 2002.04 No documentation was presented and none was found that Rest is a plausible toponymic element in a period English placename. The LoI stated that "[a] rest is a stopping place, or a lodging place, as for travelers or pilgrims, according to the Compact Oxford English Dictionary". Ferrule noted that the COED (p. 544) dates this use of rest to 1225. However, evidence that a word existed in English in period is not documentation that it is a plausible element in an English placename. As no member of the College could find any evidence that Rest was used as a toponymic in an English placename, it is not registerable in that use.

Rest has only been registered as a toponymic element a total of seventeen times (not including holding names based on a registered branch name). The most recent registration was of Household Stone's Rest (registered October 1998). The next most recent registration was in 1992. Therefore, the element Rest does not have the same level of popularity as elements that have been ruled SCA-compatible as toponymics in placenames, including Keep. Lacking such continuous popularity, this element is not SCA compatible.

There are two differences between the elements Keep and -crest, which are SCA compatible, and Rest, which is not. As discussed in the November 2001 LoAR (s.n. Tristan Ravencrest), there are examples of period bynames that use forms of keep and crest, including Rogerus del Crest which Bardsley (p. 216 s.n. Crest) dates to 1379, and Thomas ate Kepe which Reaney & Wilson (p. 261 s.n. Keep) date to 1327. No bynames of this form have been found using a form of rest. Also, Keep and -crest have been more popular in recent years than Rest. It is these two main factors which grant Keep and -crest the benefit of the doubt and make them SCA compatible, where Rest is not. [Hawk's Rest, Shire of, 04/2002, R-Atenveldt]

Elsbeth Anne Roth 1999.08 No one was able to find documentation that -rest was used as an element in place names. [see LoAR for complete discussion of hypothetical use of "rest"] [Dragon's Rest, Shire of, 08/99, R-Artemisia]
 
Silver
Shauna of Carrick Point 2004.05 Using a placename in an Order name was declared a step from period practice in 11/96. However, Argent Snail argues, "If you look at the list of order names, there are ones that have place names in them, usually because there is more than one order with the same name -eg the Order of Saint Jaelle of Jersusalem and the Order of Saint Jaelle of London." Meradudd Cethin's "Project Ordensnamen", describes Order names of the form [name+place] as the third most common pattern in the data set. Given such evidence, Order names containing place names are consistent with period practice. However, the Order name Order of the Silver Saddle of Trimaris is one step from period practice. By precedent, use of the descriptive term Silver in an Order name is one step from period practice. [Trimaris, Kingdom of, 05/04, A-Trimaris]
François la Flamme 2004.03 [Order name Order of the Silver Sea Urchin] While we have no documentation that Silver would have been used as an adjective in an order name in period, it has been ruled SCA-compatible for use in order and award names in a position where Golden would be appropriate (see the ruling for Award of the Silver Osprey registered by Atlantia in the May 2003 LoAR). [Stromgard, Barony of, 03/2004, A-Æthelmearc]
François la Flamme 2003.10 [Order name Order of the Silver Sycamore] While we have no documentation that Silver would have been used as an adjective in an order name in period, it has been ruled SCA-compatible for use in order and award names in a position where Golden would be appropriate (see the ruling for Award of the Silver Osprey registered by the Kingdom of Atlantia in the May 2003 LoAR). [Æthelmearc, Kingdom of, 10/2003, A-Æthelmearc]
François la Flamme 2003.06 [Order name The Order of the Silver Alce] While we have no documentation that Silver would have been used as an adjective in an order name in period, it has been ruled SCA-compatible for use in order and award names in a position where Golden would be appropriate (see the ruling for Award of the Silver Osprey registered by Atlantia in the May 2003 LoAR). [Æthelmearc, Kingdom of, 06/2003 LoAR, A-Æthelmearc]
François la Flamme 2003.05 [Order name Award of the Silver Osprey] No documentation was presented and none was found that Silver would have been used as an adjective in an order name in period. Meradudd Cethin's article "Project Ordensnamen OR What do you mean that the Anceint[sic] and Venerable Order of the Most Holy and Righteous Wombat's Toenail isn't period?" (http://heraldry.sca.org/laurel/names/order/) lists a number of order names that use a color as an adjective. However, Gold/Golden is the only metal listed as an adjective. Therefore, while these examples support the construction [color] [charge], including Golden as a color, they do not support the construction [any general metal] [charge].

At this time, there are 43 order and award names registered that include Silver as an adjective. At least one order or award name including Silver as an adjective has been registered every year from 1981 to 2002 (inclusive) except for four years. Given this level of popularity, Silver is SCA-compatible for use in order and award names in any position where Golden is appropriate. [Atlantia, Kingdom of, 05/2003 LoAR, A-Outlands]