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Liam doesn't appear to have been a period diminutive of Uilleam. All the sources that cite Liam do so as a modern diminutive; the period diminutive was Uillec. Without evidence of period use, we can't register Liam. (Uilleam Catach ó Maoilbhreanainn, July, 1992, pg. 24)
The documentation for Delarosa was from Elsdon Smith's New Dictionary of American Family Names, a most untrustworthy source. Delarosa appears to be the Americanized form of the surname; the original Italian would be Della Rosa. The preposition was almost universally separated from the rest of the byname, according to Fucilla. [Name returned since submittor forbade grammatical changes] (Diana Delarosa di Pergola, August, 1992, pg. 23)
The given name was submitted on the strength of a citation in Geirr Bassi's Old Norse Name. This was an error, probably due to multiple photocopying: the actual name is Kadlin, with an edh. (It appears to be the Old Norse form of the Irish Kathlín.) Kaolin turns out to be a common noun, a form of white clay used in making porcelain; as such, it's unacceptable as a given name in the SCA. (Kaolin Karsikko, August, 1992, pg. 30)
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)
Given Withycombe's citation of Danyell in 1379, and Dauzat's citations of Michelle and Gabrielle, Danielle seems a reasonable French feminine form. (Danielle Corinna d'Assisi, September, 1992, pg. 5)
Yonge [History of Christian Names] is no longer considered a trustworthy source. Her main strength is the breadth of languages she covered; for many of those languages (including French) she has been superceded by far more reliable works. (Estevene Grippon, September, 1992, pg. 6)
Though it's been registered in the SCA, Melusine has not been documented as a period given name. The example closest to period is Melusina von der Schulenburg, cited in Withycombe, p.220; she was born in 1667, according to evidence presented for the submission of Melusine Whitcroft the Petite. Susequent registrations of Melusine have depended on this citation.
There are only a bare handful of Melusines registered, and the only documentation is post-1650; I think I can safely disallow the name, pending evidence that it's period. I'd be willing to believe it a variant form of Melisenda, Millicent --- but as it's also the name of a mythical monster, I'd like to see some evidence of its period use by humans. (Melusine d'Argent, October, 1992, pg. 21)
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[Order of Black Widows] While I concede that the words black and widow are period words, the phrase black widow is a modern construction. As with the Artemisian Tank Corps (returned Feb 91), though the parts of the name may be period, the name as a whole is decidedly modern. In previous appeals, the submitters have made clear that the Order's name specifically referred to the black widow spider; and that's certainly how the name will be perceived. No evidence has yet been produced that the spider was known to medieval Europeans, or even to anyone prior to the 19th Century. (It didn't even get the name black widow until the early 20th Century.) Without such evidence, we will not register the creature, by name or in armory. (Kingdom of Trimaris, October, 1992, pg. 33)
[Azaleja] Azaleja is a common noun, Serbo-Croatian for the azalea flower. Its use as a given name is based on Bosanac's Prosvjetin Imenoslov, which is apparently a Serbo-Croatian baby-name book (on a par with most of its American counterparts). (Azaleja Imrah Antoniades, December, 1992, pg. 16)
[Hasim] Hasim doesn't appear to be documented as a period given name. Hanks & Hodges' First Names is evidently not reliable in this case; we need to see some period examples of the name's use. (Hasim Solomon, December, 1992, pg. 16)
Mara was the name taken briefly by Naomi in her bitterness (Ruth 1:20). The Bible presents it as a given name, and evidently it was considered a given name until recently (J. Comay, Who's Who in the Old Testament, p.293). It seems a reasonable given name for Society use. (Mara of the Oak Leaf, January, 1993, pg. 4)
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Abraxa does not appear to be a valid period placename. Its sole use as a placename was in Thomas More's 1516 novel Utopia as the original name of the island of Utopia. The submitter has argued, in an appeal of a return by Lord Vesper, that this demonstrates Abraxa to have been considered a plausible placename in period.
The appeal forgets that More's Utopia is an allegory, with its names being descriptive. They are no more to be taken as valid than the names Pride or Goodman, from medieval morality plays. Given that abraxas is far better documented as a type of incantation or amulet ( OED; 1990 E.Brit., vol.1, p.38), we cannot consider it compatible with period toponymic construction --- or, indeed, with period bynames in general --- without better evidence. (Thomas of Abraxa, January, 1993, pg. 35)
There was some question over whether Blodwen ...is a period given Name. Hanks & Hodges (Dictionary of First Names , p.43) unequivocally date it to the Middle Ages. However, Lady Harpy could find no period examples of the name's use in all her sources; she quotes the opinion of a professor in Medieval Welsh that Blodwen as a name dates from the 19th Century. I'd trust Lady Harpy's expertise in this area far more than that of Hanks & Hodges; but either I must declare Hanks & Hodges completely unreliable, even in their most authoritative statements (as we've done for Yonge), or else give the submitter the benefit of the doubt. Since Blodwen has already been accepted for Society use (LoAR of Sept 92), the latter seems the more generous course. (Blodwen ferch Margred, June, 1993, pg. 10)
Short mottos sometimes became became heraldic titles in period. Franklyn and Tanner's Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Heraldry cites the following: the Ich Dien Pursuivant who served the Prince of Wales, c.1475 (p.179), and Il Faut Faire Pursuivant; maintained by Sir John Falstaf and from his word or motto (p.180). We will accept such heraldic titles on a case by case basis. (East Kingdom, September, 1993, pg. 11)
The Arabic name Rabah is indeed cited as a period masculine given name in "Arabic Naming Practices" by Da'ud ibn Auda, West Kingdom Known World Symposium Proceedings, 1987, p.47. (It's translated as "gain".) Lord Clarion's comment on this submission suggests that the entry may have been a typo, but it certainly isn't the result of over-photocopying, or a mistake on the submitter's part. I'm inclined to give him the benefit of the doubt here. (If it is a typo, it will have to be formally corrected.) (Rabah az-Zafir, October, 1993, pg. 4)
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