Æthelmearc Letter of Report Æ121
October 25, 2009 (AS 44)

Greetings from Alheydis Garnet,
I would very much like to thank those who commented on this month's letter: Livia Valentini of the Abhainn Ciach Ghlais Heralds, The Delftwood Blowhards Commenting Group, Elsbeth Anne Roth, and Myfanwy ferch Rhiannon!
The items accepted on this letter have been forwarded to Laurel for further consideration, where we expect they will be decided upon in February of 2010.

1: Angellino the bookmaker - New Device Accepted with revised blazon
Per saltire argent and sable, in cross a roundel counterchanged between four roundels counterchanged gules and argent.
Several reblazons were suggested. The arrangment "in cross" clearly defines the entire set of five roundels as one charge group and is here adopted. Segregating the central roundel as counterchanged of the field, with the four others counterchanged gules and argent, seemed the sleekest way to blazon the tinctures.
2: Bera of Tavastland - New Name Change Accepted

Although many were concerned that this name was two steps from period practice. The name combines Old Norse and Swedish (albeit technically in translation) and thus is one step from period practice. The use of lingua anglica carries no penalty. Evidence was found that the Swedish name for the Finnish province was in use in some form by 1297. This puts some form of the province name very near the tail end of Old Norse, and should remove any fear of temporal disparity. 

3: Catherine of Oakden - New Household Name Changed

Scholars Way Inn

Submitted to kingdom as Scholars Way, the household name was changed at kingdom to add a designator, as required by RfS III.2.b. which  state, "Branch names, names of orders and awards, heraldic titles, and household names must consist of a designator that identifies the type of entity and at least one descriptive element."
We have the interesting choice of whether to parse Scholars Way as the name of a roadway, and therefore a locative descriptor, or as a group of people sharing the surname or sponsorship of a family named Way, since Way is itself a documented English surname (analogous to the phrase "The Brothers Johnson"). We have forwarded what support was found for both parsings.
4: Ciara de Ros - New Name & New Device Returned
Argent, in saltire two garden rose branches flowered proper and a chief dancety azure.

The given name appears to be a modern form of the name. Because the submitter allows no changes, we are unable to replace the given name with a documented period spelling.
Althought previously registered, the spelling Ciara appears only three times in the SCA armorial, registered twice in the 1980's and again in 2001. However, it was returned as recently as June of 2001, with the following commentary:

The documentation for the given name was similarly a simple reference to prior registrations. However, Ciara appears to be a modern Anglicisation of a Latinisation of either Ciar, Ciarnait or Ceara... [Ciara inghaen uí Bleithir, Atenveldt]

Of the Gaelic names mentioned in the return commentary above, only Ciar is listed in the annals project [http://www.medievalscotland.org/kmo/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/all.shtml], which counts only one individual of the name (a saint) in the 7th century. This is temporaly incompatible with the byname. Although our society does employ the oft-called "Saint's Name Allowance", it would be helpful, and perhaps necessary, to demonstrate that Saint Ciar was known and venerated in the time and places where the byname de Ros was in use.

Should the submitter desire a name that sounds like "KEE-ah-ra", we suggest the Italian feminine name Chiara.

Should the submitter wish to resubmit a name that makes use of the byname de Ros, we suggest the following additional documentation:
  • Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, "An Index to the 1332 Lay Subsidy Rolls for Lincolnshire, England" [http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/LincLSR/BynR2.html] lists John de Ros and William de Ros.
  • Black, p. 700, s.n. Ross, dates Godfrey de Ros to 1189 and states that the "first record of this surname in Scotland is in Ayershire, a considerable portion of the northern part of which in the twelfth century was held by a family of Ros and Ross, that came from Yorkshire."
Without an accompanying name, the device must also be returned. We note however, that the device suffers its own problems as well. The flowers are neither clearly open blooms (to be blazoned simply "roses") nor closed buds (which are disallowed in society armory). If resubmitted, the flowers should be drawn so as to be clearly in full bloom. Additionally, I would suggest that the roses be made smaller so that the visual weight of the branches is more clearly dominant over the visual weight of the roses, in order to preserve the desired classification as rose branches, rather than roses slipped and leaved. Lastly, the color forms were colored with either crayon or colored pencil, either of which is grounds for return. Had the device been able to be forwarded for submission, however, it is Garnet's policy not to return for recoloring. We would have recolored the forms for the submitter.
5: Dáithí Mór mac Cernaich - New Name Changed & New Device Accepted
Per chevron azure and Or, two acorns inverted Or and a tree stump proper.

Submitted to kingdom as Dáithí mór mac Chernaich, the descriptive byname was capitalized to match the documentation. We have removed the -h- from the patronym in light of the guidelines for lenition found in Sharon L. Krossa, "Quick and Easy Gaelic Names" [http://www.medievalscotland.org/scotnames/quickgaelicbynames/#descriptivewithpatronymic].
The documentation provided for the given name cited only Woulfe's header form in the given names section of his work. Headers in the given name section in Woulfe are considered inadequate documentation. In this specific case, the name Dathi meaning "swift" has its origins in a legendary high king of the 5th century whose given name was likely Feradach. He acquired the name Dathi later in life as an epithet while on campaign on the continent. Dathi may even be of Frankish or Germanic origin. I did find evidence of Dáithí in use in 1625, which falls into our "gray period". While support for the name as a whole is fragile, I believe that it is enough to give the submitter the benefit of the doubt and of the College's resources.
6: Duncan von Halstern - New Badge Returned
Per pale purpure and sable, a lion rampant argent.

The badge conflicts with several pieces of registered armory as follows:
  • Charles Redmane, Erminois, a lion rampant argent, maned gules.
  • Mowbray, Duke of Norfolk (important non-SCA arms), Gules, a lion rampant argent.
  • Wallace (important non-SCA arms), Gules, a lion rampant argent.
  • Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector of England (important non-SCA arms), Sable, a lion rampant argent.
  • Bohemia (important non-SCA arms), Gules, a lion rampant queue-forchy argent crowned Or.
  • Simon de Montfort, Earl of Leicester (important non-SCA arms), Gules, a lion rampant queue-forchy argent.
While these have one CD for changes to the field. I would expect no difference to be granted for change of tincture to only the mane of a lion, the forking of the tail or the presence of a maintained crown.
7: Elizabeth Archer - New Name Accepted & New Device Returned
Sable, two arrows inverted in Saltire and overall an embroiderer's needle palewise Or.

The device conflicts with several pieces of registered armory as follows:
  • Ian Griffen the Archer, (Fieldless) A sheaf of three arrows inverted Or, fletched vert. There is a CD for fieldlessness, but nothing for changing the type of 1/3 of the charges (in this arrangement). 
  • Bruce the Long-Winded, Sable, two arrows in saltire surmounted by a third palewise, all inverted, and in base a longbow fesswise Or. There is a CD for removing the longbow but nothing for the changes to the center charge group.
  • Eadan of Tir-y-Don, Per pale azure and purpure, a rapier and overall in saltire two arrows inverted Or. There is a CD for changes to the field, but none for changes of type and orientation to 1/3 of the central charge group.
8: Euriol of Lothian - New Device Change Accepted
Vert, on a bend sinister doubly cotised argent three mullets vert.
9: Katerina Alleye called Kit Alleye - New Name Changed

Submitted as Katerina Alleye, called Kitalia, the name was changed at kingdom to remove the unneccesary comma and to match the documentation provided. We have repeated the byname in the alias in order to comply with the submitter's concern for the sounds of the name.
The submitter offered no documentation for Kitalia as a name, and none was found by the College.
We note the following precedent:

While this name violates the long-standing prohibition against names of the form X called Y, in the early records it is quite common to find people recorded as X cognomento Y or, later, X dictus Y, X genannt Y, etc. These are official documentary forms no different in principle from X filius Y; like filius Y, dictus Y serves to specify which X is in question. In Latin, German, and French it is a legitimate documentary form. Therefore, since names of this sort are documented we are hereby overturning this ban for those languages. [Jaelle of Armida, LoAR July 1996]

Given that Katerina is likely a documentary form from a Latin context, Katerina Alleye dictus Kit Alleye should be a registerable name, with called acting as a lingua Anglica translation.

Note that the kingdom changes were not made to the item header on the XLoI. A correction was posted to OSCAR on October 26, 2009.
10: Khristian Pykh - New Name Accepted & New Device Accepted as redrawn
Quarterly vert and sable, two spears in saltire argent.
11: Sn{ae}bj{o,}rn of Tavastland - New Name Change Changed

Submitted as Snaebjorn, the given name was changed at kingdom to match the documentation. Precedent states:

While Old Norse names may be registered with or without accents, other diacritical marks cannot be omitted without documentation. Therefore, we have changed the o in the byname to {o,} (o-ogonek) in order to register this name. [Disa blat{o,}nn, 08/2003 LoAR, A-Caid]

Originally, the submitter had disallowed major changes and had specified that he cared most about spelling using "standard English letters". The submitter was consulted, and he agreed to withdraw the prohibition of major changes so that the name might be forwarded. Some support for the spelling Snaybiarn. The documentation was forward for consideration by Pelican.
12: Thomas Ouswood - New Badge Accepted
(Fieldless) A lantern vert.

We note the submission currently under consideration from the East Kingdom: Griffith Davion, (Fieldless) A lantern vert. This appears as item number four on the East Kingdom Letter dated June 22, 2009. Because Griffith's badge is not yet registered at the time of this letter, we will not return Thomas's submission for conflict at kingdom.
13: Ullrych Sturm - New Name Accepted
14: Ulrych Volckhart - New Name Accepted
15: Verena von Talhain - Resub Name & Resub Device
Vert, a hedgehog rampant and on a chief argent an ivy vine vert.
16: Vincenzo da Loria - New Name & New Device
Per pale azure and argent, two chevronels counterchanged and in dexter chief a winged lion rampant.

It is unclear from the submitted documentation whether Loria was a period name of the locality cited for the locative byname. The modern name of the town is Lauria. We have forwarded the name as submitted with a request for further assistance.

This concludes our Letter of Report Æ 121 dated October 25, 2009.