Revision Date: 05/30/05
LoARs cited: March 2004 - May 2004

Introduction
What's New
Table of Contents
Precedents

Introduction

Welcome to collection of draft name precedents for the tenure of Shauna of Carrick Point. Which decisions were considered to be important enough to include has been determined by the editor, after discussion with the Laurel Queen of Arms and Pelican Queen of Arms. Not all decisions included are first-time precedents; I have included recent decisions restating several prior important precedents (particularly decisions supporting SCA-compatible names).

For each precedent below, I have quoted the relevant paragraphs from the decision. When there has been the need to delete text within a paragraph, I have indicated the deletion with an ellipses [...]. The source of this text is cited at the end of the decision. Citations take the form of the submitter's registered name (or submitted name for returned name submissions), the date of the LoAR, the status of the decisions (A-Accepted, R-Returned), and the kingdom.  For complete and official decision discussions, please visit the Letter of Acceptance and Returns (LoAR) or Cover Letter referred to in each citation.

To make finding precedents easier, I am maintaining a similar category structure to the ones that were used during the previous two Laurel tenures. Decisions that fit multiple categories will be found in each category.

The following heralds are referred to by title:

al-Jamal - Da'ud ibn Auda Kraken - Evan da Collaureo
Argent Snail - Jaelle of Armida Nebuly - Walraven van Nijmegen
Harpy - Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn Siren - Juliana de Luna

What's New?

Table of Contents (Names)

Administrative
-- Requests for Reconsideration
Anglo-Saxon
Arabic
Branch
Bynames
Chinese
Compatible (Languages) see also Weirdness
Compatible (SCA)
Conflict - Other Names
Conflict - Personal Names
Danish
Deity
Documentation
Dutch
English
Flemish
French
Gaelic (Anglicized) see Irish (Non-Gaelic)
Gaelic (Irish, Manx, Scottish)
German
Given Names
Grammar
Grandfather Clause
Household
Hungarian
Indian
Irish (non-Gaelic)
Italian
Japanese
Jewish
Joke Names
Latin
Legal Name Allowance
Lingua Anglica
Literary Names
Locatives and Place Names
Matronymic see Patronynmic and Matronymic
Mongolian
Mundane Name Allowance see Legal Name Allowance
Norse and Scandinavian
Orders and Awards
Patronymic and Matronymic
Polish
Portuguese see Spanish and Portuguese
Presumption
Rules for Submission (RfS) Citations
-- RfS III (Compatible Naming Style and Grammar)
-- RfS XI.2 (Charge and Name Combinations)
Russian
Saints' Names
Scandinavian see Norse and Scandinavian
Scottish (non-Gaelic)
Scribal Abbreviations
Spanish and Portuguese
Spelling Variants
Swedish see Norse and Scandinavian
Temporal Disparity
Titles
Turkish
Weirdness
Welsh

Precedents


Administrative

The documentation was not adequately summarized on the LoI. It is not sufficient to say that a name appears as a header form in a source; many sources, including the sources used to document this submission, include explicitly modern names and describe them as such in the text. It is necessary to summarize what such a source says about a name and to provide dated examples if possible. If the College had not provided the missing dates and descriptions, we would have been forced to return this submission. [Aidan Alpin of Dunkeld, 05/04, A-Middle]


Listed on the LoI as Judith Wilkinson (of Northampton), the forms and the summarization noted that Judith Wilkinson was the form actually submitted; the form under which the name was listed included an alternative byname to use in case the submitted name was not registerable. Please do not include information about alternative names acceptable to the submitter in parentheses with the submitted name. Instead, please include it in the summary of the documentation and information provided on the form. Putting this information in the header confuses the commenters about which name is being submitted. [Judith Wilkinson, 05/04, A-Meridies]


A note on the forms indicated that the submitter wished to submit the byname van Zweeloo instead of of Frisia. However, this was not the submitted byname, nor is it a form of the submitted byname. Because the submitter did not actually submit Juliana van Zweeloo, we cannot in good conscience change her name so completely and register it.

Submissions heralds should note that the resources of the College of Arms are at their disposal. If a submitter wishes to submit something when documentation should exist but is not available to the submissions herald, that is the time for the herald to avail themselves of these resources. This can be done informally, by asking someone either in person or on any of the kingdom or SCA-wide heraldic mailing lists, or formally by noting that they were unable to document an item and asking the College for help in the submission. [Juliana of Frisia,05/04, A-Middle]


Because Utrecht is a place name and not a generic toponym, the correct form of the byname is van Utrecht. Unfortunately, we are unable to drop the problematic element from this name. In the past, precedent has held that adding or removing a particle is only a minor change. However, according to the College of Arms Glossary published December 2003 "Major changes include dropping an element or phrase..." While der is not a complete phrase, it is a distinct element of the locative name phrase here. Therefore, dropping it would be a major change. We note that Pier van Utrecht is a lovely 15th C Dutch name. [Pier van der Utrecht, 05/04, R-Meridies]


We note that the documentation was not adequately summarized on the LoI, although the College of Arms commenters filled in the blanks. St. Gabriel letters provide extensive footnotes on the sources from which the names are drawn, as well as the dates for most of the names discussed. This information should be included when summarizing documentation from a St. Gabriel report. [Bella Lucia da Verona, 04/04, A-Lochac]


This item was listed on the LoI as belonging to Lochac, Kingdom of. Submissions for branches should be listed under the branch name, not the kingdom name. Names and armory of branches within a kingdom are owned by the branch, not by the Kingdom.[Saint Basil the Great, College of, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Return to Table of Contents


Administrative -- Requests for Reconsideration

Submitted as Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, her name was registered in October 2003 as Katherine Fraser of Lochdoy to meet the submitter's request for an authentic Scottish name. The submitter requested a reconsideration of her originally submitted name, dropping the request for authenticity. The originally submitted form of her name, which combined a Flemish given name with Scots bynames, is certainly registerable. There is substantial contact between Flanders and Scotland from the 12th C on onward including large Flemish households in Scottish burghs. That names should combine elements from both naming pools is expected. [Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, 05/04, A-Artemsia]


Return to Table of Contents


Anglo-Saxon

Listed on the LoI as Alric æt Mæidesstana, the preposition was submitted as of but changed to æt in kingdom in the belief that æt was the Old English equivalent of the modern English of. As the Old English preposition meaning of is of, we have returned this name to the originally submitted form. [Alric of Mæidesstana, 05/04, A-Aethelmearc]


Submitted as House Gunnulf, the submitter requested an Old English designator for House. Siren found a citation from the OED for Aarones hus dated to c. 1000. We have changed this name to the equivalent for Gunnulf: Gunnulfes hus. [Birgir inn Blakki, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Arabic

Submitted as Shajarat ad-durr al-Mãhdukht al-Zarqá, the phrase Shajarat ad-durr is the regnal name (not given name) of the first Sultana of the Bahri Mamluks, who came to power in 1246 upon their overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt. This is a type of name used to denote royalty; its use in an SCA name is a claim to rank. Furthermore, this particular regnal name appears to be unique, which also makes it inappropriate for registration.

The element al-Mãkdukht had several problems. First, al-Jamal states that Mãhdukht is a transcription error for M{a-}hdukht The name M{a-}hdukht is a Persian name; combining it with the Arabic al mixes Persian and Arabic in a single name phrase, in violation of RfS III.1.a. The byname al-Zarqá has a transcription error as well; the correct form is al-Zarqa'. In order to register the name, we have dropped the problematic elements and corrected the transcription of the remaining parts, giving M{a-}dukht al-Zarqa'. [M{a-}hdukht al-Zarqa', 05/04, A-Trimaris]


al-Jamal notes that "as a general rule, Arabic places the bynames (like al-Tayyib) at the end of the name, unless such are being used as an 'ism, a given name, which is not the case here.". The submitter will not accept major changes, so this name must be returned. In resubmitting, we suggest the form Mikha'il ibn Khalid ibn Ahmad al-Gharnatii al-Tayyib. [Mikha'il al-Tayyib ibn Khalid ibn Ahmad al-Tayyib al-Gharnatii, 05/04, R-West]


Return to Table of Contents


Branch

This name was justified as a constructed English placename; however, the constructions are not plausible as submitted. Two possible derivations were presented by the submitters and the College to explain this construction, but neither held up under scrutiny:

We would change this name to one of the forms suggested above. However, the group will not accept changes. [Rivermoor, Shire of, 05/04, R-Trimaris]


This item was listed on the LoI as belonging to Lochac, Kingdom of. Submissions for branches should be listed under the branch name, not the kingdom name. Names and armory of branches within a kingdom are owned by the branch, not by the Kingdom.[Saint Basil the Great, College of, 04/04, A-Lochac]


This submission asked whether Lyceum was a valid alternate designator for a College. The Lyceum was the proper name of the garden in Athens in which Aristotle taught his philosophy. The word does not appear be have been used as a designator for a school until well after 1600. Barring such evidence, Lyceum cannot be used as a designator in non-personal names, although it could be used as part of the descriptive element of such names. In addition, even if such evidence were available, we are unwilling to declare Lyceum the equivalent of College and thereby reserve its use to official SCA groups, especially in light of the fact that there is already a Latin equivalent, Collegium. [Litoris Longi, Lyceum, 03/04, R-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Bynames

Submitted as Constance inghean Conchobair, the patronymic mixes a Middle Irish Gaelic patronymic with the Early Modern Irish Gaelic patronymic particle. In addition, Gaelic grammar requires that patronymics beginning with the letter C must lenite or soften when used as part of a feminine name. Therefore, we have changed the name to Constance ingen Chonchobair to make the patronymic temporally consistent and to correct the grammar. [Constance ingen Chonchobair, 05/04, A-Middle]


As there is an Early Modern Irish descriptive byname, Maol, which means bald, this name is registerable under the Lingua Anglica allowance. A fully Early Modern Irish form of this name is Coileán Maol. [Cuilén the Bald, 05/04, A-Meridies]


There was some discussion among the commenters as to the correct form of the byname, noting that it fell somewhere between Senchaid, the normalized Middle Irish Gaelic form, and Seanchaidh, the Early Modern Irish Gaelic form. Since the submitter has documented the submitted spelling, Senchaidh, in the Annals of Ulster, the submitted form is fine. [Cúán Senchaidh Ua Suillebáin, 04/04, A-Northshield]


This is returned because the documentation in Reaney & Wilson states specifically that Sealeaf is a modern form. Reaney and Wilson claim only a very speculative derivation from period citations. In most cases, header forms are plausible for period and so are registerable. However, precedent (most notably regarding modern forms in Ó Corráin & Maguire) states that header forms which are modern may not be registerable. Reaney and Wilson date a form of this name, Seloue, to 1308. However, as this changes both the sound and appearance of the name, it is judged to be a major change, which the submitter does not allow. [Elizabeth Sealeaf, 04/04, R-Caid]


The byname Stoneheart is not an epithetical name constructed on period English naming patterns. The documentation presented two arguments. The first argument was that this might be a variant of the surname Stannard. However, neither Reaney and Wilson nor Bardsley show a variant of this name ending in -heart. The second argument was that it was a similar constuction to the pattern hard-object+body-part, such as Ironfoot. However, no examples of stone-+bodypart were found, nor were examples of mineral-+-heart. [Eve Stoneheart the Wagand, 05/04, R-Middle]


No dates were provided for the byname Bizzarro; it is documented only as a header spelling in De Felice's Dizionario dei Cognomi Italiani. However, the submitter made no requests for authenticity. When (1) a name is listed in De Felice, (2) the documentation includes no indication that it is post-period, and (3) the name follows naming patterns documented to period, we have traditionally given the submitter the benefit of the doubt by assuming it was used in period and is therefore registerable. [Giovanni Bizzarro, 04/04, A-Caid]


The submitter requested authenticity for the Heian period (794-1184). However, the family name, Kaitou, is documented from the Kamakura period (1184-1333). Barring documentation that Kaitou was a surname in use during the Heian period, we are unable to fulfill the submitter's request for authenticity. [Kaitou Naeme, 04/04, A-Northshield]


This name is returned for a number of reasons. First, the documentation for the place name Risna is insufficient to determine whether this is a reasonable transcription of a period place name. The name is found in an index to an English translation of a Victorian-era history of Russia; the date is attached to a different spelling, Riasno, to which Risna is cross referenced. The index gives no indication whether the spellings are period forms, if they are normalized, or if the modern names are used. Without this information, we cannot register this spelling. If the submitter wishes to research this name further, finding the work in which this name is found, Vol. 4 Russia Under the Tatar Yoke, 1228-1389, Helen Y. Prochazka, London, England, and seeing what it says about it and about how the names are handled would be useful. In future uses of this source as documentation, submitters should include enough information from the introduction to explain how names are treated. For further research, the submitter may consider searching for Ryasna in Belarus, which is probably the preferred modern name for this place.

The second problem is that the name mixes an English given name with a Lithuanian byname. As no documentation was submitted showing contact between these two cultures, and none found by the College, such combinations cannot be registered. The submitter may want to consider using a German form of Katherne, since there was contact between Germany and Lithuania in period. Some forms are Katherin 1337, Katherine 1366, and Kethe 1365.

Finally, the name combines a German preposition with a Lithuanian name in the same name phrase. The Rule for Submission III.1.a says "Each phrase must be grammatically correct according to the usage of a single language." Barring documentation that Risna is a German form of this place name, these two words cannot be combined in a name phrase. A better alternative would be to use an appropriate Lithuanian form for the locative byname. However, since we do not know the appropriate form for the place name, we are unable to suggest its byname form. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac]

The form of the byname is also problematic. In February 1998, Laurel disallowed called the X style bynames in English. Lacking evidence of this style of byname was used in English names in our period, this construction continues to be a reason for return. [Karolyne, called the Wanderer, 03/04, R-Caid]


The submitter requested authenticity for English language/culture and allowed minor changes. The OED lists the spelling Egyptian referring to a gypsy in 1609 and from the late 14th C onward dates various forms of the word as an adjective. [Rebecca the Egyptian, 03/04, A-Meridies]


Some commenters questioned whether Blue was a reasonable descriptive byname. Bardsley, s.n. Blew, lists Blue in the header, dates Henry Blewe to the 16th century, and cites le Blue as an earlier form. [Robert the Blue03/04, A-Ealdomere]


Submitted as Willeam of the Green Pants, the OED dates the first occurrance of the word pants to 1846. Barring evidence that the word pants occurs before 1600, it cannot be registered. Since the submitter will accept all changes, and since he obviously wants to be identified by his green pants, we have changed the byname to Grenetrewis, a hypothetical descriptive byname constructed from two 16th century Scots words, grene (green) and trewis (trews). [Willeam Grenetrewis, 03/04, A-West]


Return to Table of Contents


Chinese

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Compatible (Lanugage)
see alsoWeirdness

This name combines a Spanish given name with an Anglicized Irish surname. Names mixing Spanish and Anglicized Gaelic elements are not registerable [Sanchia O'Connor 7/97]. Nebuly puts it succinctly: "Withycombe does indeed document the given name Teresa to 1515-82, but as a Spanish name." [Teresa Mac Connelly, 05/04, R-Caid]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots orthographies, which is one step from period practice. [Caitrina de Bruce the Fowler, 04/04, A-Artemesia]


The submitter requested an authentic name with "the first name Norse and the second name Scottish." While there is a great deal of evidence for Norsemen adopting Gaelic names and vice versa, there is no evidence that Norse and Gaelic orthographies were combined in this manner. This name combines Norse and Gaelic orthographies, which has been ruled one step from period practice. As submitted, it's not authentic although it is registerable.

To make this name authentic, it should be in entirely in either Norse orthography or Gaelic orthography. An entirely Norse form would be Einarr Domnalsson; Talan Gwynek's draft article "Old Norse Forms of Early Irish Names" gives Domnall as the normalized form of the runic "tomnal", which is found in an inscription on a 12th C Icelandic sword hilt. As the College has been unable to find a Gaelic form of Einarr, we cannot speculate on a fully Gaelic form of this name. [Einarr mac Dhòmhnuill, 04/04, A-Calontir]


By precedent, combining French and German in a single name is one step from period practice. [Gabrielle von Friedrichsthal, 04/04, A-Calontir]


While not in itself a reason for return, the name mixes English and Spanish, which is a step from period practice. The given name, Isabella, was documented from Withycombe, The Oxford Dictionary of English Given Names. Unfortunately, Withycombe is an unreliable source for names outside of England. The Spanish form of Isabella is Isabel or Ysabel; the name is found in these spellings from the 13th through the 16th C. If the submitter is interested in an authentic Spanish name, we suggest that she use one of these spellings. [Isabella Maria-Magdalena Fernandes de Chaves, 05/04, R-Trimaris] <Ed. note: Returned for other reasons>


The second problem is that the name mixes an English given name with a Lithuanian byname. As no documentation was submitted showing contact between these two cultures, and none found by the College, such combinations cannot be registered. The submitter may want to consider using a German form of Katherne, since there was contact between Germany and Lithuania in period. Some forms are Katherin 1337, Katherine 1366, and Kethe 1365.

Finally, the name combines a German preposition with a Lithuanian name in the same name phrase. The Rule for Submission III.1.a says "Each phrase must be grammatically correct according to the usage of a single language." Barring documentation that Risna is a German form of this place name, these two words cannot be combined in a name phrase. A better alternative would be to use an appropriate Lithuanian form for the locative byname. However, since we do not know the appropriate form for the place name, we are unable to suggest its byname form. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


This name mixes an English place name with an otherwise Scots name; such a mixture was declared one step from period practice in September 2001. However, many Scots name forms are identical to English name forms. Furthermore, many of the standard sources used by the SCA College of Arms, including the Oxford English Dictionary and Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames, make no distinction between English and Scots forms. We are therefore overturning this precedent, and declaring that names combining Scots and English forms are no longer considered a step from period practice. [Michael Duncan of Hadley, 04/04, A-Caid]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots, which is one step from period practice. [Muireadhach Fairley, 04/04, A-Lochac]


The name combines English and Flemish. Barring documentation of such combinations, this is one step from period practice. [Rosalind Ryne, 04/04, A-Lochac]


While we know of no examples where Norse and Russian are used in the same name, there is enough contact between the cultures for this to be only one step from period practice.

The submitter specified an interest in having the name be authentic for a language and/or culture, he did not specify which culture. We are, therefore, not able to change the name to meet this request. The name Ari viligisl would be an entirely Norse form. We were unable to find an entirely Russian form.  [Arii viligisl, 03/04, A-Caid]


This name adds an Italian placename to an otherwise Spanish name. Although the submitter provided documentation for Soldano as a placename in period, no documentation was provided that this particular form was used in Spain. A Laurel precedent of August 2001 holds that combining Spanish and Italian in a single name is a step from period practice, hence registerable.  [Diego Rivera de Soldano, 03/04, A-Caid]

Mixing Gaelic and English orthography in the same name is vanishingly rare and is considered one step from period practice. [Eithne of Brechin03/04, A-Caid]


The combination of Russian and French is at least a step from period practice. A fully French form of this name is Taurin Sanglier. [Tauron Sanglier, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Compatible (SCA)
see alsoWeirdness
Note: This section is arranged by name, rather than by date.

By longstanding precedent, the Gaelic name Deirdre is SCA-compatible. [Deirdre Oilithreach, 04/04, A-Caid]


Ian has been ruled SCA-compatible. [Ian Gordon, 05/04, A-Meridies]


[...] The submitter noted she will accept her legal given name Keryl; however, this introduces a new problem. The use of a legal given name which has not been documented as a period name is one step from period practice:

If the name element can be documented as being used in the submitted position in period, there is no weirdness for use of this name element. As an example, if John is submitted as a masculine given name under the Legal Name Allowance, there is no weirdness for use of this element, because it is documentable as a masculine given name in English in period. On the other hand, if Craig is submitted as a masculine given name under the Legal Name Allowance, there would be a weirdness for use of this element. In this case, Craig would be the submitter's legal given name. While Craig is a commonly accepted masculine given name today, no evidence has been found of it being used as a given name in period. It is registerable as a given name only through the Legal Name Allowance and so carries a weirdness.

Using an an SCA compatible name element such as the Wanderer is also a step from period practice. As Keryl the Wanderer would be two steps from period practice, we cannot make these changes either. [Karolyne, called the Wanderer, 03/04, R-Caid] <Ed: Returned for this and other reasons>


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]


Return to Table of Contents


Conflict - Other Names

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Conflict - Personal Names
Note: This section is arranged by name, rather than by date.

This is being returned for presumption against Saint Alban, also known as Alban of England. Albion is the old name for Britain/England in both Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (History of the English Church and People) and in Laymon's Brut, an early Middle English history of Britain. Although we have no reference to Saint Alban by the name submitted here, the allusion is too strong. [Alban de Albion, 05/04, R-Meridies]


This name conflicts with Ainar Magnusson, registered in January, 2000. Einarr and Ainar are nearly identical in sound and appearance. The bynames Magnúsarson and Magnusson only differ in sound by a single syllable, and both mean son of Magnus. [Einarr Magnúsarson,03/04, R-Meridies]


Conflict with Eithne ni Chailein (02/96) and Eithne ní Chaillin (05/96). According to the 04/2002 precedent, there is no difference given between <ingen> and <ni>, and the patronyms in both cases are too similar in sound. [Eithne ingen Chuilind, 04/04, R-Calontir]


This name does not conflict with the registered name Johannes Gordan. There is sufficient difference in sound and appearance between Johannes and Ian to avoid conflict between the two names. [Ian Gordon, 05/04, A-Meridies]


This name does not conflict with Kenneth MacAlpin, king of Scotland. Kenneth and Kendel have different middle and end sounds, and the spellings are different enough to avoid confusion between the two names. [Kendal Macalpin, 05/04, A-Middle]


This name does not conflict with Malcolm MacDhomnuill. Dhomnull and Donnchad are sufficiently different in sound and appearance that neither these names nor patronymics formed from these names conflict. [Máel Coluim Mac Donnchaid, 05/04, A-Meridies]


This name conflicts with Temur Khan, grandson of Kublai Khan. Temur Khan was Emperor of China and has his own entry in Britannica Online. Although the names do not have the same meaning, they are nearly identical in sound and appearance. Just as we would protect the names of kings of European kingdoms, it is appropriate to protect the names of Chinese emperors. [Temur Khana, 04/04, R-Atenveldt]


Conflict with the registered name Vladimir Dragonovich. Both Dragonovich and Dragos syn are patronymics meaning "son of Dragos". RfS V.1.a.ii.a says, "Two bynames of relationship are significantly different if the natures of the relationships or the objects of the relationships are significantly different. [Vladimir Dragos syn, 04/04, R-Atenveldt]


Return to Table of Contents


Danish

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Deity

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Documentation

This name is returned for a number of reasons. First, the documentation for the place name Risna is insufficient to determine whether this is a reasonable transcription of a period place name. The name is found in an index to an English translation of a Victorian-era history of Russia; the date is attached to a different spelling, Riasno, to which Risna is cross referenced. The index gives no indication whether the spellings are period forms, if they are normalized, or if the modern names are used. Without this information, we cannot register this spelling. If the submitter wishes to research this name further, finding the work in which this name is found, Vol. 4 Russia Under the Tatar Yoke, 1228-1389, Helen Y. Prochazka, London, England, and seeing what it says about it and about how the names are handled would be useful. In future uses of this source as documentation, submitters should include enough information from the introduction to explain how names are treated. For further research, the submitter may consider searching for Ryasna in Belarus, which is probably the preferred modern name for this place. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


Return to Table of Contents


Dutch

None
Return to Table of Contents


English

This is being returned for presumption against Saint Alban, also known as Alban of England. Albion is the old name for Britain/England in both Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (History of the English Church and People) and in Laymon's Brut, an early Middle English history of Britain. Although we have no reference to Saint Alban by the name submitted here, the allusion is too strong. [Alban de Albion, 05/04, R-Meridies]


Listed on the LoI as Alric æt Mæidesstana, the preposition was submitted as of but changed to æt in kingdom in the belief that æt was the Old English equivalent of the modern English of. As the Old English preposition meaning of is of, we have returned this name to the originally submitted form. [Alric of Mæidesstana, 05/04, A-Aethelmearc]


This name combines English and Gaelic elements in a single name; this is one step from period practice. The double given names Caitlin Christiana are grandfathered to the submitter, whose name Caitlin Christiana Rosa del León was registered in 1987. The Grandfather Clause allows a submitter to register name elements from a previously registered name, so long as they are used in the same manner and exactly the same spelling as in the previously registered name and no new violations of the Rules for Submissions exist in the new name that did not exist in the registered name. Therefore, we must ask if the changes in byname and name construction introduce a new violation of the Rules for Submission that was not present in the original submission. They does not. Instead, the change from Rosa del León to Wintour reduces the number of languages in this name. Therefore, this name is registerable via the Grandfather Clause. [Caitlin Christiana Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


The byname Stoneheart is not an epithetical name constructed on period English naming patterns. The documentation presented two arguments. The first argument was that this might be a variant of the surname Stannard. However, neither Reaney and Wilson nor Bardsley show a variant of this name ending in -heart. The second argument was that it was a similar constuction to the pattern hard-object+body-part, such as Ironfoot. However, no examples of stone-+bodypart were found, nor were examples of mineral-+-heart. [Eve Stoneheart the Wagand, 05/04, R-Middle]


This name combines English and German elements, which is one step from period practice. Some commenters wondered whether Rheinfels was a period spelling for this name, but no one found a period citation for this undoubtedly period castle. Therefore, we are giving the submitter the benefit of the doubt for the spelling of the byname. [Godfrey von Rheinfels, 05/04, A-Atenveldt]


While not in itself a reason for return, the name mixes English and Spanish, which is a step from period practice. The given name, Isabella, was documented from Withycombe, The Oxford Dictionary of English Given Names. Unfortunately, Withycombe is an unreliable source for names outside of England. The Spanish form of Isabella is Isabel or Ysabel; the name is found in these spellings from the 13th through the 16th C. If the submitter is interested in an authentic Spanish name, we suggest that she use one of these spellings. [Isabella Maria-Magdalena Fernandes de Chaves, 05/04, R-Trimaris] <Ed. note: Returned for other reasons>


Submitted as Jonah Mac Coghlan, the submitter requested authenticity for 12th to 14th C Irish and accepted minor changes. However, Jonah is documented as a post-Reformation English name. Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames, s.n. Mac Cochlain, notes M'Cochlane and M'Coghlane as late period Anglicized forms of this name. We have changed the name to Jonah M'Coghlane to comply as much as possible with his request for authenticity. [Jonah M'Coghlane, 05/04, A-Atlantia]


Submitted as Mathildis De'Ath, the byname De'Ath was documented as a header spelling in Reaney and Wilson. In most cases, header forms are plausible for period and so are registerable. However, precedent (most notably regarding modern forms in Ó Corráin & Maguire) has ruled that header forms which are modern may not be registerable. Reaney and Wilson regard the derivation of the byname from "de Athe" as plausible, but spend far more time giving good solid English derivations from "death" and "deeth". In addition, neither Reaney and Wilson nor Bardsley give any dated examples using the apostrophe. We have, therefore, changed the byname to the form Death, dated in Reaney and Wilson to the time of Edward I, and in Bardsley to 1598. [Mathildis Death, 05/04, A-Middle]


Submitted as Melisende Alix de la Croix, the submitter included a citation from a modern work for a queen of Jerusalem named Melisende. This queen is widely known by this spelling today. However, documents contemporary to her spell her name Melissent. The College was unable to locate an example of this spelling in period. Lacking evidence that Melisende is a plausible period form, it is not registerable. The College located a number of variant spellings of this name, including Melissent, Milsenda and Milesenda. These variants support a hypothetical spelling Melisenda, and we have changed the given name to that spelling. [Melisenda Alix de la Croix, 05/04, A-Trimaris]


This name combines a Spanish given name with an Anglicized Irish surname. Names mixing Spanish and Anglicized Gaelic elements are not registerable [Sanchia O'Connor 7/97]. Nebuly puts it succinctly: "Withycombe does indeed document the given name Teresa to 1515-82, but as a Spanish name." [Teresa Mac Connelly, 05/04, R-Caid]


This is returned because the documentation in Reaney & Wilson states specifically that Sealeaf is a modern form. Reaney and Wilson claim only a very speculative derivation from period citations. In most cases, header forms are plausible for period and so are registerable. However, precedent (most notably regarding modern forms in Ó Corráin & Maguire) states that header forms which are modern may not be registerable. Reaney and Wilson date a form of this name, Seloue, to 1308. However, as this changes both the sound and appearance of the name, it is judged to be a major change, which the submitter does not allow. [Elizabeth Sealeaf, 04/04, R-Caid]


Submitted as Emma Idunn, this name combines an English given name and an Old Norse given name. Because Old Norse does not use unmarked patronymics, Idunn is not a properly formed byname. The properly constructed Old Norse form would be Idunsdottir.

To make this name registerable, the byname must either be changed to a close English form or to the properly constructed Old Norse form. Because a name mixing Middle English and Old Norse is one step from period practice, we have changed this name to Emma Idone, an all English form. Unmarked patronymics are common in English. Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames, dates this spelling of the byname to 1327. The change from Idunn to Idone is also a smaller change in sound and appearance than the change from Idunn to Idunsdottir.[Emma Idone, 05/04, A-Aethelmearc]


The second problem is that the name mixes an English given name with a Lithuanian byname. As no documentation was submitted showing contact between these two cultures, and none found by the College, such combinations cannot be registered. The submitter may want to consider using a German form of Katherne, since there was contact between Germany and Lithuania in period. Some forms are Katherin 1337, Katherine 1366, and Kethe 1365. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


The name combines English and Flemish. Barring documentation of such combinations, this is one step from period practice. [Rosalind Ryne, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Mixing Gaelic and English orthography in the same name is vanishingly rare and is considered one step from period practice. [Eithne of Brechin03/04, A-Caid]


The submitter requested authenticity for English language/culture and allowed minor changes. The OED lists the spelling Egyptian referring to a gypsy in 1609 and from the late 14th C onward dates various forms of the word as an adjective. [Rebecca the Egyptian, 03/04, A-Meridies]


Some commenters questioned whether Blue was a reasonable descriptive byname. Bardsley, s.n. Blew, lists Blue in the header, dates Henry Blewe to the 16th century, and cites le Blue as an earlier form. [Robert the Blue03/04, A-Ealdomere]


Submitted as Willeam of the Green Pants, the OED dates the first occurrance of the word pants to 1846. Barring evidence that the word pants occurs before 1600, it cannot be registered. Since the submitter will accept all changes, and since he obviously wants to be identified by his green pants, we have changed the byname to Grenetrewis, a hypothetical descriptive byname constructed from two 16th century Scots words, grene (green) and trewis (trews). [Willeam Grenetrewis, 03/04, A-West]


Return to Table of Contents


Flemish

Submitted as Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, her name was registered in October 2003 as Katherine Fraser of Lochdoy to meet the submitter's request for an authentic Scottish name. The submitter requested a reconsideration of her originally submitted name, dropping the request for authenticity. The originally submitted form of her name, which combined a Flemish given name with Scots bynames, is certainly registerable. There is substantial contact between Flanders and Scotland from the 12th C on onward including large Flemish households in Scottish burghs. That names should combine elements from both naming pools is expected. [Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, 05/04, A-Artemsia]


The name combines English and Flemish. Barring documentation of such combinations, this is one step from period practice. [Rosalind Ryne, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Return to Table of Contents


French

The given name is documented as the name of a King of the Goths and dated to 410. Combined with the 16th C spelling of the surname, there is a more than 1000 year gap between the dates for the names. This is an unregisterable combination; in such cases either documentation must be found that lessens the dates between the names, or the name must be returned. In this case, documentation was found that lessens the gap in dates. Morlet, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de l'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siecle dates Alaricus to the 12th C. This is a Latin form, but the vernacular would be Alaric. This leaves only a 400 year gap between the names; this is still one step from period practice, but it is registerable. [Alaric Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


Submitted as Melisande de Bourges, several variant spellings of this name exist, but none that support the -sande spelling. Therefore, we have changed the given name to Milesenda, a form documented from Morlet, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de L'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siècle. [Milesenda de Bourges, 05/04, A-East]


By precedent, combining French and German in a single name is one step from period practice. [Gabrielle von Friedrichsthal, 04/04, A-Calontir]


This combines an Italian given name with a French byname, which Laurel precedent considers a step from period practice. [Isabetta Delecroix, 03/04, A-Meridies]


The combination of Russian and French is at least a step from period practice. A fully French form of this name is Taurin Sanglier. [Tauron Sanglier, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Gaelic (Irish, Manx, Scottish)

Submitted as Ailís inghean Muirgen of Derrybawn, the submitter requested authenticity for 14th-16th C Irish. We have changed the name to Ailís inghean Mhuirghein to partially comply with this request. Muirgen is a Middle Irish Gaelic name, and we have no evidence that this form remained in use into the the 14th C period; therefore, we substituted an appropriate Early Modern Irish spelling. The patronymic was in the nominative case; we have put it in the genitive case and lenited the the first letter to comply with Gaelic grammar. Finally, an Anglicized locative is out of place in an authentic Irish Gaelic name; it has been dropped. [Ailís inghean Mhuirghein, 05/04, East]


Submitted as Cailean mac Eachduinn, the submitter requested authenticity for Scotland. The spelling of the given name was documented from Black, The Surnames of Scotland, as a Gaelic spelling. When Black marks a spelling as Gaelic, he means it is a modern Gaelic spelling. Occasionally, modern Gaelic forms are identical to late period Gaelic forms, but not always. In this case, Black provides a Gaelic spelling from 1467: Cailin. The patronymic appears in the same 1467 manuscript. Therefore, we have changed the name to Cailin mac Eachduinn to meet the submitter's request for authenticity. [Cailin mac Eachduinn, 05/04, A-East]


This name combines English and Gaelic elements in a single name; this is one step from period practice. The double given names Caitlin Christiana are grandfathered to the submitter, whose name Caitlin Christiana Rosa del León was registered in 1987. The Grandfather Clause allows a submitter to register name elements from a previously registered name, so long as they are used in the same manner and exactly the same spelling as in the previously registered name and no new violations of the Rules for Submissions exist in the new name that did not exist in the registered name. Therefore, we must ask if the changes in byname and name construction introduce a new violation of the Rules for Submission that was not present in the original submission. They does not. Instead, the change from Rosa del León to Wintour reduces the number of languages in this name. Therefore, this name is registerable via the Grandfather Clause. [Caitlin Christiana Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


Submitted as Constance inghean Conchobair, the patronymic mixes a Middle Irish Gaelic patronymic with the Early Modern Irish Gaelic patronymic particle. In addition, Gaelic grammar requires that patronymics beginning with the letter C must lenite or soften when used as part of a feminine name. Therefore, we have changed the name to Constance ingen Chonchobair to make the patronymic temporally consistent and to correct the grammar.

This name mixes English and Gaelic orthographies in a single name; this is one step from period practice.[Constance ingen Chonchobair, 05/04, A-Middle]


As there is an Early Modern Irish descriptive byname, Maol, which means bald, this name is registerable under the Lingua Anglica allowance. A fully Early Modern Irish form of this name is Coileán Maol. [Cuilén the Bald, 05/04, A-Meridies]


Ian has been ruled SCA-compatible.

This name does not conflict with the registered name Johannes Gordan. There is sufficient difference in sound and appearance between Johannes and Ian to avoid conflict between the two names. [Ian Gordon, 05/04, A-Meridies]


Submitted as Jonah Mac Coghlan, the submitter requested authenticity for 12th to 14th C Irish and accepted minor changes. However, Jonah is documented as a post-Reformation English name. Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames, s.n. Mac Cochlain, notes M'Cochlane and M'Coghlane as late period Anglicized forms of this name. We have changed the name to Jonah M'Coghlane to comply as much as possible with his request for authenticity. [Jonah M'Coghlane, 05/04, A-Atlantia]


This name does not conflict with Kenneth MacAlpin, king of Scotland. Kenneth and Kendel have different middle and end sounds, and the spellings are different enough to avoid confusion between the two names.

This name combines Welsh and Anglicized Gaelic elements, which is one step from period practice.[Kendal Macalpin, 05/04, A-Middle]


The question arose whether the name Macha was registerable, since Macha is the name of one of the three war-goddesses of the Tuatha Dé Danann. However, Ó Corrain and Maguire also cite a Saint Macha; upon further investigation, Saint Macha is the patron saint of Kilkinney, who, according to her hagiography, with her five sisters founded a church around the 6th C. Therefore, the name is registerable as a saint's name. [Macha Drake, 05/04, A-Caid]



This name combines a Spanish given name with an Anglicized Irish surname. Names mixing Spanish and Anglicized Gaelic elements are not registerable [Sanchia O'Connor 7/97]. Nebuly puts it succinctly: "Withycombe does indeed document the given name Teresa to 1515-82, but as a Spanish name." [Teresa Mac Connelly, 05/04, R-Caid]


Submitted as Cairistiona inghen Raonuill, this name uses a significantly post-period Gaelic orthography for the spelling of the byname. Mac Raonuill is a modern Gaelic spelling; no evidence for this spelling is found prior to the 19th C. The Middle Irish Gaelic equivalent (900-1200) is Mac Ragnaill, while the Early Modern Irish Gaelic equivalent (1200-1700) is Mac Raghnaill. It is highly likely that the Scottish Gaelic forms in these periods would be identical to the Irish Gaelic forms. Furthermore, the patronymic particle uses a spelling occasionally found in the transitional period between Middle Irish Gaelic and Early Modern Irish Gaelic. We have changed the spelling of the patronymic to inghean Raghnaill, the Early Modern Irish Gaelic form. [Cairistiona inghean Raghnaill, 04/04, A-Lochac]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots orthographies, which is one step from period practice. [Caitrina de Bruce the Fowler, 04/04, A-Artemesia]


There was some discussion among the commenters as to the correct form of the byname, noting that it fell somewhere between Senchaid, the normalized Middle Irish Gaelic form, and Seanchaidh, the Early Modern Irish Gaelic form. Since the submitter has documented the submitted spelling, Senchaidh, in the Annals of Ulster, the submitted form is fine. [Cúán Senchaidh Ua Suillebáin, 04/04, A-Northshield]


The submitted form of the given name Daibhead is a modern form; barring evidence that this form is found before 1600, it cannot be registered. [Daibhídh suaimhneach uí Néill, 04/04, A-Caid] <Ed. note: Name was changed to a documented form and registered.>


By longstanding precedent, the Gaelic name Deirdre is SCA-compatible. [Deirdre Oilithreach, 04/04, A-Caid]


The submitter requested an authentic name with "the first name Norse and the second name Scottish." While there is a great deal of evidence for Norsemen adopting Gaelic names and vice versa, there is no evidence that Norse and Gaelic orthographies were combined in this manner. This name combines Norse and Gaelic orthographies, which has been ruled one step from period practice. As submitted, it's not authentic although it is registerable.

To make this name authentic, it should be in entirely in either Norse orthography or Gaelic orthography. An entirely Norse form would be Einarr Domnalsson; Talan Gwynek's draft article "Old Norse Forms of Early Irish Names" gives Domnall as the normalized form of the runic "tomnal", which is found in an inscription on a 12th C Icelandic sword hilt. As the College has been unable to find a Gaelic form of Einarr, we cannot speculate on a fully Gaelic form of this name. [Einarr mac Dhòmhnuill, 04/04, A-Calontir]


Conflict with Eithne ni Chailein (02/96) and Eithne ní Chaillin (05/96). According to the 04/2002 precedent, there is no difference given between <ingen> and <ni>, and the patronyms in both cases are too similar in sound. [Eithne ingen Chuilind, 04/04, R-Calontir]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots, which is one step from period practice. [Muireadhach Fairley, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Mixing Gaelic and English orthography in the same name is vanishingly rare and is considered one step from period practice. [Eithne of Brechin03/04, A-Caid]


This name combines a 12th C placename with an otherwise 16th C name. However, this temporal disparity is only one step from period practice. A possible 16th century form this of name is Fergus MacCarlich of Earlistoune; this spelling of the locative is dated to 1553 in Black. [Fergus MacCarlich of Ercildune03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


German

This name combines English and German elements, which is one step from period practice. Some commenters wondered whether Rheinfels was a period spelling for this name, but no one found a period citation for this undoubtedly period castle. Therefore, we are giving the submitter the benefit of the doubt for the spelling of the byname. [Godfrey von Rheinfels, 05/04, A-Atenveldt]


Because Utrecht is a place name and not a generic toponym, the correct form of the byname is van Utrecht. Unfortunately, we are unable to drop the problematic element from this name. In the past, precedent has held that adding or removing a particle is only a minor change. However, according to the College of Arms Glossary published December 2003 "Major changes include dropping an element or phrase..." While der is not a complete phrase, it is a distinct element of the locative name phrase here. Therefore, dropping it would be a major change. We note that Pier van Utrecht is a lovely 15th C Dutch name. [Pier van der Utrecht, 05/04, R-Meridies]


The name was originally returned at kingdom for lack of documentation that Friedrichsthal is a period place name. The submitter appealed the return on the grounds that she believed it to be a town name in Alsace-Lorraine or that it could be a constructed place name based on elements found in Bahlow (Friedrich on p147 and Stahl found on p 536.)

There is a place named Friedrichstal in Baden-Würtemberg, which was founded by Margrave Friedrich of Baden in 1699, and another named Friedrichsthal in Saarland, which was apparently incorporated in the 1960s. The College was unable to find any other place in Germany called Friedrichst(h)al. Furthermore, the deuterotheme of Friedrichsthal is -ta(h)l, 'valley', not sta(h)l, which is a given name.

However, the College was able to find some evidence of period German place names using the pattern given- or housename-+-tahl. Brechmacher, Etymologische Deutsche Familiennamenbuch, lists these names:

Given this evidence, we are giving the benefit of the doubt and registering this name.

By precedent, combining French and German in a single name is one step from period practice. [Gabrielle von Friedrichsthal, 04/04, A-Calontir]


Finally, the name combines a German preposition with a Lithuanian name in the same name phrase. The Rule for Submission III.1.a says "Each phrase must be grammatically correct according to the usage of a single language." Barring documentation that Risna is a German form of this place name, these two words cannot be combined in a name phrase. A better alternative would be to use an appropriate Lithuanian form for the locative byname. However, since we do not know the appropriate form for the place name, we are unable to suggest its byname form. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


Return to Table of Contents


Given Names
see also Compatible Names - SCA  and Conflict - Personal Names

Submitted as Cailean mac Eachduinn, the submitter requested authenticity for Scotland. The spelling of the given name was documented from Black, The Surnames of Scotland, as a Gaelic spelling. When Black marks a spelling as Gaelic, he means it is a modern Gaelic spelling. Occasionally, modern Gaelic forms are identical to late period Gaelic forms, but not always. In this case, Black provides a Gaelic spelling from 1467: Cailin. The patronymic appears in the same 1467 manuscript. Therefore, we have changed the name to Cailin mac Eachduinn to meet the submitter's request for authenticity. [Cailin mac Eachduinn, 05/04, A-East]


This name combines English and Gaelic elements in a single name; this is one step from period practice. The double given names Caitlin Christiana are grandfathered to the submitter, whose name Caitlin Christiana Rosa del León was registered in 1987. The Grandfather Clause allows a submitter to register name elements from a previously registered name, so long as they are used in the same manner and exactly the same spelling as in the previously registered name and no new violations of the Rules for Submissions exist in the new name that did not exist in the registered name. Therefore, we must ask if the changes in byname and name construction introduce a new violation of the Rules for Submission that was not present in the original submission. They does not. Instead, the change from Rosa del León to Wintour reduces the number of languages in this name. Therefore, this name is registerable via the Grandfather Clause. [Caitlin Christiana Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


Some commentors noted that Dulcia was a documented English spelling of this name, but not a Spanish one. However, Siren reports, "Dulcia is a perfectly normal Latinized form of Yehoshua's [Yehoshua ben Haim haYerushalm, "A sample of Jewish names in Valencia 1293-1485"] Dulcie or the Dolça found in the Gesta Comitum Barcinonensium (the deeds of the counts of Barcelona); in the c. 1200 Latin text it's Dulcia, in the 14th c. Catalan text, it's Dolça." [Dulcia de León, 05/04, A-Outlands]


Submitted as Erika of Öland, this name has two problems. First, the Saint Gabriel report used to document the given name lists Erika as the standard modern form and dates the spelling Eericka to the mid 16th C. Barring evidence that Erika is a reasonable pre-1600 form, it cannot be registered. We have changed the given name to Eericka to match the documentation. [Eericka av Öland, 05/04, A-East]


Triple given names are not registerable in a Spanish context. Siren says it best:

<Maria> and <Magdalena> are plausible names, but there is no evidence for compound names like <Maria-Magdalena> in period Spain That gives this submission three given names The only evidence for three given names in Spain is the name of a daughter of Philip II, born in 1566 (<Isabel Eugenia Clara>; her sister only had two given names) This is not sufficient for registration.

Dropping one of the given names should make this name registerable. Unfortunately, the submitter will not accept changes, so we must return this name.

While not in itself a reason for return, the name mixes English and Spanish, which is a step from period practice. The given name, Isabella, was documented from Withycombe, The Oxford Dictionary of English Given Names. Unfortunately, Withycombe is an unreliable source for names outside of England. The Spanish form of Isabella is Isabel or Ysabel; the name is found in these spellings from the 13th through the 16th C. If the submitter is interested in an authentic Spanish name, we suggest that she use one of these spellings. [Isabella Maria-Magdalena Fernandes de Chaves, 05/04, R-Trimaris]


The question arose whether the name Macha was registerable, since Macha is the name of one of the three war-goddesses of the Tuatha Dé Danann. However, Ó Corrain and Maguire also cite a Saint Macha; upon further investigation, Saint Macha is the patron saint of Kilkinney, who, according to her hagiography, with her five sisters founded a church around the 6th C. Therefore, the name is registerable as a saint's name. [Macha Drake, 05/04, A-Caid]


Submitted as Shajarat ad-durr al-Mãhdukht al-Zarqá, the phrase Shajarat ad-durr is the regnal name (not given name) of the first Sultana of the Bahri Mamluks, who came to power in 1246 upon their overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt. This is a type of name used to denote royalty; its use in an SCA name is a claim to rank. Furthermore, this particular regnal name appears to be unique, which also makes it inappropriate for registration. [M{a-}hdukht al-Zarqa',05/04, A-Trimaris] <Ed. note: Returned for this and other reasons>


Submitted as Melisende Alix de la Croix, the submitter included a citation from a modern work for a queen of Jerusalem named Melisende. This queen is widely known by this spelling today. However, documents contemporary to her spell her name Melissent. The College was unable to locate an example of this spelling in period. Lacking evidence that Melisende is a plausible period form, it is not registerable. The College located a number of variant spellings of this name, including Melissent, Milsenda and Milesenda. These variants support a hypothetical spelling Melisenda, and we have changed the given name to that spelling. [Melisenda Alix de la Croix, 05/04, A-Trimaris]


Submitted as Melisande de Bourges, several variant spellings of this name exist, but none that support the -sande spelling. Therefore, we have changed the given name to Milesenda, a form documented from Morlet, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de L'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siècle. [Milesenda de Bourges, 05/04, A-East]


Obela is not constructed following the rules for name formation for Russian feminine names. The given name Obela was justified as a hypothetical feminization of the masculine given name Obel. Unfortunately, Nebuly points out that "The only example of a Russian feminized name formed by adding -a given in the LoI is Krasa, which may be of either gender." He explains that for other apparent examples, both the masculine and feminine forms were borrowed from other languages: "Unfortunately, the pattern of feminization established for Agripina and Anastasiia from Agripin and Anastasii is a pattern from Latin and Greek (respectively) prior to their importation, and not a feminization that was made in Russian. Imported Classical names cannot establish a pattern of feminization in native Russian names, as the counterexamples given in the LoI attest. The citation of Mara does not indicate a Russian feminization of Mar, since the note under that name in Wickenden indicates that the individual was the daughter of a Serb and not a native Russian. In general, Slavic languages do not form feminine equivalents of masculine given names by adding -a except in cases where the name is an original Slavic deuterothematic name. Since Obel is not such a deuterothematic name, we cannot form a feminine equivalent." [Obela Taras'eva Kartsova,05/04, R-Meridies]


Submitted as Machin Vassili Miroslavich, the submitter requested authenticity for 11th-13th C Russian language/culture. As submitted, this name uses two Christian given names in a Russian name; this was ruled a step from period practice in June 1997. Furthermore, Nebuly points this out about the first given name:

The given name Machin appears in Wickenden only as a hypothetical header form, back-formed from the patronymic Machinevik (dated 1253). Based on the pronunciation, and what I find in the SSNO for related Polish forms, this is a diminutive of the name Matthias à Macz à Machin. The SSNO (s.n. Mac, Macz) has a citation for "ad Matthiam dictum Macz" dated to 1470-1480. I presume the -in was added to form an additional pet variant here, though I would normally expect that ending on a patronymic only. However, Wickenden lists Mazcinek as a given name (the -ek is another diminutive ending!), which is why I make the assumption about how -in is being used here.

To partially fulfill the submitter's request for authenticity, one of the given names must be dropped. Machin is a hypothetical form rather than a documentary form, we are dropping this name, leaving Vassili Miroslavich. Because the patronymic Miroslavich is documented to the 14th C instead of the 13th, we are unable to fully comply with his authenticity request. [Vassili Miroslavich, 05/04, A-East]


Some members of the College asked whether this name was presumptuous, citing Amalric (Amaury) I and Amalric (Amaury) II, kings of Jerusalem. The city of Acre was never the capital of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, nor is there any evidence that either of these men was known as Amalric d'Acre. Therefore, there is no presumption. [Amalric d'Acre, 04/04, A-Atenveldt]


The submitted form of the given name Daibhead is a modern form; barring evidence that this form is found before 1600, it cannot be registered. [Daibhídh suaimhneach uí Néill, 04/04, A-Caid] <Ed. note: Name was changed to a documented form and registered.>


The College raised the question whether Destino was adequately documented as a period name. When (1) a name is listed in De Felice, (2) the documentation includes no indication that it is post-period, and (3) the name follows naming patterns documented to period, we have traditionally given the submitter the benefit of the doubt by assuming it was used in period and is therefore registerable. Orle cites these names from James Grubb's Provincial Families of the Renaissance: Private and Public Life in the Veneto: Well-behaved (Bonagente) Uglychild (Brutofante), God Aid Him (Deolavanzio), No Trouble (Senzabriga), Welcome (Benvenuto), Good fortune (Bonaventura), Pilgrim (Pellegrino), and Allgood (Ognibene). [Destino Dini, 04/04, A-Outlands]


Submitted as Dufen Eyðimörkingr, we have changed the name to Dufan eyðimarkingr. The spelling of the given name was changed to match the submitted documentation; there is no evidence that a and e are interchangeable when Old Norse is written in a Latin style alphabet. [Dufan eyðimarkingr, 04/04, A-Atenveldt]


Return to Table of Contents


Grammar

al-Jamal notes that "as a general rule, Arabic places the bynames (like al-Tayyib) at the end of the name, unless such are being used as an 'ism, a given name, which is not the case here.". The submitter will not accept major changes, so this name must be returned. In resubmitting, we suggest the form Mikha'il ibn Khalid ibn Ahmad al-Gharnatii al-Tayyib. [Mikha'il al-Tayyib ibn Khalid ibn Ahmad al-Tayyib al-Gharnatii, 05/04, R-West]


Return to Table of Contents


Grandfather Clause

This name combines English and Gaelic elements in a single name; this is one step from period practice. The double given names Caitlin Christiana are grandfathered to the submitter, whose name Caitlin Christiana Rosa del León was registered in 1987. The Grandfather Clause allows a submitter to register name elements from a previously registered name, so long as they are used in the same manner and exactly the same spelling as in the previously registered name and no new violations of the Rules for Submissions exist in the new name that did not exist in the registered name. Therefore, we must ask if the changes in byname and name construction introduce a new violation of the Rules for Submission that was not present in the original submission. They does not. Instead, the change from Rosa del León to Wintour reduces the number of languages in this name. Therefore, this name is registerable via the Grandfather Clause. [Caitlin Christiana Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


The byname combination "de Bruce the Fowler" is grandfathered to her; it is her husband's registered surname. [Caitrina de Bruce the Fowler, 04/04, A-Artemesia]


Return to Table of Contents


Household
see also Branch
see also Orders and Awards

No documentation was submitted nor any found that this name follows period Italian inn name or household name practice. Unfortunately, we are unable to recommend a good single source for Italian inn names. However, there is no evidence that inns in Italy were named in the way that English and German inn sign names are formed. In addition, while the words given here literally translate to "House of the Flowered Cross", no evidence was presented that this is a reasonable Italian phrase or description. For one, we are unsure what a flowered cross would be. If the intention is a cross made of flowers, modern Italian usage tends toward "croce di fiori." [Esperanza Razzolini d'Asolo, 05/04, R-East]


This name translates to "Company of the Crescent Moon", which is extremely evocative of The Order of the Croissant, included by the submitters as part of their documentation. The symbol of the Order of the Croissant was the crescent moon. This Order had members from many part of Europe, including Germany. However, none of the commentors found a form for this Order name other than The Order of the Croissant. Because names do not conflict in translation, these two names are not in conflict. [Klaus the Red and Thaddeus von Orlamünde, 05/04, A-East]


While a large amount of documentation was submitted showing that Plant y Ddraig, meaning "Children of the Dragon", is a reasonable name for a group of people in modern Wales, none of it addressed the issue of whether this is a reasonable name for a group of people in pre-17th C Wales.

When asked about Welsh names for groups of people, Harpy had this to say:

Especially in genealogical texts, it's moderately common to find "Plant <personal name>" as a term describing the common descendents of <personal name>. It doesn't have the same legalistic sense as Irish "clann", although you can find something vaguely resembling that sense for "wyrion <personal name>" (literally "grandsons of <personal name>"). But these would always be used with a personal name of the common ancestor, not with an abstract totem or symbol.

These findings are consistent with clan names in Scotland and Ireland, which are based on either the surname or given name of a common ancestor. In none of these cultures are names for groups of people formed using an epithet or totem as the descriptive element. Barring documentation of such group names in Welsh, such a combination is not registerable. A Welsh household name using the form Plant + <Welsh personal name> or Wyrion + <Welsh personal name> should be registerable. [Zara the Quiet, 05/04, R-Aethelmearc]


Submitted as House Gunnulf, the submitter requested an Old English designator for House. Siren found a citation from the OED for Aarones hus dated to c. 1000. We have changed this name to the equivalent for Gunnulf: Gunnulfes hus. [Birgir inn Blakki, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Hungarian

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Indian

None to date for this tenure

Return to Table of Contents

Irish (non-Gaelic)

Submitted as Jonah Mac Coghlan, the submitter requested authenticity for 12th to 14th C Irish and accepted minor changes. However, Jonah is documented as a post-Reformation English name. Woulfe, Irish Names and Surnames, s.n. Mac Cochlain, notes M'Cochlane and M'Coghlane as late period Anglicized forms of this name. We have changed the name to Jonah M'Coghlane to comply as much as possible with his request for authenticity. [Jonah M'Coghlane, 05/04, A-Atlantia]


This name does not conflict with Kenneth MacAlpin, king of Scotland. Kenneth and Kendel have different middle and end sounds, and the spellings are different enough to avoid confusion between the two names.

This name combines Welsh and Anglicized Gaelic elements, which is one step from period practice.[Kendal Macalpin, 05/04, A-Middle]


This name combines a Spanish given name with an Anglicized Irish surname. Names mixing Spanish and Anglicized Gaelic elements are not registerable [Sanchia O'Connor 7/97]. Nebuly puts it succinctly: "Withycombe does indeed document the given name Teresa to 1515-82, but as a Spanish name." [Teresa Mac Connelly, 05/04, R-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Italian

Submitted as Gianotta Dallafiora, the name was documented from The Online Catasto of 1427. This source lists names in all capital letters and eliminates spaces in name phrases. The usual documentary form of this byname is dalla Fiora; we have changed the byname to this form. [Gianotta dalla Fiora, 05/04, A-East]


No documentation was submitted nor any found that this name follows period Italian inn name or household name practice. Unfortunately, we are unable to recommend a good single source for Italian inn names. However, there is no evidence that inns in Italy were named in the way that English and German inn sign names are formed. In addition, while the words given here literally translate to "House of the Flowered Cross", no evidence was presented that this is a reasonable Italian phrase or description. For one, we are unsure what a flowered cross would be. If the intention is a cross made of flowers, modern Italian usage tends toward "croce di fiori." [Esperanza Razzolini d'Asolo, 05/04, R-East]


The submitter requested authenticity for 13th C Italy. Because da is the usual Italian preposition used in a locative byname, the commentors questioned whether the preposition de was correct. However, as Kraken notes, "In the 13th century (the desired time frame), the transition from medieval Latin to Italian was in its early stages, and the Latin preposition de would still be in use..." [Lorita de Siena, 05/04, A-East]


Submitted as Sabatina Da Valle, we have changed the name to Sabatina da Valle. In period Italian names, locative prepositions are written in lowercase.

The submitter requested authenticity for 12th-13th C Italian language/culture and accepted only minor changes. The College questioned whether the preposition da, meaning "from," was appropriate with a generic toponymic byname, especially since the dated examples found by the College all showed the expected preposition+article, della or dalla, meaning "from the". A popular website on the history of San Marino, a state on the Adriatic coast of Italy (http://www.libertas.sm/), lists a Cecco di Giovanni da Valle as one of the Captains Regent of San Marino in 1442. While the name spellings on this website appear to be modern, there seems to be no reason to doubt the basic formation of this byname. [Sabatina da Valle, 05/04, A-East]


The College raised the question whether Destino was adequately documented as a period name. When (1) a name is listed in De Felice, (2) the documentation includes no indication that it is post-period, and (3) the name follows naming patterns documented to period, we have traditionally given the submitter the benefit of the doubt by assuming it was used in period and is therefore registerable. Orle cites these names from James Grubb's Provincial Families of the Renaissance: Private and Public Life in the Veneto: Well-behaved (Bonagente) Uglychild (Brutofante), God Aid Him (Deolavanzio), No Trouble (Senzabriga), Welcome (Benvenuto), Good fortune (Bonaventura), Pilgrim (Pellegrino), and Allgood (Ognibene). [Destino Dini, 04/04, A-Outlands]


No dates were provided for the byname Bizzarro; it is documented only as a header spelling in De Felice's Dizionario dei Cognomi Italiani. However, the submitter made no requests for authenticity. When (1) a name is listed in De Felice, (2) the documentation includes no indication that it is post-period, and (3) the name follows naming patterns documented to period, we have traditionally given the submitter the benefit of the doubt by assuming it was used in period and is therefore registerable. [Giovanni Bizzarro, 04/04, A-Caid]


This name adds an Italian placename to an otherwise Spanish name. Although the submitter provided documentation for Soldano as a placename in period, no documentation was provided that this particular form was used in Spain. A Laurel precedent of August 2001 holds that combining Spanish and Italian in a single name is a step from period practice, hence registerable.  [Diego Rivera de Soldano, 03/04, A-Caid]


This combines an Italian given name with a French byname, which Laurel precedent considers a step from period practice. [Isabetta Delecroix, 03/04, A-Meridies]


Return to Table of Contents


Japanese

The submitter requested authenticity for the Heian period (794-1184). However, the family name, Kaitou, is documented from the Kamakura period (1184-1333). Barring documentation that Kaitou was a surname in use during the Heian period, we are unable to fulfill the submitter's request for authenticity. [Kaitou Naeme, 04/04, A-Northshield]


Return to Table of Contents


Jewish

Submitted as Sayna of Lincoln, the submitter requested authenticity for a 12th century English Jewish woman. We have changed the name to Sayna de Lincolne to partially comply with this request. Layamon's Brut, written in the first half of the 13th C, has several examples of this placename spelled Lincolne. Barring evidence that Sayna was a given name used by Jewish women in England, we cannot say whether this name is authentic for a Jewish Englishwoman. [Sayna de Lincolne, 05/04, A-An Tir]


Return to Table of Contents


Joke Names

Although this name sounds like "Thor and Loki", names of two Norse gods, there is no reason to believe that it is either presumptuous or intrusively modern. It is, most likely, a joke name; Laurel precedent has long held:

The fact that this is a "joke name" is not, in and of itself, a problem. The College has registered a number of names, perfectly period in formation, that embodied humor: Drew Steele, Miles Long, and John of Somme Whyre spring to mind as examples. They may elicit chuckles (or groans) from the listener, but no more. Intrusively modern names grab the listener by the scruff of the neck and haul him, will he or nill he, back into the 20th Century. A name that, by its very presence, destroys any medieval ambience is not a name we should register.(Porsche Audi, August, 1992, pg. 28)

[Thoren Lokky, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Latin

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Legal Name Allowance

Submitted as Belen bat Kedar, the given name was documented via the legal name rule. However, this rule only allows a name to be used as the same type of name as found in the person's legal name. Belen is the submitter's middle name; both given names and bynames/surnames are used as middle names. While the College documented similar names used as given names, it has only found this particular spelling used as a byname or place name. Therefore, we are changing the name to Belin bat Kedar; the given name is dated to 1348 in Aryanhwy merch Catmael's article "Jewish Given Names Found in Les Noms Des Israélites en France." [Belin bat Kedar, 04/04, A-Atenveldt]


Kristopher is the submitter's legal given name. [Kristopher Tike, 04/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Lingua Anglica

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Literary Names

The name as submitted is not substantially different from her previous submission, which was returned because "Caroline does not appear to be a period name." In addition, the resubmission introduced a new problem. The submitter provides documentation for the name Karolin in a play first published in 1641 (the "gray area"). The purpose of the gray area is to provide the benefit of the doubt for names that are not found prior to the 17th century, but that may plausibly have been in use prior to 1600. For example, if a marriage record or a death record shows a particular name in use between 1600-1650, the name is registerable because it is plausible that it was in use prior to 1600. Literary names in the gray area do not enjoy the same mantle of plausibility. In this specific case, it is likely that Karolin, given to a character that sings carols, is an allegorical name. Barring evidence for the use of Karolin or Karolyne prior to 1600, or of the use of these names by real people prior to 1650, these names are not registerable. [Karolyne, called the Wanderer, 03/04, R-Caid] <Ed: Returned for this and other reasons>


Return to Table of Contents


Locatives and Place Names

This name combines English and German elements, which is one step from period practice. Some commenters wondered whether Rheinfels was a period spelling for this name, but no one found a period citation for this undoubtedly period castle. Therefore, we are giving the submitter the benefit of the doubt for the spelling of the byname. [Godfrey von Rheinfels, 05/04, A-Atenveldt]


The submitter requested authenticity for 13th C Italy. Because da is the usual Italian preposition used in a locative byname, the commentors questioned whether the preposition de was correct. However, as Kraken notes, "In the 13th century (the desired time frame), the transition from medieval Latin to Italian was in its early stages, and the Latin preposition de would still be in use..." [Lorita de Siena, 05/04, A-East]


Because Utrecht is a place name and not a generic toponym, the correct form of the byname is van Utrecht. Unfortunately, we are unable to drop the problematic element from this name. In the past, precedent has held that adding or removing a particle is only a minor change. However, according to the College of Arms Glossary published December 2003 "Major changes include dropping an element or phrase..." While der is not a complete phrase, it is a distinct element of the locative name phrase here. Therefore, dropping it would be a major change. We note that Pier van Utrecht is a lovely 15th C Dutch name. [Pier van der Utrecht, 05/04, R-Meridies]


Submitted as Sabatina Da Valle, we have changed the name to Sabatina da Valle. In period Italian names, locative prepositions are written in lowercase. The submitter requested authenticity for 12th-13th C Italian language/culture and accepted only minor changes. The College questioned whether the preposition da, meaning "from," was appropriate with a generic toponymic byname, especially since the dated examples found by the College all showed the expected preposition+article, della or dalla, meaning "from the". A popular website on the history of San Marino, a state on the Adriatic coast of Italy (http://www.libertas.sm/), lists a Cecco di Giovanni da Valle as one of the Captains Regent of San Marino in 1442. While the name spellings on this website appear to be modern, there seems to be no reason to doubt the basic formation of this byname. [Sabatina da Valle, 05/04, A-East]


The name was originally returned at kingdom for lack of documentation that Friedrichsthal is a period place name. The submitter appealed the return on the grounds that she believed it to be a town name in Alsace-Lorraine or that it could be a constructed place name based on elements found in Bahlow (Friedrich on p147 and Stahl found on p 536.)

There is a place named Friedrichstal in Baden-Würtemberg, which was founded by Margrave Friedrich of Baden in 1699, and another named Friedrichsthal in Saarland, which was apparently incorporated in the 1960s. The College was unable to find any other place in Germany called Friedrichst(h)al. Furthermore, the deuterotheme of Friedrichsthal is -ta(h)l, 'valley', not sta(h)l, which is a given name.

However, the College was able to find some evidence of period German place names using the pattern given- or housename-+-tahl. Brechmacher, Etymologische Deutsche Familiennamenbuch, lists these names:

Given this evidence, we are giving the benefit of the doubt and registering this name. [Gabrielle von Friedrichsthal, 04/04, A-Calontir]


This name is returned for a number of reasons. First, the documentation for the place name Risna is insufficient to determine whether this is a reasonable transcription of a period place name. The name is found in an index to an English translation of a Victorian-era history of Russia; the date is attached to a different spelling, Riasno, to which Risna is cross referenced. The index gives no indication whether the spellings are period forms, if they are normalized, or if the modern names are used. Without this information, we cannot register this spelling. If the submitter wishes to research this name further, finding the work in which this name is found, Vol. 4 Russia Under the Tatar Yoke, 1228-1389, Helen Y. Prochazka, London, England, and seeing what it says about it and about how the names are handled would be useful. In future uses of this source as documentation, submitters should include enough information from the introduction to explain how names are treated. For further research, the submitter may consider searching for Ryasna in Belarus, which is probably the preferred modern name for this place. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


Return to Table of Contents


Mongolian

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Norse and Scandinavian

Submitted as Erika of Öland, this name has two problems. First, the Saint Gabriel report used to document the given name lists Erika as the standard modern form and dates the spelling Eericka to the mid 16th C. Barring evidence that Erika is a reasonable pre-1600 form, it cannot be registered. We have changed the given name to Eericka to match the documentation.

The byname combines the English preposition of with a Swedish locative. RfS III.1.a states "In the case of place names and other name elements frequently used in English in their original form, an English article or preposition may be used." However, as English does not use umlauts, Öland cannot be a form used in English. Therefore, we have changed the preposition to the Swedish av to make the byname phrase linguistically consistent. [Eericka av Öland, 05/04, A-East]


Submitted as Emma Idunn, this name combines an English given name and an Old Norse given name. Because Old Norse does not use unmarked patronymics, Idunn is not a properly formed byname. The properly constructed Old Norse form would be Idunsdottir.

To make this name registerable, the byname must either be changed to a close English form or to the properly constructed Old Norse form. Because a name mixing Middle English and Old Norse is one step from period practice, we have changed this name to Emma Idone, an all English form. Unmarked patronymics are common in English. Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames, dates this spelling of the byname to 1327. The change from Idunn to Idone is also a smaller change in sound and appearance than the change from Idunn to Idunsdottir. [Emma Idone, 05/04, A-Aethelmearc]


Submitted as Hrothgar Ivarsson, the submitter requested authenticity for 10th-11th C. As submitted, the name mixes an Old English form of the given name with an Old Norse patronymic. An authentic name combining these elements in period would have been written completely in Old English or completely in Old Norse depending upon the language of the document in which the name was recorded. We have changed the name to Hróðgeirr Ívarsson, a fully Old Norse form of this name to fulfill his request for authenticity. [Hróðgeirr Ívarsson, 05/04, A-Aethelmearc]


Submitted as Dufen Eyðimörkingr, we have changed the name to Dufan eyðimarkingr. The spelling of the given name was changed to match the submitted documentation; there is no evidence that a and e are interchangeable when Old Norse is written in a Latin style alphabet. [Dufan eyðimarkingr, 04/04, A-Atenveldt]


The submitter requested an authentic name with "the first name Norse and the second name Scottish." While there is a great deal of evidence for Norsemen adopting Gaelic names and vice versa, there is no evidence that Norse and Gaelic orthographies were combined in this manner. This name combines Norse and Gaelic orthographies, which has been ruled one step from period practice. As submitted, it's not authentic although it is registerable.

To make this name authentic, it should be in entirely in either Norse orthography or Gaelic orthography. An entirely Norse form would be Einarr Domnalsson; Talan Gwynek's draft article "Old Norse Forms of Early Irish Names" gives Domnall as the normalized form of the runic "tomnal", which is found in an inscription on a 12th C Icelandic sword hilt. As the College has been unable to find a Gaelic form of Einarr, we cannot speculate on a fully Gaelic form of this name. [Einarr mac Dhòmhnuill, 04/04, A-Calontir]


While we know of no examples where Norse and Russian are used in the same name, there is enough contact between the cultures for this to be only one step from period practice.

The submitter specified an interest in having the name be authentic for a language and/or culture, he did not specify which culture. We are, therefore, not able to change the name to meet this request. The name Ari viligisl would be an entirely Norse form. We were unable to find an entirely Russian form.  [Arii viligisl, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Orders and Awards
see also Branch
see also Household

Submitted as Order of the Lion's Paw of Kenmare, we have removed the apostrophe; there is no evidence that the apostrophe was used in period. [Northkeep, Barony of, 05/04, A-Ansteorra]


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]


Return to Table of Contents


Patronymic and Matronymic

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Polish

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Presumption

This is being returned for presumption against Saint Alban, also known as Alban of England. Albion is the old name for Britain/England in both Bede's Historia Ecclesiastica gentis Anglorum (History of the English Church and People) and in Laymon's Brut, an early Middle English history of Britain. Although we have no reference to Saint Alban by the name submitted here, the allusion is too strong. [Alban de Albion, 05/04, R-Meridies]


Submitted as Shajarat ad-durr al-Mãhdukht al-Zarqá, the phrase Shajarat ad-durr is the regnal name (not given name) of the first Sultana of the Bahri Mamluks, who came to power in 1246 upon their overthrow of the Ayyubid dynasty in Egypt. This is a type of name used to denote royalty; its use in an SCA name is a claim to rank. Furthermore, this particular regnal name appears to be unique, which also makes it inappropriate for registration. [M{a-}hdukht al-Zarqa', 05/04, A-Trimaris]


Some members of the College asked whether this name was presumptuous, citing Amalric (Amaury) I and Amalric (Amaury) II, kings of Jerusalem. The city of Acre was never the capital of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, nor is there any evidence that either of these men was known as Amalric d'Acre. Therefore, there is no presumption. [Amalric d'Acre, 04/04, A-Atenveldt]


[Per bend sinister gules and sable, a lion rampant within an orle of lozenges argent] The question was raised in commentary whether this combination of name and armory could constitute a presumptuous claim to be Edward Dymoke, Royal Champion at the Coronations of Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I. This issue was based largely on an online picture of Edward Dymoke (for which the URL was supplied), showing him riding an armorially barded horse. After careful visual study of the online picture, we have concluded that the armory on the horse's barding is (field), a lion passant within an orle of lozenges argent. The appearance of a "lion rampant" seems to be an optical illusion, resulting from a fold in the fabric and some odd angles of perspective. Therefore this combination of name and armory is not a presumptuous combination (as referred to in RfS XI.2). [Edward Dymoke, 04/04, A-Lochac]


This name is being returned for conflict against Lucrezia Borgia, Duchess of Ferrara. As Metron Ariston notes,

[T]he (in)famous Lucrezia Borgia was Duchess of Ferrara. She lived in Ferrara for the last seventeen years of her life and played a leading part in the patronage and politics of the day. Her life (accurately or not) has been enshrined in historical works, fiction, drama and opera over several centuries. She not only has her own article in the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica, but also in the Columbia Encyclopedia and most on-line and printed encyclopedic works and is certainly familiar to most in our Society.

By precedent,

We have historically registered ' 'name' of 'Kingdom' ' so long as the given name was not identical to that of one of the rulers of 'Kingdom'. ( Da'ud ibn Auda, 5/91)

Given the fame and importance of the Italian city-states, we are extending this precedent to them and their rulers. [Lucrezia da Ferrara, 04/04, R-An Tir]



[Per fess argent and azure, a saltire engrailed counterchanged overall a sword inverted and in chief a rose gules] This violates RfS XI.2, Charge and Name Combinations, in accordance with the following precedent which we reaffirm at this time: "As one may not combine the White Rose of York and the name of York, it is forbidden to combine the Red Rose of Lancaster with the use of the name Lancaster." (29 Mar 1987, R-Outlands, Rebecca of Lancaster p. 21) [Michael of Lancaster, 04/04, R-An Tir] <Ed. note: Returned for this and other reasons. For more details, please see the Armory Precedents for the Tenure of Shauna of Carrick's Point.>


Return to Table of Contents


Rules for Submission (RfS) Citations
This section is organized by RfS section, not by date.

RfS Citations -- RfS III (Compatible Naming Style and Grammar)

The byname combines the English preposition of with a Swedish locative. RfS III.1.a states "In the case of place names and other name elements frequently used in English in their original form, an English article or preposition may be used." However, as English does not use umlauts, Öland cannot be a form used in English. Therefore, we have changed the preposition to the Swedish av to make the byname phrase linguistically consistent. [Eericka av Öland, 05/04, A-East]


The element al-Mãkdukht had several problems. First, al-Jamal states that Mãhdukht is a transcription error for M{a-}hdukht The name M{a-}hdukht is a Persian name; combining it with the Arabic al mixes Persian and Arabic in a single name phrase, in violation of RfS III.1.a. The byname al-Zarqá has a transcription error as well; the correct form is al-Zarqa'. In order to register the name, we have dropped the problematic elements and corrected the transcription of the remaining parts, giving M{a-}dukht al-Zarqa'. [M{a-}hdukht al-Zarqa', 05/04, A-Trimaris]


Finally, the name combines a German preposition with a Lithuanian name in the same name phrase. The Rule for Submission III.1.a says "Each phrase must be grammatically correct according to the usage of a single language." Barring documentation that Risna is a German form of this place name, these two words cannot be combined in a name phrase. A better alternative would be to use an appropriate Lithuanian form for the locative byname. However, since we do not know the appropriate form for the place name, we are unable to suggest its byname form. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


Return to Table of Contents


RfS Citations XI.2 (Charge and Name Combinations)

[Per bend sinister gules and sable, a lion rampant within an orle of lozenges argent] The question was raised in commentary whether this combination of name and armory could constitute a presumptuous claim to be Edward Dymoke, Royal Champion at the Coronations of Edward VI, Mary I and Elizabeth I. This issue was based largely on an online picture of Edward Dymoke (for which the URL was supplied), showing him riding an armorially barded horse. After careful visual study of the online picture, we have concluded that the armory on the horse's barding is (field), a lion passant within an orle of lozenges argent. The appearance of a "lion rampant" seems to be an optical illusion, resulting from a fold in the fabric and some odd angles of perspective. Therefore this combination of name and armory is not a presumptuous combination (as referred to in RfS XI.2). [Edward Dymoke, 04/04, A-Lochac]


[Per fess argent and azure, a saltire engrailed counterchanged overall a sword inverted and in chief a rose gules] This violates RfS XI.2, Charge and Name Combinations, in accordance with the following precedent which we reaffirm at this time: "As one may not combine the White Rose of York and the name of York, it is forbidden to combine the Red Rose of Lancaster with the use of the name Lancaster." (29 Mar 1987, R-Outlands, Rebecca of Lancaster p. 21) [Michael of Lancaster, 04/04, R-An Tir] <Ed. note: Returned for this and other reasons.>


Return to Table of Contents


Russian

Obela is not constructed following the rules for name formation for Russian feminine names. The given name Obela was justified as a hypothetical feminization of the masculine given name Obel. Unfortunately, Nebuly points out that "The only example of a Russian feminized name formed by adding -a given in the LoI is Krasa, which may be of either gender." He explains that for other apparent examples, both the masculine and feminine forms were borrowed from other languages: "Unfortunately, the pattern of feminization established for Agripina and Anastasiia from Agripin and Anastasii is a pattern from Latin and Greek (respectively) prior to their importation, and not a feminization that was made in Russian. Imported Classical names cannot establish a pattern of feminization in native Russian names, as the counterexamples given in the LoI attest. The citation of Mara does not indicate a Russian feminization of Mar, since the note under that name in Wickenden indicates that the individual was the daughter of a Serb and not a native Russian. In general, Slavic languages do not form feminine equivalents of masculine given names by adding -a except in cases where the name is an original Slavic deuterothematic name. Since Obel is not such a deuterothematic name, we cannot form a feminine equivalent." [Obela Taras'eva Kartsova, 05/04, R-Meridies]


Submitted as Machin Vassili Miroslavich, the submitter requested authenticity for 11th-13th C Russian language/culture. As submitted, this name uses two Christian given names in a Russian name; this was ruled a step from period practice in June 1997. Furthermore, Nebuly points this out about the first given name:

The given name Machin appears in Wickenden only as a hypothetical header form, back-formed from the patronymic Machinevik (dated 1253). Based on the pronunciation, and what I find in the SSNO for related Polish forms, this is a diminutive of the name Matthias à Macz à Machin. The SSNO (s.n. Mac, Macz) has a citation for "ad Matthiam dictum Macz" dated to 1470-1480. I presume the -in was added to form an additional pet variant here, though I would normally expect that ending on a patronymic only. However, Wickenden lists Mazcinek as a given name (the -ek is another diminutive ending!), which is why I make the assumption about how -in is being used here.

To partially fulfill the submitter's request for authenticity, one of the given names must be dropped. Machin is a hypothetical form rather than a documentary form, we are dropping this name, leaving Vassili Miroslavich. Because the patronymic Miroslavich is documented to the 14th C instead of the 13th, we are unable to fully comply with his authenticity request. [Vassili Miroslavich, 05/04, A-East]


This name is returned for a number of reasons. First, the documentation for the place name Risna is insufficient to determine whether this is a reasonable transcription of a period place name. The name is found in an index to an English translation of a Victorian-era history of Russia; the date is attached to a different spelling, Riasno, to which Risna is cross referenced. The index gives no indication whether the spellings are period forms, if they are normalized, or if the modern names are used. Without this information, we cannot register this spelling. If the submitter wishes to research this name further, finding the work in which this name is found, Vol. 4 Russia Under the Tatar Yoke, 1228-1389, Helen Y. Prochazka, London, England, and seeing what it says about it and about how the names are handled would be useful. In future uses of this source as documentation, submitters should include enough information from the introduction to explain how names are treated. For further research, the submitter may consider searching for Ryasna in Belarus, which is probably the preferred modern name for this place.

The second problem is that the name mixes an English given name with a Lithuanian byname. As no documentation was submitted showing contact between these two cultures, and none found by the College, such combinations cannot be registered. The submitter may want to consider using a German form of Katherne, since there was contact between Germany and Lithuania in period. Some forms are Katherin 1337, Katherine 1366, and Kethe 1365.

Finally, the name combines a German preposition with a Lithuanian name in the same name phrase. The Rule for Submission III.1.a says "Each phrase must be grammatically correct according to the usage of a single language." Barring documentation that Risna is a German form of this place name, these two words cannot be combined in a name phrase. A better alternative would be to use an appropriate Lithuanian form for the locative byname. However, since we do not know the appropriate form for the place name, we are unable to suggest its byname form. [Katherne von Risna, 04/04, R-Lochac] <Ed - Returned for this and other reasons>


While we know of no examples where Norse and Russian are used in the same name, there is enough contact between the cultures for this to be only one step from period practice.

The submitter specified an interest in having the name be authentic for a language and/or culture, he did not specify which culture. We are, therefore, not able to change the name to meet this request. The name Ari viligisl would be an entirely Norse form. We were unable to find an entirely Russian form.  [Arii viligisl, 03/04, A-Caid]


The combination of Russian and French is at least a step from period practice. A fully French form of this name is Taurin Sanglier. [Tauron Sanglier, 03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Saints' Names

Submitter as College of St Basil the Great, we have changed this to College of Saint Basil the Great; by precedent we do not register scribal abbreviations. [Saint Basil the Great, College of, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Return to Table of Contents


Scottish (non-Gaelic)

Given the lack of double-given names in Scots and the classic Scots naming pattern of given+surname+placename, Alpin in this name must be interpreted as an unmarked patronymic. The registerability of this name hinges on whether there is a pattern in Scots of Anglicized or Latinized Gaelic personal names becoming unmarked patronymics. A search through Black shows a few examples including Kilschyn Gilcrist in 1296 and William Bran, 1629. This is sufficient to give the submitter the benefit of the doubt. [Aidan Alpin of Dunkeld, 05/04, A-Middle]


Submitted as Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, her name was registered in October 2003 as Katherine Fraser of Lochdoy to meet the submitter's request for an authentic Scottish name. The submitter requested a reconsideration of her originally submitted name, dropping the request for authenticity. The originally submitted form of her name, which combined a Flemish given name with Scots bynames, is certainly registerable. There is substantial contact between Flanders and Scotland from the 12th C on onward including large Flemish households in Scottish burghs. That names should combine elements from both naming pools is expected. [Kathelyne Fraser of Lochdoy, 05/04, A-Artemsia]


This name mixes an English place name with an otherwise Scots name; such a mixture was declared one step from period practice in September 2001. However, many Scots name forms are identical to English name forms. Furthermore, many of the standard sources used by the SCA College of Arms, including the Oxford English Dictionary and Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames, make no distinction between English and Scots forms. We are therefore overturning this precedent, and declaring that names combining Scots and English forms are no longer considered a step from period practice. [Michael Duncan of Hadley, 04/04, A-Caid]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots, which is one step from period practice. [Muireadhach Fairley, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Return to Table of Contents


Scribal Abbreviations

Submitter as College of St Basil the Great, we have changed this to College of Saint Basil the Great; by precedent we do not register scribal abbreviations. [Saint Basil the Great, College of, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Listed on the LoI as Nigel de Rothwell', the name was originally submitted as Nigel de Rothewell'. As submitted, the name is already authentic for the desired time period of 1250-1350. However, since we do not register scribal abbreviations we have changed the byname to de Rothewelle. [Nigel de Rothewelle, 04/04, A-Lochac]


Return to Table of Contents


Spanish and Portuguese

Some commentors noted that Dulcia was a documented English spelling of this name, but not a Spanish one. However, Siren reports, "Dulcia is a perfectly normal Latinized form of Yehoshua's [Yehoshua ben Haim haYerushalm, "A sample of Jewish names in Valencia 1293-1485"] Dulcie or the Dolça found in the Gesta Comitum Barcinonensium (the deeds of the counts of Barcelona); in the c. 1200 Latin text it's Dulcia, in the 14th c. Catalan text, it's Dolça." [Dulcia de León, 05/04, A-Outlands]


Triple given names are not registerable in a Spanish context. Siren says it best:

<Maria> and <Magdalena> are plausible names, but there is no evidence for compound names like <Maria-Magdalena> in period Spain That gives this submission three given names The only evidence for three given names in Spain is the name of a daughter of Philip II, born in 1566 (<Isabel Eugenia Clara>; her sister only had two given names) This is not sufficient for registration.

Dropping one of the given names should make this name registerable. Unfortunately, the submitter will not accept changes, so we must return this name.

While not in itself a reason for return, the name mixes English and Spanish, which is a step from period practice. The given name, Isabella, was documented from Withycombe, The Oxford Dictionary of English Given Names. Unfortunately, Withycombe is an unreliable source for names outside of England. The Spanish form of Isabella is Isabel or Ysabel; the name is found in these spellings from the 13th through the 16th C. If the submitter is interested in an authentic Spanish name, we suggest that she use one of these spellings. [Isabella Maria-Magdalena Fernandes de Chaves, 05/04, R-Trimaris]


This name combines a Spanish given name with an Anglicized Irish surname. Names mixing Spanish and Anglicized Gaelic elements are not registerable [Sanchia O'Connor 7/97]. Nebuly puts it succinctly: "Withycombe does indeed document the given name Teresa to 1515-82, but as a Spanish name." [Teresa Mac Connelly, 05/04, R-Caid]


This name adds an Italian placename to an otherwise Spanish name. Although the submitter provided documentation for Soldano as a placename in period, no documentation was provided that this particular form was used in Spain. A Laurel precedent of August 2001 holds that combining Spanish and Italian in a single name is a step from period practice, hence registerable.  [Diego Rivera de Soldano, 03/04, A-Caid]


Illuminada and Iluminada are not interchangable in Spanish, since ll and l are considered separate letters in that language. No documentation was provided for this name spelled with ll. We would change the given name to the documented form Iluminada, but the submitter will not allow any changes. This name must, therefore, be returned. [Islyle le Gannoker de Gavain, 03/04, R-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Spelling Variants

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Temporal Disparity
see alsoWeirdness

The given name is documented as the name of a King of the Goths and dated to 410. Combined with the 16th C spelling of the surname, there is a more than 1000 year gap between the dates for the names. This is an unregisterable combination; in such cases either documentation must be found that lessens the dates between the names, or the name must be returned. In this case, documentation was found that lessens the gap in dates. Morlet, Les Noms de Personne sur le Territoire de l'Ancienne Gaule du VIe au XIIe Siecle dates Alaricus to the 12th C. This is a Latin form, but the vernacular would be Alaric. This leaves only a 400 year gap between the names; this is still one step from period practice, but it is registerable. [Alaric Wintour, 05/04, A-Caid]


This name combines a 12th C placename with an otherwise 16th C name. However, this temporal disparity is only one step from period practice. A possible 16th century form this of name is Fergus MacCarlich of Earlistoune; this spelling of the locative is dated to 1553 in Black. [Fergus MacCarlich of Ercildune03/04 , A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents


Titles

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Turkish

None to date for this tenure


Return to Table of Contents


Weirdness
see also Compatible (Language)
see also Compatible (SCA)
see also Temporal Disparity

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]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots orthographies, which is one step from period practice. [Caitrina de Bruce the Fowler, 04/04, A-Artemesia]


The submitter requested an authentic name with "the first name Norse and the second name Scottish." While there is a great deal of evidence for Norsemen adopting Gaelic names and vice versa, there is no evidence that Norse and Gaelic orthographies were combined in this manner. This name combines Norse and Gaelic orthographies, which has been ruled one step from period practice. As submitted, it's not authentic although it is registerable. To make this name authentic, it should be in entirely in either Norse orthography or Gaelic orthography. An entirely Norse form would be Einarr Domnalsson; Talan Gwynek's draft article "Old Norse Forms of Early Irish Names" gives Domnall as the normalized form of the runic "tomnal", which is found in an inscription on a 12th C Icelandic sword hilt. As the College has been unable to find a Gaelic form of Einarr, we cannot speculate on a fully Gaelic form of this name. [Einarr mac Dhòmhnuill, 04/04, A-Calontir]


By precedent, combining French and German in a single name is one step from period practice. [Gabrielle von Friedrichsthal, 04/04, A-Calontir]


This name mixes an English place name with an otherwise Scots name; such a mixture was declared one step from period practice in September 2001. However, many Scots name forms are identical to English name forms. Furthermore, many of the standard sources used by the SCA College of Arms, including the Oxford English Dictionary and Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames, make no distinction between English and Scots forms. We are therefore overturning this precedent, and declaring that names combining Scots and English forms are no longer considered a step from period practice. [Michael Duncan of Hadley, 04/04, A-Caid]


This name combines Gaelic and Scots, which is one step from period practice. [Muireadhach Fairley, 04/04, A-Lochac]


The name combines English and Flemish. Barring documentation of such combinations, this is one step from period practice. [Rosalind Ryne, 04/04, A-Lochac]


While we know of no examples where Norse and Russian are used in the same name, there is enough contact between the cultures for this to be only one step from period practice.

The submitter specified an interest in having the name be authentic for a language and/or culture, he did not specify which culture. We are, therefore, not able to change the name to meet this request. The name Ari viligisl would be an entirely Norse form. We were unable to find an entirely Russian form.  [Arii viligisl, 03/04, A-Caid]


This name adds an Italian placename to an otherwise Spanish name. Although the submitter provided documentation for Soldano as a placename in period, no documentation was provided that this particular form was used in Spain. A Laurel precedent of August 2001 holds that combining Spanish and Italian in a single name is a step from period practice, hence registerable.  [Diego Rivera de Soldano, 03/04, A-Caid]


Mixing Gaelic and English orthography in the same name is vanishingly rare and is considered one step from period practice. [Eithne of Brechin03/04, A-Caid]


This name combines a 12th C placename with an otherwise 16th C name. However, this temporal disparity is only one step from period practice. A possible 16th century form this of name is Fergus MacCarlich of Earlistoune; this spelling of the locative is dated to 1553 in Black. [Fergus MacCarlich of Ercildune03/04 , A-Caid]


The combination of Russian and French is at least a step from period practice. A fully French form of this name is Taurin Sanglier. [Tauron Sanglier, 03/04, A-Caid]



Return to Table of Contents


Welsh

This name does not conflict with Kenneth MacAlpin, king of Scotland. Kenneth and Kendel have different middle and end sounds, and the spellings are different enough to avoid confusion between the two names.

This name combines Welsh and Anglicized Gaelic elements, which is one step from period practice.[Kendal Macalpin, 05/04, A-Middle]


While a large amount of documentation was submitted showing that Plant y Ddraig, meaning "Children of the Dragon", is a reasonable name for a group of people in modern Wales, none of it addressed the issue of whether this is a reasonable name for a group of people in pre-17th C Wales.

When asked about Welsh names for groups of people, Harpy had this to say:

Especially in genealogical texts, it's moderately common to find "Plant <personal name>" as a term describing the common descendents of <personal name>. It doesn't have the same legalistic sense as Irish "clann", although you can find something vaguely resembling that sense for "wyrion <personal name>" (literally "grandsons of <personal name>"). But these would always be used with a personal name of the common ancestor, not with an abstract totem or symbol.

These findings are consistent with clan names in Scotland and Ireland, which are based on either the surname or given name of a common ancestor. In none of these cultures are names for groups of people formed using an epithet or totem as the descriptive element. Barring documentation of such group names in Welsh, such a combination is not registerable. A Welsh household name using the form Plant + <Welsh personal name> or Wyrion + <Welsh personal name> should be registerable. [Zara the Quiet, 05/04, R-Aethelmearc]


This name uses the form "given name + kingdom", which was regularly used in Welsh to indicate a member of the ruling family of that kingdom. However, Laurel made the following ruling in registering Myfanwy Gwynedd in August 2001:

The evidence indicates that the usage "given name + kingdom name" is regularly used in Welsh to indicate a member of the ruling family of that kingdom (e.g., Owain Gwynedd). (LoAR 14 Jun 87, p. 6)

However, more recent research (particularly Morgan & Morgan, p. 118 s. n. Gwynedd) has provided evidence of use of this byname by non-royals. As such, we are overturning that precedent and registering this name.

It seems reasonable to extend this precedent to Deheubarth. [Ieuan Deheubarth03/04, A-Caid]


Return to Table of Contents