February 15, 2000

Greetings unto Lady Clarissa Wykeham, Dragon; Lord Alan Fairfax, Rouge Scarpe; and the commenting members of the Midrealm College of Heralds; from Lord Paul Wickenden of Thanet, Escutcheon.

Here are the January 2000 submissions for your consideration and commenting. All commentary should be sent to Rouge Scarpe Herald, Alan Fairfax, early enough to arrive by March 31, 2000, with copies to Dragon and myself. Unless otherwise stated, all name submissions will accept minor and major changes to grammar and/or spelling.

Please note that the Dragon Herald has a new email address. It is: nancy.rivers@netzero.net

There are NO pends this month! Yeah! :)

1) Agnès du Gaillard. New Name and Device. Azure, a cross fleury argent, a bordure argent mullety vert.

Agnès is from Scott, "Feminine Given Names" (http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/ reaneyAG.html). Gaillard is from Dauzat (274) as a header spelling. The client cares most about sound but would like to have an authentic 12-14th century Norman name.

In my opinion, there really are not enough mullets (nor are they scattered properly) to make this a field treatment and I would blazon it as "... on a bordure argent eight mullets vert."

2) Alexander de Seton of Altavia. New Badge. Gules, a dragon in annulo Or.

{Name reg'd 9/96}

The form states: "this badge is to be used by the citizens of the Midlands Region of the Middle Kingdom." I'm not sure if this means that the badge is intended for the Kingdom or for lord Alexander. The submitted blazon adds that the dragon has "flames issuant from mouth proper" but I have considered this artistic license.

3) Bebhinn Dubh. Badge Resubmission. Or, a turtle tergiant azure.

{Name submitted on the 8/99 MK ELoI}

The client's previous submission (Argent, a turtle tergiant azure) was returned by Rouge Scarpe on 8/99 for conflict with Nicolete de Brabant (Argent, a turtle tergiant azure a bordure sable). The client has changed the field tincture.

4) Cainnech rúad macGuairi. New Name and Device. Azure, a lymphad argent, on a chief Or, an otter passant gules.

Cainnech is found in Jackson, The Gaelic Notes in the Book of Deer (20 and 56) as the name of a character in this 13th century tale. No indication is provided that it was used by real people. ruad [without the accent] is found in a list of names (Aedh ruad mac Báduirn) in Silva Gadelica (485). rúad [with the accent] means "red," according to Thurneysen, A Grammar of Old Irish (40). The last element is constructed using Bannerman, Studies in the History of Dalriada which gives guairi at (33) as the nominative form and mc guaire at (65). The client writes: "I would like to use macGuairi, and although Guairi appears in the Sencus Fer nAlban, it is only used in the nominative case. However mac/mcGuaire is shown, Guaire being in the genitive case as is appropriate for following 'mac.' Guaire is also the nominative form in use elsewhere in the document, so I think that Guairi, being an alternate spelling for Guaire probably followed the same genitive rules. Also, since the name Guairi is an alternate spelling for Guaire, perhaps the e in Guaire was pronounced 'ee' (the Gaelic pronunciation of the letter 'I'). I conclude that macGuairi is just as valid a spelling as macGuaire. Besides, standardized orthography wasn't practiced until the 18th century." The client says in the documentation that he cares most about the sound of this last element. The forms state that he cares most about meaning and having an early Irish/Scots Gaelic (9th-10th century name) and would like has name to be authentic for that time and place.

Ó Corráin & Maguire (43) have Cainnech as the name of four saints, and they say that it is a common name.

5) Catarina de Bruyn. New Name and Device. Argent chapé, a tulip purpure, slipped and leaved vert.

Caterina Cornaro was a Venetian who became Queen of Cyprus in the mid-15th century, according to Wernick, "Cyprus: Lives in Love & Strife" (no page given). The same woman's name is spelled Catarina Cornaro in Racinet, Historical Encyclopedia of Costume (174). Ibid (166) mentions an Abraham de Bruyn who lived in the late 16th century. Carolus de Bruyn died in 1520, according to the De Bruyn Family Genealogy (500). The client cares most about sound and would like to have an authentic mid-1500s German/Dutch/Flemish/Venetian name. She will NOT accept MAJOR changes.

The client encloses documentation to show that tulips were imported to Holland in the late 1500s. The client's submitted blazon was "Per chevron purpure and argent, a tulip proper slipped and leaved, purpure." I have taken some liberties to improve upon it.

6) Matthaus Langermann. New Name and Device. Quarterly, barry argent and gules and Or, in bend sinister a double headed eagle displayed and a stag rampant sable.

The client's original submission was pended on December ILoI for use of the old forms. The items have now been submitted on new forms and can be sent forward.

Matthäus is in Bahlow (English trans) (355-356) as the patron saint of customs officials and tax collectors. Lang(e), Langer is in ibid (326) as a "tall person." There are numerous listings which have "Lang" followed by something else: Langen, Lang(e)loh, Langenscheidt, Langewiesche, etc (all on 326). There are also many examples of X + "-mann", as in Lassmann and Latt(e)mann (both on 327), Lachmann, Lack(e)mann, Lademann, Lademann, Lage(mann), Lahmann (all on 327), etc. The client cares most about meaning and having an authentic 15th century Swiss name. He will NOT accept MAJOR changes.

I have tweaked the client's submitted blazon, but the design looks like marshalled arms to me in any case.

7) Oweyn Hudson. New Name and Device. Per bend sinister argent and sable, a raven in dexter chief sable, a bordure dovetailed counterchanged.

Oweyn is dated to 1273 in Withycombe (237) (under "Owen"). Hudson is in Reaney and Wilson (242) as a header spelling. Hudson is also the client's modern name. The client cares most about sound and having an English name and would like an authentic late 15th-early 16th century English name.

8) Simon Justus for Capella di Sancti Thomi Et Sancta Maria Magdalene. Household Name Resubmission.

{Name reg'd 12/98}

The client's previous submission (Church of St Thomas and St Mary Magdalene) was returned by Rouge Scarpe on 10/99 for use of the word "church." The client then attaches a lengthy explanation of the non-religious nature of the household [most of which I have not included here]:

"Saint Thomas and Saint Mary Magdalen are figures representing researchers of two main types. One needed proofs before accepting data as fact; the other knew what the facts were and accepted what met the criteria.

"'Chapel' is meant as a place name. Chapels were set up often by private citizens for their own use or for the use of pilgrims. Often they held 'relics' popularly venerated & not officially sanctioned by the Catholic Church. My original submission using the word 'church' was meant in the same sense - as a place and not a religious body. Many groups split off from the main body of the Catholic Church in Medieval times; many of them still exist like for instance the Church of Iona, the Celtic Catholic Church. Wherever there is a reference made to an Anti-Pope it is the start of a new church that is not part of the Roman Catholic Church and still exists in all probability. This though has nothing to do with my purpose in writing at this time other than perhaps to illustrate why I feel this is a good idea. The objection to my use of the word church was on the basis of the belief that there was one and only one church. But, I still don't want to use the word 'church' as anything other than a place name as it is too easily seen as a claim to powers and authority. That is not what I want to do or be seen as wanting to do. Anyway, I would like to use the name 'Chapel of Saint Thomas and Saint Mary Magdalen', or, the Latin, 'Capella di Sancti Thomi Et Sancta Mariea Magdalene.'"

As evidence that chapels were rather pedestrian, the client encloses the following text from the web (http://www.newadvent.org/catholic/ 035746.htm): "Votive, Wayside, and Byidge Chapels: The Middle Ages furnish numerous examples of votive chapels, erected by the devotion of private persons, often to commemorate some special event or to enshrine some valued relic. Among these may be classed many of the famous places of pilgrimage, both in England and elsewhere. Akin to these are the wayside and bridge chapels which testify to the piety of the times. Existing examples of the latter are to be seen at Pisa, Avignon, Wakefield, Rotherham, Bradford-on-Avon, and St. Ives, while a century ago the remains of such buildings still stood at Rochester, York, Bath, and London. (See BRIDGE-BUILDING BROTHERHOOD.) Wayside chapels, intended for the use of travellers, were often to be found on the way leading to some pilgrimage shrine. The 'Slipper Chapel', in Norfolk, is a well-preserved example, formerly used by the pilgrims going to the celebrated shrine of Our Lady of Walsingham. It has in recent years been restored and once more placed in Catholic hands."

9) Tamsyn Seamarke. New Name and Device. Per pale azure and Or, a seahorse fesswise counterchanged.

The client encloses a copy of Withycombe (279-280) but does not indicate how it documents her name, so I will have to guess. Withycombe (280) has Tamsin as an undated var of Thomasin(e). [I will guess that she is arguing that Tamsyn is a reasonable var as well]. Reaney & Wilson (398, under "Seamark") have Seamarke dated to 1625 and Semarke dated to 1524.

I'm not sure if the "fesswise" is really necessary.

10) Theophano the Seed Keeper. New Name and Device. Argent, three chevronels braced and in chief a maple leaf vert.

Theophano was the name of two 10th century Byzantine princesses, according to a genealogical chart in Brent, The Viking Saga (no page provided). The client will NOT permit MAJOR changes to the given name, but would like to have the Byzantine equivalent of the occupational byname (which she intends to indicate that she is a horticulturalist) if it can be discovered and will permit that change. She would like to have an 11th-12th century Byzantine name.

Positioning appears to be a problem. As the client blazoned this (and drew it), it has no primary: "Argent, in chief a maple leaf and in base three chevronels braced vert."

11) Vilk{u,} Urvas. New Group Name.

The name is Lithuanian for "Wolves' Lair." According to the enclosed Lithuanian-English dictionary, Urvas is a "cave, grotto, cavern, cavity, or hollow." Vilk{e.} is "wolf" and Vilka{i~} is the plural. According to Lithuanian Self-Taught, the genitive plural would be Vilk{u,}. While not knowing much Lithuanian, it would seem likely that Vilk{u,} Urvas would have the correct meaning in modern Lithuanian (which is about as close as we will be able to get -- my Lithuanian resources are quite limited). What I'm not so sure about is whether "Urvas" is a sufficient designator for a branch name or not. The clients would like the name to be authentic Lithuanian but will NOT permit MINOR or MAJOR changes.

[Note: On the paper copy of this month's LoI, the {u,}, {e.}, and {i~} appear as their normal letters, but unfortunately standard American HTML does not support these symbols. I have chosen to use the system in common use in the CoA]

Yours In Service,

Paul Wickenden of Thanet

c/o SCA -- MK College of Heralds
P.O. Box 44623
Madison WI 53744-4623
submissions@midrealm.org

Dragon:

Rouge Scarpe: