Feast of St. Veronica
12 July, AS XXXVI

Greetings from Myfanwy!
Enclosed pray find commentary on ILoI #Æ 51. I'm glad that this letter wasn't any bigger, since I really had less than a week to go through it (_The Æsh_ arrived on July 9th, with the deadline for comments being on the 15th). Is there any effective way to stretch out the lead time just a bit further? As usual, I left conflict checking to those with a better grip on the Rules.

Lady Myfanwy ferch Rhiannon
mka Ruth Morrisson
RMorrisson@aol.com

1. Æthelmearc, Kingdom of (badge, Æthelmearc Equestrian Guild) -- [Fieldless] A horse passant per pale gules and argent.

This may be the accepted SCA naming practice for guilds, but somehow it doesn't sound very medieval. From what I remember offhand, the mundane guild names tend to be things like 'Worshipful Company of Drapers'.

I did a Google search (URL: http://www.google.com) and found the following site (URL: http://www.hti.umich.edu/cgi/c/cme/cmeidx?type=HTML&rgn=TEI.2&byte =4520148). It gives the complete text from a document in the Early English Text Society, originally published in 1870:

'English gilds : the original ordinances of more than one hundred early English gilds : together with The olde Usages of the cite of Wynchestre; the Ordinances of Worcester; the Office of the Mayor of Bristol; and the Costomary of the Manor of Tettenhall-Regis : from manuscripts of the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries' edited, with notes, by Toulmin Smith.

A very brief skim -- my computer crashed, due to the size of the file -- showed that most of the guilds listed in the document's introduction seem to be of the <town name> <patron saint's name> or <town name> <craft name> format. Where a craft name/occupation was listed, it was either of the type of 'The Tailors', 'The Bakers' (in which a specific activity was done) or else 'The Chandlers', 'The Saddlers and Spurriers' (in which specific item(s) produced).

Could we find some sort of better description than 'equestrial/equestrian' (something like 'Masters of Horse' or 'Riding School') that describes things better? I mean, lots of people in period rode horses, if they could afford it.

There is a recent Drachenwald submission that has an open book charged with a dragon. I don't remember at what level I've seen it (i.e., external commentary or Laurel meeting), but I think the tinctures were similar. I believe, though, that it was also fieldless, so the deletion of the tertiary should clear this submission.

I checked the St. Gabriel Archives on-line (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/docs/) to see if I could find any documentation for Pictish names, and these name elements in particular. Both articles I found were written by Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn [Heather Rose Jones]. Neither 'The First Thousand Years of British Names' (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/british1000/) nor 'A Consideration of Pictish Names' (URL: http://www.sgabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/pictnames/) gave any of these name elements as far as I can tell.

The closest I did find was 'Eithne', in 'Index of Names in Irish Annals: Feminine Names' by Mari Elspeth nic Bryan [Kathleen M. O'Brien] (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/AnnalsIndex/Feminine/) who cites O'C & M (pp. 84-85);they in turn cite it as the name of nine saints and several early queens, and date the name to at least the 8th century. Another of Tangwystyl's on-line articles 'Early Irish Feminine Names from the Index to O'Brien's Corpus Genealogiarum Hiberniae [sic]' (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/tangwystyl/obrien/) gives the 12th c. form 'Ethne'.

I don't know if the form of the tressure is documentable. In addition, how closely could this be construed as being similar to a circular chain (which is, of course, a reserved charge)?

On the St. Gabriel's Archives site (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/docs/) I found 'Arabic Naming Practices And Period Names List' by Da'ud ibn Auda [David Appleton] (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/daud/arabic-naming/) gives 'Aminah'. It does not give either 'Mujelid' or 'Kitab' (the closest to the latter being the men's cognomen 'al-Khattab'). None of the other Arabic name articles on the St. Gabriel's Archive: 'Arabic Personal Names from the Futuwwah' (URL: http://www.sgabriel.org/ names/mustapha/futuwwah.html), 'The One Hundred Most Beautiful Names of God'(URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mustapha/cnamesofgod.html) -- both by Mustapha al-Muhaddith ibn al-Saqaat -- and Daud's 'A List of Arabic Womens' Names' (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/daud/arabicwomen.html) has them either, as far as I have been able to determine.

The camel is statant. It is my understanding that the emblazon is being redrawn by Lady Roana Devereaux.

Reblazon: Or, a camel statant proper, saddled and bridled vert.

Withycombe (p. 40) gives 'Baldwin' as a header form. Reaney and Wilson (p. 25) gives it as a surname header form, and cites Baldewinus [sic] dated to 1095, and Randulfus filius Balduini [sic] although the citation appears to be undated.

Reaney and Wilson (p. 232) gives 'Hiller', 'Hillhouse', 'Hilling' and 'Hillock' (all header forms) as locative-derived surnames (all being of the 'hill-dweller' type of derivation. It is unclear, from either Reaney and Wilson or from Reaney _OES_, however, whether the original derivation of surnames such as 'Wiltshire' or 'Hampshire' are constructed in the same manner, being names of actual counties. Given this (unless someone here in Æthelmearc can check this out better) and not owning a copy of either Mills or Ekwall, I recommend that this be passed along to Laurel and the College of Arms for more assistance .

This is a mount, rather than a mountain (which is generally drawn more naturalistically): c.f. PIC-DIC (figs. 509 and 511). Woodward (p. 311-13) says:

'this is simply a piece of a roughly semicircular shape in the point of the field, but is usually blazoned conventionally with three or more coupeaux [sic] (in [p. 312] French a tertre [sic]) one above two, as in Plate XXVIII., figs. 1 and 9. A considerable amount of German and Swiss coats bear the mount-in base [sic], after this fashion.....

'A tree upon a mount in base occurs with great fre-[sic]quency....'

The implication may be, however, that the trees are issuant, rather than fully on the mount, especially given the following further commentary:

[p. 313] 'THE MOUNT IN BASE [sic], which nearly corresponds to the French terrasse [sic] is not unknown in Scottish Heraldry. The coat of WATSON [sic] of Saughton (Plate XXIII., fig. 8) is; Argent, an oak tree growing out of a mount in base proper, surmounted by a fess azure; [sic] the WOODS [sic] of Balbegno bore, Azure, an oak tree issuing from a mount in base or; pendent from one of the boughs by straps gules two keys of the second [sic] (as Thanes of Fettercairn).'

This submission is rather poor style. The complexity count is seven, eight if you count the complex line on the chief. The chief is entirely too small, especially given the size of the units of the partition line.

Possible reblazon: Argent, a griffin sejant gules, a chief raguly and on a mount vert, a tree argent.

The PIC-DIC (fig. 223) says that ravens are indistinguishable from crows (which are drawn somewhat hairier than in the emblazon). According to Parker (pp. 489-90), ravens, rooks, crows, Corbies and daws are all equivalent, the various terms being used for canting purposes. It isn't clear what is meant by 'proper' (several of the coats cited in Parker have that tincture blazoned for ravens) although I suspect black. It is apparently different from a Cornish chough, which, when blazoned as 'proper', according to Brooke-Little (p. 69), has a red beak (longer and more curved than on a standard crow) and red legs.

The docs for all three name elements are as cited (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/arval/venice14/venice14given.html). [I presume that 'Zancto' is a typo, and that 'Zaneto' is what is actually being submitted, given the documentation.]

I don't have #AE44 to hand. It is my understanding that the emblazon is being redrawn by Lady Roana Devereaux. As shown here, however, this is neither couped nor erased.

Reblazon: Per bend azure and gules, a dragon's head couped [erased?] contourny [within] a bordure argent.

Is there temporal compatibility between the name elements (i.e., Frankish given name vs. Visigothic/Spanish byname?). In addition, both name elements seem to be pretty high-ranking, especially given the documentation provided. I looked at the website, and it really does seem to be royal lineages, and nothing else.

I can't document the given name that for non-royalty (the only people named Clovis mentioned in Gregory of Tours are Frankish kings). The locative appears to be county rank (at least). I think there is a fairly severe question of presumption here.

The bordure is incorrectly drawn, being partly embattled and partly raguly. Don't worry -- I have already redrawn the submission to fix that problem, and have passed it along to Lady Juliana de Luna. The boar's head is couped [close].

Reblazon: Argent, a boar's head couped [close] sable [within] a bordure embattled vert.

Is there temporal compatibility between the name elements (i.e., English and Dutch?) Can we find a Dutch locative that is a translation/equivalent to 'Keep'?

I tried to do an InterTran translation from English to Dutch (URL: http://www. tranexp.com:2000/InterTran) and got the word 'vieren'. Unfortunately, I strongly suspect that this is a verb, not a noun.

[Snarky comment from a native New Yorker -- the mundane Town of Cortlandt, and the Village of Van Cortlandt Manor are both in Northpass, East Kingdom! Sounds like a great excuse/sub-theme for Amaral next year! :-) :-)]

The dance should be thicker. This would be better if the hearts were spread out more across the space they're in, and the laurel wreath should be bigger as well.

Nicely drawn. Sadly, the 'ermined vert' will, however, prevent the submission from getting a 'Good armory!' comment.

Reaney and Wilson (p. 191) under the header form ('Gillian', et. al.) says 'The seal of Juliana [sic], wife of Robert de Vendore, is inscribed SIGILL' GILIANE (12DC) [sic] and a deed of Osbert Cirotecarius and Juliana [sic] his wife has a seal with the same form of the wife's name (1230 Oseney) [sic].' The Colm Dubh cite is as given (URL: http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/ paris.html) except that 'Rousse' is not capitalized.

This line of division is not nebuly -- it is somewhere closer to urdy [c.f., Woodward (p. 74, figs. 22 and 27) and Brooke-Little (p. 159, figs. e and u)]. Do you need me to redraw this? The martlets are contourny.

Reblazon(as seen here): Per pale argent urdy argent and vert, six martlets contourny, two, two, and two, counterchanged.

Ferrante LaVolpe's article 'Italian Names from Florance [sic], 1427' (URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/ferrante/catasto/) gives 'Giovanni' and 'Bartolomeo' as being in the 'top 10 names' for frequency ('Giovanni' is first, with over 700 citations, while 'Bartolomeo' is the sixth-most found, with nearly 300.)

Could somebody check _The Godfather_ for possible conflicts with the name? I haven't actually read it or seen the movie -- is it important enough to protect if there *is* a name conflict (the only character I can remember the name of is Michael Corleone).

The charges all seem to be kinda, well, *dark* to be argent. Was this photocopied from a colored-in original? Would you like me to redraw it? [And can we boot the garden roses in favor of heraldic ones? Pretty please?]

Reblazon: Purpure, [in pale] an owl perched upon a chain fesswise, in chief three garden roses slipped and leaved argent.

Withycombe (p. 140) gives the header forms 'Guendolen, Gwendolyn' and says: 'a Welsh name of which the first element is the f. form of gwyn 'white' [sic]. The earliest form is Guenddloeu [sic]. In the Vita Merlini [sic] it is the name of Merlin's wife and there was a saint of the name.' Note that the citation is undated; and that Withycombe also says that the name is not found in England before the 19th century.

I did a Precedent hunt on-line (URL: http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/ precedents.html) for 'Gwendolyn' and found the following Daud II ruling from 8/95 (URL: http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/precedents/daud2/ namea2c.html):

Wherefore art thou Gwendolyn? Two submissions this month raised the question of the name Gwendolyn. To quote Harpy Herald: `Gwendolyn is a modern spelling variant of the name of a fictional character (Guendolen) in the Historia Regum Brittaniae whose name is based on a misreading of the masculine name Guendoleu. The name was not in common use in period, in my experience, although it certainly is in the SCA. We should probably just go ahead and declare it in the same category as Ceridwen and Rhiannon as "not historically justifiable but too deeply rooted to get rid of without a fuss".' The name is certainly quite common in the SCA: in one spelling or another it has been registered to more than 50 different people. Given this level of popularity, I am reluctant to ban the name outright despite the lack of any real justification for it. I am equally reluctant to extend the allowance to modern forms of the name, however. Therefore the name will henceforth be considered `SCA-compatible' in the forms Guendolen and Gwendolen but not the modern Gwendolyn, and the underlying principle will be extended to any other forms that are proposed. (This decision can be thought of as an extension of the `Rule of Two Weirdnesses': the name itself is one weirdness, and a modern spelling is another.) (CL 8/95)

This sounds as if the given name will have to be either respelled to an acceptable form, or else returned at this level.

The Reaney and Wilson docs. are as cited.

The complexity count is 7, eight if you count the position of the dagger, which I believe, BTW, to be [fesswise] reversed ; it's unclear in the PIC-DIC's discussion on knives (figs. 423-31), since the default is -- as for swords -- palewise, blade up.

This is the Hunchback of Loch Ness! :-)

Possible reblazon: Argent, a dolphin haurient embowed purpure, on a chief wavy sable, a dagger [fesswise] reversed proper.

The Withycombe cite is as given.

Reaney and Wilson (p. 152) gives 'Elford' as a header form, and cites various dated forms of the name, the closest being Thomas de Eleford [sic], dated to 1291.

The bordure needs feeding. The lion is rather hard to distinguish, probably because of its being black on the mini-emblazon.

Reblazon: Per pale argent and Or, a lion rampant [within] a bordure embattled sable.

I don't have Geirr Bassi. I looked on the St. Gabriel's site and found the article 'Viking Names found in the Landnámabók' by Aryanhwy merch Catmael [Sara L. Friedemann] (URL: http://www.sit.wisc.edu/~sfriedemann/names/ landnamabok.htm), in which names from Geirr Bassi have been resorted by frequency of occurrence. I did not find either of these name elements.

The complexity count is seven.

I don't have Geirr Bassi. In Aryanhwy merch Catmael's [Sara L. Friedemann] article 'Viking Names found in the Landnámabók' (URL: http://www.sit.wisc.e du/~sfriedemann/names/landnamabok.htm), 'A'skell' is listed as being found up to five times as a name element. I did not find 'Qrn' at all; I did find 'Örn' which, according to the introduction: 'Because of the limitations in ASCII text, in the following lists I have used the letter <Ö> to represent the Norse letter that looks like an <O> with a reverse-comma hook on the bottom.' Given this comment from Aryanhwy, I suspect it is the same name; there are twelve instances of its use.

Nicely drawn!

Reblazon: Azure, a falcon close, belled and jessed, on a chief indented Or, three drakkars azure.

Nice badge!

The docs are as cited.

This is a bend sinister, not a bend. It should be about twice as wide as drawn, even if the bees are made smaller as a result. Otherwise, it is a very nice device!

Reblazon: Gules, a bend sinister between six bees Or.

The Wickenden cites (URL: http://sca.org/heraldry/paul/) are as given [well, more or less -- he says: 'Bolotnikov (byn) -- "swamp dweller."', but the name cited, 'Ivan Bolotnikov, royal clerk. Before 1147. [Gra 161]' is the same].

Artist's note: It's per chevron -- a pile inverted would be narrower and come up much higher on the field; c.f., Brooke-Little (p. 164).

Unfortunately, due to the nature of the design, it is hard to identify the semy. I did the best I could.

The complexity count is seven.

Hey, I don't have a title at the moment! :-) The previous submission violated the rule about marshalling, BTW:

PART XI - PRESUMPTUOUS ARMORY

Armory may not claim status or powers the submitter does not possess, as is required by General Principle 3b of these rules. This section defines categories of presumptuous armorial claims.

3. Marshalling - Armory that appears to marshall independent arms is considered presumptuous. Period marshalling combined two or more separate designs to indicate descent from noble parents and claim to inheritance. Since members of the Society are all required to earn their status on their own merits, apparent claims to inherited status are presumptuous. Divisions commonly used for marshalling, such as quarterly or per pale, may only be used in contexts that ensure marshalling is not suggested.

b. Such fields may only be used when no single portion of the field may appear to be an independent piece of armory. No section of the field may contain an ordinary that terminates at the edge of that section, or more than one charge unless those charges are part of a group over the whole field. Charged sections must all contain charges of the same type to avoid the appearance of being different from each other.

The Wickenden cites for Vladisla are as given (URL:http://sca.org/heraldry/ paul/).

The Wickenden cites for Nikolich are not *quite* as given: 'Nikulich [from Nikula] (Petrilo Nikulich, Novgorodite). 1135. [Tup 4]'. However, given the vast number of variant spellings for diminutives and patronymics of 'Nikolai', this is probably acceptable.

This is very poor style. It would better if the trees were not two and one, *especially* since in the emblazon they barely are so. The crane should be bigger.

The complexity count is eight, since I would consider the arrangement of the trees to be a definite weirdness.

The hurst is pretty indistinguishable as such, especially when colored in. Like the device, the crane should be bigger.

The closest I can find to 'Wladyslaus' is 'Wlodzisl\aw', which I found in Walraven van Nijmegen's [Brian R. Speer] and Arval Benicouer's [Josh Mittleman] 'Polish Given Names in Nazwiska Polaków '(URL: http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/walraven/polish/).

Brooke-Little, J. P. _An Heraldic Alphabet_. London: Robson Books; 1973, 1975.

Bruce Draconarius of Mistholme and Akagawa Yoshio [Kevin Munday and Bruce Miller]. _A Pictorial Dictionary of Heraldry_, 2nd ed., 1992.

Gregory of Tours. _The History of the Franks_ (trans. by Lewis Thorpe). Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin Books, 1974, 1983.

O' Corráin, Donnchadh, and Fidelma Maguire. _Irish Names_. Dublin: the Lilliput Press; 1981, 1990.

Parker, James. _A Glossary of Terms Used in Heraldry_. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1970.

Reaney, P. H. _The Origin of English Surnames_. London and New York: Routledge and Kegan Paul; 1967, 1987.

Reaney, P. H., and R. M. Wilson. _A Dictionary of British Surnames_, 3rd ed. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1995, 1997.

URLs and Academy of St. Gabriel letters as cited.

Withycombe, E. G. _The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names_, 3rd ed. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press; 1977, 1988.

Woodward, John, and George Burnett. _A Treatise on Heraldry: British and Foreign_. Rutland, VT: Charles E. Tuttle Co., 1969.