ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2164 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2164 ************************************ 3 Nov 2000 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked whether is an appropriate name for a late 16th century man from the Western Isles of Scotland. This letter is a brief answer to your question. You've chosen a fine name, but the spelling you've used is inappropriate for your period. Starting in the late 14th century, there were two main languages spoken in Scotland: Gaelic, spoken in the Highlands, and Scots, spoken in the Lowlands, including the royal court and towns. Gaelic was the same language spoken in Ireland at this time; Scots was closely related to contemporary English. Names were formed quite differently in the two languages, and the two styles of naming did not mix. The Western Isles was a Gaelic-speaking region, so we'll focus on Gaelic names. However, Gaelic was very rarely used as a written language in period Scotland. If your name had been written, it would probably have been in Scots, so we'll also discuss Scots forms of Gaelic names. is a modern Gaelic spelling of a name that was reasonably common in Scotland in your period [1]. In 16th century Gaelic, it would have been spelled [2]. The slash in the name represents an acute accent mark on the preceding letter. It was pronounced \ROO-@-ree\, where \@\ represents a schwa, the sound of the 'a' in . We found examples of the name recorded in Scots documents as 1498 and 1587 [3]. It was commonly associated with the English name , so it might also have been recorded that way [4]. is an English or Scots spelling of the Gaelic patronymic byname "son of Niall". surnames like this one were used literally in Gaelic in our period: A man was called only if his father's given name was . The modern practice of using surnames to indicate clan membership did not develop until well after our period. The byname was not uncommon in late-period Scottish Gaelic. We find it recorded in Scots documents as 1526, 1633, 1541, 1518 [5]. It was pronounced \mahk NEE-@l\. is an excellent 16th century Scottish Gaelic name. It could have been recorded in Scots documents as or , among other possible spellings. We hope this brief letter has been useful. Please write us again if you have any questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Adelaide de Beaumont, Africa neyn Kenneoch, and Talan Gwynek. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 3 Nov 2000 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Black, George F., _The Surnames of Scotland: Their Origin, Meaning and History_, (New York: The New York Public Library, 1986), s.nn. Rorison, MacRory. [2] O/ Corra/in, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire, _Irish Names_ (Dublin: The Lilliput Press, 1990), s.n. Ruaidri/. [3] Black, s.nn. Macqueen, Macmurchie. [4] Munro, Jean and R. W. Munro, eds., _Acts of the Lords of the Isles 1336-1493_; Scottish History Society, Fourth Series, Volume 22 (Edinburgh: Blackwood, Pillans & Wilson, 1986). There is a 1461 example of . [5] Black, s.n. MacNeil