This is the April 2004 Middle Kingdom Letter of Acceptances and Returns for Escutcheon’s February 2004 Letter of Intent.
Unless otherwise noted, all clients will accept changes. Comments in braces {} were removed from the Letter of Intent sent to Laurel and the College of Arms. Names, devices, or badges in braces have been returned or pended. Commentary, rulings, etc. by Rouge Scarpe are placed in small cap print. Thanks to Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Ælfreda æt Æthelwealda & Mikhail of Lubelska, Roberd mac Cormaic, Canute, Master Thorvald Redhair and Percival ap Gwylim Trefynwy, Master Talan Gwynek, and Master John ap Wynne for their commentary this month.
Please note, I have enlisted the aid of Master Talan Gwynek to assist me with the name decisions. If all goes well, changes will be made, when deemed necessary. If this seems to work we will continue in this vein. If not, we will go back to no changes/decisions.
1. Alessandra Novella di Brunetto – New Name and {Device – Vert, a natural tyger’s head {couped} cabossed, in chief a decrescent and an increscent Or.}
Client will not accept major changes and is most interested in the Italian language or culture.
Alessandra – Selected Letters of Alessandra Strozzi, University of California Press, translated by Heather Gregory. Page 183 notes the name of the original author – Alessandra Strozzi – circa 1465-1466.
Brunetto – Same as above, page 185.
Novella – Italian Renaissance Women’s Names, Jo Lori Drake. Cites Novella as 14th and/or 15th century name. Also during that period Santa Maria Novella basilica was built in Florence.
From St. Gabriel web site www.s-gabriel.org/names/rhian/italina.html
DEVICE COMMENTARY
Ary - There may be a conflict with Jehanne de Lyonesse (reg. 07/1971), "Vert, a lion's head affronty Or, orbed vert."
There is one CD for adding the secondary crescents, but I do not know if there is a CD for type between a natural tiger and a lion.
Roberd - Blazon-fu: Vert, a natural tiger's head caboshed proper, and in chief a decrescent and an increscent Or.
Since a natural tiger can be blazoned with colors other than black stripes on gold, it would be necessary to state this; although the blazon, as read, would indeed make the larger part of the natural tiger Or, and the stripes would have to be some contrasting color, it ought not be assumed to be sable. Adding the word "proper" takes care of that issue. The orientation of the head in the proposed blazon would put it facing to the viewer's left (dexter), with the neck visible and cut off with a straight edge. The emblazon shows no neck and the tiger facing affronty, hence, the change to caboshed. The convention in SCA blazonry is to capitalize Or, as well.
Searching the O&A, we find:
Jehanne de Lyonesse
Either the name or the following device associated it (or both) were registered in July of 1971: Vert, a lion's head affronty Or, orbed vert.
Several precedents state that no CD is granted between types of cats, particularly between natural tigers proper and lions proper, both of which are Or. The markings on the natural tiger comprise less than half the charge, and are therefore not warranted a difference. The latest such precedent listed is from Francois:
[a natural tiger couchant guardant contourny Or marked sable] The device conflicts with ... Gules, in pale a Grecian façade argent and a cat couchant to sinister guardant Or. There is one CD for removing the second primary charge (the façade). There is no difference for changing the type of cat, or for the tincture change represented by the markings, which are less than half the charge. This also conflicts with ... Gules, a lion dormant contourny Or, a chief wavy argent.
There is one CD for the removing the chief but nothing for the changing the posture from dormant to couchant guardant. Again, there is no difference between types of cats. [Sheila Stuart, 11/01, R-Meridies]
Likewise, the eye color in Jehanne's device is significantly less than half of the charge, and so would not warrant a CD. So, since the only CD comes from the addition of the secondary charges (the crescents), this is a conflict.
Canute - Vert, a lion's head
affronty Or, orbed vert.
Single CD for added secondary group
Return for conflict
Aelfreda and Mikhail - Device: The primary charge is cabossed, not couped. Probable conflict with Jehanne de Lyonesse (reg 7/71) "Vert, a lion's head affronty Or, orbed vert." There is one CD for the secondary. It's unknown if Jehanne's arms show any neck, and if that would be sufficient for a CD. There is no difference for a lion vs. a tiger.
From Francois: "[a natural tiger couchant guardant contourny Or marked sable] The device conflicts with ... Gules, in pale a Grecian façade argent and a cat couchant to sinister guardant Or. There is one CD for removing the second primary charge (the façade). There is no difference for changing the type of cat, or for the tincture change represented by the markings, which are less than half the charge. This also conflicts with ... Gules, a lion dormant contourny Or, a chief wavy argent. There is one CD for the removing the chief but nothing for the changing the posture from dormant to couchant guardant. Again, there is no difference between types of cats.
[Sheila Stuart, 11/01, R-Meridies]"
This device is probably clear of Caitlin MacDonnell (reg 3/84) "Vert, a lion's head erased affronty Or, gorged of a wreath of thistles purpure, slipped and leaved vert, within a bordure Or." There is one CD for bordure vs. crescents, and a second for addition of a tertiary, the wreath.
Again, from Francois: "[a horse's head contourny erased Or collared gules] This is clear of conflict with ... Sable, a single headed chess knight contourny Or. There is a CD for changing the field and a second CD for adding the collar. "When considering a full beast or monster gorged, the gorging is usually treated as an artistic detail, worth no difference. When consider the same creature's head gorged, however, the gorging is much more prominent in proportion --- and treated as a tertiary charge." (LoAR 9/93 p.5) [Ceinwen ferch Rhys ap Gawain, 03/02, A-Caid]"
Thorvald - I think we should add affronty to the blazon. …head couped affronty…
NAME COMMENTARY
Ary - Double given names were used in late period Italian, though they were rare.
<Brunetto> is found twice in "Italian Names from Florance, 1427" by Ferrante la Volpe (http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/ferrante/catasto/).
<di Brunetto> 'of Brunetto' is a fine byname. The preposition should not be capitalized.
This is a fine name; no conflicts found. Before being sent to Laurel, the summary should be changed to reflect whether or not she desires an authentic name, and what part of the name is most important to her.
Talan - <Alessandra> is found three times as a feminine forename in the 1427 Florentine Catasto: <http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/catasto/>. The client's own documentation is also decent.
<Brunetto> is found a couple of times as a man's name in the 1427 Florentine Catasto: <http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/ferrante/catasto/>. It appears 74 times in a list of Florentine office holders from the period 1282-1532: <http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/florence1282-1532.html>. Here again the client's own documentation is to the point.
I haven't found a first-rate source for <Novella>, but it appears to be okay. Some of the documentation in the ILoI is confusingly presented: '"Italian Renaissance Women's names," by Jo Lori Drake' (in which <Names> should be capitalized) is identical with 'Rhain [sic] Lyth's webpage', cited for <Alessandra>. (It's actually <Rhian>. Someone, and I'm pretty sure that it's Ana, is awfully careless.) Further information is found in De Felice s.n. <Novello>. He says that the feminine name was often given for devotional reasons, pointing to the double name <Maria Novella> as evidence.
Report Nr. 2744 (Stefana) of the Academy of S. Gabriel at <http://www.panix.com/~gabriel/academy-in/showfinal.cgi/2744.txt> supports the double given name:
Compound given names (double given names, middle names) were common in some parts of Italy in your period and later [2, 3]. The most common pattern was for one of the names to be a saint's name, usually the second [3, 4].
The relevant reference for Florence is:
[2] Klapisch-Zuber, Christiane, _Women, Family and Ritual in Renaissance Italy_, translated by Lydia G. Cochrane (Chicago: The University of Chicago Press, 1985), pp. 255-258. The author notes, "Approximately 60% of the nine hundred children of Florentine bourgeois families studied by means of familial documentation bear a second given name in the period 1360-1530."
The more relevant reference for the second claim is:
[4] James S. Grubb, _Provincial Families of the Renaissance: Private and Public Life in the Veneto_ (Baltimore and London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1996), pp.42-7.
Note that although <Novella> isn't a saint's name, it has a similar devotional character, and that second names were in any case not always saints' names.
The report also notes that by 1450 most people were using inherited family names; an abbreviated form like <Alessandra Novella di Brunetto> 'A. N. (daughter) of B.' is not impossible, but it would be better if Brunetto had a family name. (This is also consistent with the data at <http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/arezzo.html>.) It's certainly good enough to send up, though.
Device – conflicts with Jehanne de Lyonesse as there are no differences between cats the same shall be applied to cat’s heads and will be returned.
Name – Passed on to Laurel
2. Alexander Kyppyn Kirkcaldy – {New BADGE – Quarterly purpure and vair counter vair, in bend two towers proper.}
(Name registered Nov. 1994, Meridies)
Ary - Devices must be submitted on escutcheon shaped fields; badges go on round shields. Either this must be redrawn on an escutcheon, or the designation must be changed to "new badge".
Typo in the blazon: "purpur_e_". Also, the order of the blazon is mixed up. The field comes first: "Quarterly purpure and vair counter vair, in bend two towers proper." (Since argent and azure is the default for vair, this does not need to be blazoned explicitly).
This conflicts with Brianna MacDh{'u}ghaill (reg. 09/1990 via the West), "Quarterly purpure and ermine, in bend two towers argent."
There is one CD for changing half the tincture of the field, but since stone proper _is_ argent, there is no CD for the tincture of the towers.
Roberd - Minor nit-pick: "purpure" is the proper spelling, I believe.
According to the latest version of the Glossary, the proper tincture for stone or stone items is grey, counted as a metal, and would conflict with argent.
Searching the O&A, I must admit surprise:
Brianna MacDh {u}ghaill - The following device associated with this name was registered in September of 1990 (via the West): Quarterly purpure and ermine, in bend two towers argent.
A single CD for changes to the field (changing the tincture of half the field) is all we get out this one, so there's a conflict. I have to admit, I thought this one was certain to be clear, but...
Canute - The fur is depicted too small to be identified and the towers should be a bit larger.
[Sable, a chess rook argent] This is clear of conflict with ... Sable, a tower argent. There is substantial difference between a tower and a properly drawn chess rook, so RfS X.2 applies.
In the LoAR of October 1996, it was stated that there was "nothing for the difference between a tower and a chess-rook". This precedent is hereby overturned: a tower and a chess rook were considered different charges in period and have substantial visual difference. The period heraldic chess rook is drawn consistently in a form where the top is forked into two prominent curled points. This was a standard depiction for the period chess piece, as illustrated in Caxton's 1474 "Game and Playe of the Chesse". The period heraldic chess rook does not resemble any sort of fortification and cannot be mistaken for a tower. On examining the collated commentary for the October 1996 ruling, it appears that perhaps the commenters mistakenly believed that the particular chess rook in the possible conflict was drawn as a tower, rather than as a period chess rook. [William fitzBubba, 12/01, A-East]
Precedents - François, under CHESS PIECE
Rúadhán Bárd - June of 1998 (via Æthelmearc): Azure, in fess two chess rooks argent.
RfS X.2 difference.
Brianna MacDh{ù}ghaill - September of 1990 (via the West): Quarterly purpure and ermine, in bend two towers argent.
Single CD for the tincture of half of the
field.
Towers, Canton of the - February of 1985 (via the East):
Azure, two towers palewise in bend sinister argent.
Single CD for the field. No CD for the forced arrangement in the
submission.
Return for multiple conflicts.
Note for conflict checkers - Please don't stop checking after finding one conflict. I have seen returns of resubmissions with permissions to conflict because there were other conflicts that were never mentioned by the original commenters.
Aelfreda and Mikhail - Badge (ILOI calls it a device, but it's on a roundel): Reblazon as "Quarterly purpure and vair en pointe ancient, in bend two towers proper." From the online ILOI, it's difficult to tell if the vair bells are curved or straight lines. If they are straight lines, please remove "ancient" from the above blazon. (See pg 88 of the MK Pursuivants Handbook, 2nd ed. for an illustration.) We are assuming the tower is actually gray (proper) and not argent masoned sable. (Stone proper is gray, per the Glossary of Terms.)
Probable conflict with Brianna MacDh{ù}ghaill (reg 9/90) "Quarterly purpure and ermine, in bend two towers argent." There is one CD for changes to the field, but no difference between gray (proper) and argent.
Thorvald - This is listed as a new device, but it is appearing on a badge form.
Not being as familiar with the variety of vair, we had to look this up and felt this looked more like vair en point. Therefore, we suggest reblazoning to Quarterly, purpure and vair en point argent and azure, two towers proper.this will be returned for conflict with Brianna MacDh{'u}ghaill (reg. 09/1990 via the West), "Quarterly purpure and ermine, in bend two towers argent.
3. Cristen Fynlo – New Name.
Client will not accept any changes.
www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/jonesmanx16.html
Manx names in the early 16th century
by H.R. Jones
p. 2 of 26 – Frequency list - ,1% Cristen (given name)
p. 5 and 6 of 26 – Surnames – 16% consist only of the
root name
p. 17 – Fynlo – surname of unknown origin
Ary - Fabulous name. Before being sent to Laurel, the summary should be changed to reflect whether or not he desires an authentic name, and what part of the name is most important to him. {It was}
Talan - The name and documentation are fine.
John – Cristen: usually found as a female name; see Conway (p.9) under ‘Cristen”; Woulfe (p. 44 under ‘Cristen’); Coghlan (p.19 under ‘Christine’); however, they are Irish. Client’s source is okay, but doesn’t give a lot of leeway.
Fynlo: I don’t find this surname anywhere, but the Manx people really didn’t leave us a lot. Where did the client get it?
Passed on to Laurel
4. Faolán na Cairrce mac Odhráin – New Name and Device – Vert, a chevron ermine between three crosses fleury Or.
Client cares most about meaning and Irish language/culture.
I am listing exactly what the client provided:
Faolán http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1201-1300.shtml
http://www.spgabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/Faelan.shtml
na Cariice http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/DescriptiveBynames.Alpha.shtml
http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/DescriptiveBynames/naCairrce.shtml
mac http://www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/quickgaelicbynames/
Ohdráin http://www.maguirefoods.com/extendedhistory.html
http://www.andythenamebender.com/name-meanings/Odhran.html
http://www.catholic.org.saints/saint.php?saint_id=4888
http://www.angelfire.com/mac/celticprayers/odhran.html
No copies provided
DEVICE COMMENTARY
Ary - Typo in the blazon: "three" not "3". These are lovely arms. This is clear of Ealasaid Ramsey of Skye (reg. 05/1988 via Atlantia), "Vert, a chevron ermine, cotised, between two roses argent and an opinicus sejant erect to sinister Or," with one CD for removing the cotises, and one for changing all the type of secondary charges.
Roberd - Minor correction to the blazon: capitalize "Or".
I could find no conflicts. The closest was Sigfrid Hake, Sable, a chevron ermine between three suns Or (1 CD for changing the tincture of the field, 1 for changing the type on the secondary charges), and Colin MacDhaibhidh of Southkeep, who has Vert, a chevron rompu ermine (1 CD for the change to the chevron, 1 for adding the secondaries).
Nice device
Canute - There should be fewer and larger ermine spots on the chevron. Clear
NAME COMMENTARY
Ary - Faol{a'}n na Cairrce mac Odhr{a'}in - The documentation is inadequately summarized on the LoI, and an adequate summary must be provided before this is sent to the College of Arms. In particular, an adequate summary includes a) the author of the cited source, b) the title of the cited source, and c) (most importantly) the dates to which the source dates the name. Also, a summary of the check boxes must be included. The LoI gives no information as to whether he would like an authentic name, or what part of the name is most important to him.
The first URL is typoed. It is actually http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1201-1300.shtml (Index, not Inde). The author is Mari neyn Brian, and the article is "Index of Names in Irish Annals: Masculine Given Names". <Faol{a'}n> is found 18 times between 628 and 1203. The pre c.1200 spelling is
<Fael{a'}n>. Given the early dates for this name, the early spelling is better than the later spelling; however, if he does not request authenticity, the name should remain unchanged.
The byname should be glossed in the LoI. It means "[of] the Rock", according to Mari neyn Brian's "Index of Names in Irish Annals: Masculine Descriptive Bynames", the cited URL, and is found once in 1302.
<mac> is cited from Effrick neyn Kennyeoch's "Quick and Easy Gaelic Names", which documents the construction <mac> 'son' + <father's name in the genitive case>.
The source for <Odhrain> is inadequate; the first link leads to a cite for "Andy the Name Bender", which advertises "Meaning of Baby names - First name meanings - What is the meaning of Odhran?" The sum total of information on <Odhran> on this page is:
"The meaning of Odhran Origin: Irish Meaning: Pale green"
which says nothing about medieval usage of the name. The Catholic saints citation is better, but it cannot be taken as evidence for the spelling <Odhran>, since this cite regularly modernized and anglicizes the names it uses. I have been unable to find independent evidence for this name. With this slim evidence, I am hesitant to recommend forwarded this to the College of Arms.
Talan - OCM s.n. <Odhr{á}n>: 'According to an early text there were seventeen saints of this name. Among these are St Odr{á}n of Latteragh in Ormond whose feast-day is 2 October; the saintly bishop Odr{á}n whose feast-day is 8 May; and St Odr{á}n who, according to tradition, was brother of St Ciar{á}n of Clonmacnoise and whose feast-day is 16 May.' <Odhr{á}n> is the later spelling.
The name is a diminutive of <Odar> (later spelling <Odhar>); OCM note Odar mac Muiredaig, abbot of Lusk, who died in 1055. The genitive follows the usual pattern with <-{á}n> diminutives, <Odr{á}n> (later <Odhr{á}in>).
There are two definite entries in O'Brien's index. (I'm ignoring three people who appear as <Odr{á}n> in some source but who are given primary listing under another name by O'Brien.) Ó Riain has about a dozen and a half saints by this name and three non-saints.
Woulfe shows a surname <Ó hOdhr{á}in> with a ca.1600 Englishing, so the Irish surname was definitely in use by the end of the SCA period. The name should be okay.
John – Faola’n: usually together as one word. See O’Corrain/Maguire (pp. 92-93); the name of no less than three kings of Leinster; see also Todd (p. 114); Conway (p. 41); Woulfe (p.18).
Na Cairrce: ‘of the rock’; see O’Corrain/Maguire (p.44), listing ‘Carrech’; Dwelly (pp. 169-170); ‘na carragh’
MacOdhrain: see O’corrain/Maguire (p.148 under ‘Odran’); also Conway (p. 53); Todd (p.144). both name and device
Passed to Laurel.
5. Faolán na Cairrce mac Ohráin - New Badge – Vert, a cross fleury Or within a bordure ermine.
Ary - Typo in the blazon: "Or", not "or". No conflicts found.
Roberd - Capitalize "Or", please.
I was immediately struck by how much this looks like the Boy Scout merit badge for Safety (http://www.meritbadge.com/art/2600c.gif). The tinctures are slightly different, of course, and the resemblance has more to do with the fact that it's a cross on a round green field, but I was struck by it. Not that it's all that germane to our discussion; forgive the digression...
Surprisingly, given the fact that X.2 isn't going to be a tremendous help here, there were no conflicts I could find.
{The only other comments were – ‘clear’}
Passed to Laurel
6. Geoffrey of Wigmore – Device Resubmission - Per pale argent and azure, a griffin segreant within a bordure embattled counterchanged.
Original submission – Per pale argent and azure, a griffin a griffin segreant within a bordure embattled counterchanged – was returned by Rouge Scarpe on the November 2003 LoAR because no name was registered or in process. The name was submitted and appeared on the February XLoI thus solving the problem.
Ary - The reason for return, if known, should be stated on the ILoI. The Nov. 2003 ILoAR is not online, but I believe this was originally returned because he did not have a name in process or registered. This problem has now been fixed, as his name was accepted by Rouge Scarpe in January 2004, though it has not yet been sent to Laurel.
I hearby retract this last statement: The February 10, 2004 Middle ELoI just showed up in my mailbox today, and this name submission is on that letter.
Roberd - I'm curious as to why this was returned by Rouge Scarpe in 11/03. unfortunately, it would appear that the November 2003 ILoAR is the only missing Internal Acceptance letter in the last several years. According to the ILoI from Sep 03, the last time this was submitted, no one could find evidence of <Geoffrey of Wigmore> being a registered name. Checking against the Far Reaches O&A, there is still no mention of this name being registered. Has evidence of registration been found?
Having said that, the device appears clear of conflict. But without a registered name, it would have to be returned.
Thorvald - It is not clear why this was returned, and according to the blazon, it is the same submission.
Device passed to Laurel
7. Iuliana an Einigh inghean Chatháil – New Name
Client cares most about meaning, feminine, and the Irish language/culture.
I am listing exactly what the client provided:
Iuliana www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/1201-1600.shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/Iuliana.shtml
an Einigh www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/DescriptiveBynames.html
inghean www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/quickgaelicbynames/
Chatháil in Gaelic, feminie bynames undergo a process called “lenition” where the initial consonant softens in this case, from <C> to <Ch>)
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1201-1300/shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/Cathal/shtml
No copies provided.
Ary - Again, please provide a summary of the authors and titles of the sources being cited.
No documentation was provided for the double <n> spelling of <Iulianna>. This should be changed to the documented <Iuliana>. The submitter should be aware that this name is found as the name of an Anglo-Norman woman living in Ireland, and that as yet no evidence has been found that it was adopted by native Gaels. Thus, a byname indicating Gaelic parentage is inappropriate here. (It is, however, registerable). {On the submitter’s form is it spelled with only one ‘n’ and is so listed here}
The URL for the byname is broken. It is in fact Mari neyn Brian's "Index of Names in Irish Annals: Descriptive Bynames found in Feminine Names" http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/DescriptiveBynames.html <an Einigh> is found in 1471, and it means "the hospitable".
<Cathal> is found in Mari's article 19 times between 752 and 1578. It has no accent. <Chathail> is the correct lenited, genitive form of the name, and thus <inghean Chathail> the correct later-period byname meaning 'daughter of Cathal'.
Talan - The URL for the byname documentation is incorrect: it should be <http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/DescriptiveBynames.html>. It is found in this form in a 1471 annal from the Annals of the Four Masters, Vol. 4. The name itself is a bit unlikely but properly constructed from attested elements.
John – Iulianna: basically means a roman name, the closest I come is ‘Iuile’ (Coghlan p.42).
an Einigh: means ‘only begotten one’; see Dwelly (p. 41, p. 391); from ‘aon-ghin’, or ‘einghin’.
Chathail: the accepted lenited form of ‘Cathal’; see O’Corrain/Maguire (p. 47); Coghlan (p. 18); Conway (p. 32).
Passed to Laurel
8. Margyt Withycombe – Device Resubmission – Purpure, a horse’s head couped, in dexter chief a mullet argent.
(Name registered November 2002)
Original device Purpure, in bend a mullet and a horse head couped argent. Was returned by Laurel November 2002 for conflict.
Ary - "Conflict with Rafael Diego de Burgos, Purpure, a mullet dismembered argent. There is one CD for adding the co-primary horse's head. There is no difference for the small artistic change between a mullet dismembered and a mullet. Note that precedent does not give difference between a compass star and a riven star, showing a case where similar (although not identical) breaks in a star are not worth difference: "...nor is there a CD between a compass star and a riven star" (LoAR April 2001).
"The armory was originally blazoned on the Letter of Intent with the horse's head as the sole primary charge and the mullet as a secondary charge, but the equal size of the charges does not admit that interpretation. However, if the submitter were to redraw this submission with the horse's head as a centered, sole primary charge, and with the mullet as a clearly subsidiary secondary charge, this particular conflict would no longer apply."
This resubmission has quite adequately addressed the previous reason for return. While it would be nice to see some internal detailing on the horse's head, I do not find it unidentifiable as is.
This is clear of Keriane St. John of Shaddoncarraig (reg. 12/83 via the West), "Purpure, a horse's head erased to sinister argent," with one CD for adding the mullet and one for the orientation of the head.
I found no other conflict.
Roberd - This looks... odd to me, owing to the fact that the horse's head is shown strictly in silhouette. Leaving that aside, however, there are several near-misses in the conflict department (such as Keriane St. John of Shaddoncarraig with Purpure, a horse's head erased to sinister argent [1 CD for change in orientation, 1 for addition of the mullet]), but no direct hits.
Canute - [concerning internal detailing] Over the last months, we have seen an increasing number of submissions where a complex charge (such as an animal) is drawn without any internal details. The members of the College have been quick to point out that this can lead to difficulties in identifying the charge. They are, of course, correct, and it is probably for this reason that most period depictions of complex charges have some internal details. However, not all period heraldic art has internal details, and such silhouette depictions are acceptable in the SCA as long as identifiability is preserved...[08/01, CL] Precedents - François, under EMBLAZON
Some internal details on the head would be nice.
Clear
{As Ary pointed out, this does negate the aforementioned conflict, but I am not entirely happy with it. However, finding no sufficient reason to return the device it is}
Passed to Laurel
9. Milesent Vibert – Device Resubmssion – Per chevron argent and sable, three mascles, {two and one} counterchanged.
Client’s previous submission - Per chevron argent and vert, three compass stars counterchanged was returned by Rouge Scarpe August 2003 for conflict:
“The Device is being returned for conflict with Andrew Greencloak Hethilsson – 07/86 Per chevron argent and vert, in base a mullet of four points argent. There is only 1 CD for adding the mullets. There’s no CD for a mullet of four vs. compass stars – “a compass star vs a mullet of four points] The overwhelming visual similarities between a mullet of four points and a mullet of four greater and four lesser points/compass star, both of which are non-period charges, mandates against granting a ... CD for this relatively minor difference. (Raffaelle de Mallorca, 6/95 p. 23)”
This complete change of device takes care of that problem.
Ary - Ooooh... This gets a "nice arms" in my book! Her previous arms, "Per chevron argent and vert, three compass stars counterchanged," were returned on the cited ILoAR for "conflict with Andrew Greencloak Hethilsson – 07/86 Per chevron argent and vert, in base a mullet of four points argent. There is only 1 CD for adding the mullets. There’s no CD for a mullet of four vs. compass stars – â€{œ}a compass star vs a mullet of four points] The overwhelming visual similarities between a mullet of four points and a mullet of four greater and four lesser points/compass star, both of which are non-period charges, mandates against granting a ... CD for this relatively minor difference. (Raffaelle de Mallorca, 6/95 p. 23)â€
"Two and one" is the default for three charges on a field, so this can be deleted from the blazon. I found no conflicts with this design.
Roberd - Blazon-fu: Per chevron argent and sable, three *mascles* counterchanged. Since 2-and-1 is the default arrangement, it can be omitted. The hazards of spellchecking must be at fault for the "muscles" mistake.
Oddly, it would appear that simple heraldry like this with a default arrangement of mascles and no other charges is quite rare. I found no conflicts.
Thorvald - Suggest taking out the …two and one…, since this is the default.
{Very nice device}
Passed to Laurel
10, Sisuile {Mugain} inghean Fhaol {á}in – New Name
Client cares most about meaning, feminie,and Irish language/culture.
I am listing exactly what the client provided:
Sisuile www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/1201-1600.shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/Sisuile.shtml
Mugain www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/DescriptiveBynames.html
inghean www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/quickgaelicbynames/
Fhaoláin in Gaelic, feminie bynames undergo a process called “lenition” where the initial consonant softens in this case, from <F> to <Fh>)
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1201-1300/shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/Faelan/shtml
No copies provided.
Ary - This is a fine name, but the documentation is inadequately summarized. Again, title and author and date (and gloss for bynames) needs to be included. Please also note that most of the URLs are typoed on the ILoI, and should be corrected on the ELoI. Please also include a summary of the authenticity desires of the submitter, and what elements of the name are most important.
<Sisuile> is found in 1250 and 1586 as cited.
<Mugain> "a young (unmarried) girl" is found once in 632.
Gaelic names are registerable without accents if they are dropped uniformly, as they are in this case.
This name contains a weirdness for using name elements that are dated more than 300 years apart.
Talan - I'm afraid that Mari's entry for this is simply wrong: there is no such byname. She has it right at <http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/Mor.shtml>, where <Mor Mhughan, inge_n Aedha Be_nnain> is correctly glossed 'M{ó}r Muman, daughter of Aed Benn{á}n' from the CELT on-line translation of the Annals of Ulster. In other words, the woman's name was <M{ó}r Muman>; this is either a compound name 'great [one] of Munster', roughly like masculine <C{ú}Ulad> 'Hound of Ulster', or a name and byname 'M{ó}r of Munster'. (<Muman> is the old genitive of <Mumu> 'Munster'.) The scribe evidently made a mistake in writing <Mhughan> for <Mhumhan>.
Note that the DIL has no <mugain> or similar, that the OCM entry on which Mari based her incorrect interpretation clearly implies that if there is such a word, it is *not* known to have meant 'a young (unmarried) girl', and that even if there were such a word, it would have to appear in a later spelling in this name.
If she allows the byname to be dropped, the name can go up without it; otherwise, the name needs to be returned. (I'd probably add the accent to the patronymic to make it <Fhaol{á}in>, as in her brother's name below, though I believe that the College will register it either way. Given the general carelessness of the ILoI, it wouldn't even greatly surprise me to find that it was present on the forms.) {It is}
John – Sisuile: a diminutive of ‘Sile’ ‘Sheila’ or ‘Cecilia’; see Coghlan (pp. 18-19); O’Corrain/Maguire (pp. 165-166)
Mugain: see O’Corrain/Maguire (p. 140); Ellis (pp. 173-174); very prominent in Irish mythology.
Fhaolain: accepted lenited form of ‘Faolan’ – see above comments.
Name will pass to Laurel with ‘Mugain’ removed. {Right Talan????}
11. Uilliam Mer mac Fhaol{á}in – New Name
Client cares most about meaning, masculine, and Irish language/culture.
I am listing exactly what the client provided:
Uilliam www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1301-1400.shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/Uilliam.shtml
Mer www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex /DescriptiveBynames/Alpha.html
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex /DescriptiveBynames/Mer.html
mac www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/quickgaelicbynames/
Fhaoláin in Gaelic, feminie bynames undergo a process called “lenition” where the initial consonant softens in this case, from <F> to <Fh>)
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/1201-1300/shtml
www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Masculine/Faelan/shtml
No copies provided.
Ary - This, like the other names, needs an adequate summary of the documentation and the forms checkboxes.
<Uilliam> is found 18 times between 1302 and 1577.
The masculine descriptive byname <Mer> is found once in 1399. It means "swift".
The byname is constructed correctly.
Talan - There's an error in that entry, too, though not so serious a one. <Mer> is in fact the early (pre-1200) spelling. The later spelling is <mear>, and it's the same word as <mear> 'mad'. (The entry there incorrectly gives <mear> as the early spelling.) According to the DIL s.v. <mer> the original meaning was apparently 'off one's head, demented, crazy', either as a temporary condition (caused, for instance, by strong drink) or as a permanent state; it later acquired a wider range of senses, Dinneen giving 'swift, sudden, lively, active, valiant, joyous, giddy, raging, mad, wild'.
Should be <Uilliam mear mac Faol{á}in>.
The name's okay if he allows the byname to be corrected to <mear>.
John – Uilliam: see O’Corrain/Maguire (p. 175); Todd (p. 1600); Conway (p. 59).
Mer: I don’t find this anywhere – I even accessed the computerized records. Hope client gave Rory more info than I got.
Mac Faolain: yet another accepted form of ‘Faolan’; there was really no standardized spelling, and one could opt to lenite or not.
Passed to Laurel {Talan – is it really necessary to change mer to mear? If they mean the same, what difference does it make? Just a curiosity question. If it is necessary I’ll change it.}
12. Xún Mèi Lï – New Name and Device – Per pale sable and argent. A wolf’s head cabossed per pale argent and sable.
{I made the name so large to enable the accents to be seen}
Client will not accept changes and cares most about the Chinese language/culture.
Meaning – Dark Texture
“In Search of Your Asian Roots” Genealogical Research on Chinese Surnames, by Sheau-yueh J. Chao; Clearfield Company, Inc. 2000. International Standard Book Number 0-8063-4946-8
“Concise English-Chinese Chinese-English Dictionary” Martin H. Manser, Oxford University Press, 1986 & 1999. ISBN (paperback) 0-19-591151-2
“What is Tao?”, Alan Watts, New World Library, October 2000. ISBN 1-57731-168-x
{Sorry, I can’t summarize a thing! Besides not being a name person, I don’t speak Chinese!}
DEVICE COMMENTS
All comments were – no conflict found/clear.
NAME COMMENTS
Ary - X{u'} n M{'e} i Li - Is this supposed to be <X{u'} n M{'e} i Li> or <X{u'}n M{'e}i Li>?
{Even though it appeared differently on the LoI it is the same on all the forms and appears the way I have it listed above.}
I do not have enough knowledge of Chinese names to be able to help with this. The name <Mei Li> is probably fine, though; <Mei Li> is also the name of the SCA's expert in Chinese names, in Artemisia (whom I sure would be happy to help with this name if asked).
Talan - I'm only very marginally qualified to comment on the name, but I can at least comment on the documentation. I've quoted it, indented; my comments are not indented.
Xún - ?In Search of Your Asian Roots,? by Sheau-yueh J. Chao, 2000, pp. xvii, 79 ? ? traces the genealogy of the
surname of Hsun as follows: The sruman Hsun branched from the surname Chi..? Xun Zi: original name Hsun Kuang c. 300-230 b.c. Chinese philospher, who systematized Confucian teaching www.wordreference.com
The URL seems to be completely irrelevant: it's a search interface to bilingual Spanish-English, French-English, Italian-English, and German-English dictionaries and the Collins English Dictionary. Certainly it's useless without information on what was looked up.
Mèi - http://zhongwen.com/d/172/d78.htm mèi - Sun not yet out, dark, conceal.
Li - ?Concise English-Chinese Chinese-English Dictionary,? Oxford Press, 1999, p. 275, ?texture.?
http://zhongwen.com/d/178/d/122.htm Li - means texture, grain ?What is Tao?? Alan Watts, 2002, p. 61. ?li .. its original meaning is the markings in jade, the grain in wood, or the fiber in muscle..?
Mangled. First, the URL is wrong: it should be <http://zhongwen.com/d/178/d122.htm>. Secondly, someone has omitted the tone marking, an inverted carat over the <i>; I'll write it <Li^>.
Lin Shan, _Name Your Baby in Chinese_ (Union City, CA: Heian International, Inc., 1988), is a book on how to construct a reasonable modern Chinese given name from common name elements. It doesn't pretend to be a guide to historical naming, but so far as I can tell, many historical names were constructed on just these principles, so it's worth seeing what Lin Shan has to say. There is an entry for <Mèi>, but it isn't the one she wants: the meaning is 'charming, fascinating, enchanting', and it's a different character from the one shown at zhongwen.com. There is an entry for the <Li^> character shown at the zhongwen.com site, but as a name element it's glossed 'reason; logic; truth'. (The first two are also found as glosses at the zhongwen.com site.) <Xún> appears on p.20 in a list of traditional surnames.
Client will *not* accept major or minor changes. She wants Chinese meaning dark texture.
It's not clear to me that 'dark texture' is a plausible meaning for a Chinese feminine name, but I don't pretend to know much about it. I'd fix the documentation, add the information (such as it is) from Lin Shan, and send it up with an expressed hope that someone can help one way or the other.
Name passed to Laurel and the experts
Device passed to Laurel
13. Xún Mèi Li– New Badge – (Fieldless) a wolf’s head cabossed per pale vert and sable.
All comments were – no conflicts found/clear.
Passed to Laurel
14. Xún Mèi Li – New Badge – (Fieldless) a wolf’s head cabossed vert.
Canute - Wolfbrand of the Tiger's Paw - July of 1985 (via the East): Argent, a wolf's head caboshed maintaining in its jaws a sword fesswise vert.
Single CD for fieldless. No CD for the maintained sword. A visual check might be in order since the registration signifigantly predated the maintained/sustained blazonry precedent set during the tenure of Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme (Brayden Avenel Durrant, July, 1992, pg. 6) and might be misblazoned by current standards.
Aelfreda and Mikhail - Possible conflict with Wolfbrand of the Tiger's Paw (reg 7/85) "Argent, a wolf's head caboshed maintaining in its jaws a sword fesswise vert." There is one CD for field vs. fieldless. The blazon calls the sword "maintained", which would normally not give a second CD. It is possible that the sword is large enough, compared to the head, that it would be worth a second CD. (See Francois' second comments in #1 above, for a case where adding a charge to a head is significant enough to generate a CD, where it wouldn't on a full creature.) We suggest sending this on to Laurel, and request a visual check with the file copy of Wolfbrand's armory.
Passed to Laurel
Done in Service,
Elena de Vexin
John ap Wynne’s Bibliography:
1 Coghlan, Ronan, Irish First Names,
Appletree Press Ltd, Belfast, 1985
2. Conway, D.J., Celtic Book of Names, Carroll Publishing
Group, Seacaucus, NJ, 1999
3. Dwelly, Edward, ed., Illustrated Gaelic-English Dictrionary,
Gairm Publications, Ltd; Glasgow, 1973, eighth ed.
4. Ellis, Peter Beresfor, Dictinary of Irish Mythology,
Oxford University Press, Ltd., oxford, 1987
5. O’Corrain, Donnchadh, & Maguire, Fidelma, Irish
Names, Lilliput Press Ltd, Dublin, 1981, 1990
6. Todd. Loreto, Celtic Names for Children, O’Brien
Press Ltd, Dublin, 1998
7. Woulfe, Patrick, Irish Names for Children, 1967 reprint
of 1923 work by Gill & MacMillan, Ltd. Dublin
Disclaimer: This page is not officially sanctioned by the SCA, Inc., the Middle Kingdom, or the College of Arms. It is a private project of the Escutcheon Herald (Ana Linch) who has based the information published here on publicly available documentation.
