ACADEMY OF SAINT GABRIEL REPORT 2560 http://www.s-gabriel.org/2560 ************************************ ************************************************* * * * NOTE: Later research turned up additional * * information relevant to this report. * * See the end of the letter for details. * * * ************************************************* 24 May 2002 From: (Josh Mittleman) Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked our help choosing a name appropriate for an Englishwoman of Norman descent, born in 1381, using the given name and a surname related to winemaking or sales. Here is what we have found. is a fine choice. This name was popular in England from the 12th century onward, in various forms. We have several examples of this spelling in your period, as well as just before and after [1, 2]. By your period, most English used inherited family names, much as we do today; so your surname would probably not have been understood literally. There were some exceptions, which we'll discuss later. Norman ancestry no longer had any particular influence on naming in the late 14th century. We have found quite a few surnames in use in your period that derived from words meaning "vinegrower", "winemaker", or "wine merchant". , or "wine-seller". The common word appears as 1428, 1430, 1486 [5]. Will[iam] le Vyneter 1327 [7] Robert Vyneter 1327 [7] Matilda la Vintere 1329 [7] Will[iam] le Vynter 1332 [7] Rog[er] le Vinter 1332 [7] Mary Vinter 1582-3 [8] or "vintner, wine-merchant". The common word appears in plural form as 1430, and in singular as 1440, 1470 [5]. Richard le Vyntener 1327 [6] Thomas Vyntener 1379 [8] Ellen Vintener 1560 [8] "vineyard", originally for someone who lived near or worked in a vineyard. William atte Wyneard 1327-8 [8] Wyneard 1601 [9] or for a vine-grower Philip atte Vyne 1380 [3] , , or "grower or dresser of grapes". The common word is in 1470 [5]. Nic[olas] le Vynor 1354 [4] Will[iam] Vynour 1366 [4] John Vyner 1407 [6] We mentioned earlier that there were some surnames used in late 14th century England that were understood literally. The custom of using inherited family names first appeared in the southeast, around London, and spread slowly to the rest of England. In the late 14th century, it had not yet become the standard practice in all of the outlying counties. In particular, we still find literal bynames in Yorkshire in 1379 [10]: Isabella Shephirddoghter "shepherd's daughter" Agnes Taylourdoughter "tailor's daughter" Beatrice Clerkwyf "clerk's wife" Agnes Smythwyf "smith's wife" Alice Prestsyster "priest's sister" The name was fairly common in Yorkshire in this period [11], so a name like is a fine choice for that region. The here represents a gutteral sound, the voiced equivalent of the rasping sound in the Scottish word or German . If you pick one or two combinations that appeal to you, we'll be happy to give you appropriate pronunciations. We hope this letter has been useful. Please write us again if any part of it has been unclear or if you have other questions. I was assisted in researching and writing this letter by Adelaide de Beaumont, Mari neyn Brian, Talan Gwynek, Tangwystyl verch Morgant Glasvryn, and Aryanhwy merch Catmael. For the Academy, Arval Benicoeur 24 May 2002 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - References [1] Julian Goodwyn, "Brass Enscription Index" (WWW: SCA, Inc., 1997). http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/names/brasses [2] Talan Gwynek, "Feminine Given Names in _A Dictionary of English Surnames_" (SCA: KWHS Proceedings, 1994; WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/reaney/ [3] Woodcock, Thomas, Janet Grant, & Ian Graham, _Dictionary of British Arms_, vol II. (The Society of Antiquaries of London, 1996), p.384. [4] Thuresson, Bertil, _Middle English Occupational Terms_, Lund Studies in English XIX (Lund: C.W.K. Gleerup, 1950; Nendeln, Liechtenstein: Kraus Reprint, 1968), pp.43-44. [5] _The Compact Edition of the Oxford English Dictionary_ (New York: Oxford University Press, 1973), s.vv. viner, vinter. [6] P. H. Reaney, & R. M. Wilson, _A Dictionary of English Surnames_ (London: Routledge, 1991; Oxford University Press, 1995), s.nn. Viner, Vintiner. [7] Fransson, Gustav, _Middle English Surnames of Occupation, 1100-1350_ ( Lund: C. W. K. Gleerup, 1935), p.79. [8] Bardsley, Charles, _A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames_ (Baltimore: Genealogical Publishing Company, 1980), s.nn. Vinter, Vintner, Winyard. [9] Hitching, F. K., and S. Hitching, _References to English Surnames in 1601 and 1602_. (Walton-on-Thames, 1910-11; Baltimore: republished for the Clearfield Company, Inc. by Genealogical Publishing Co., Inc., 1998, ISBN 0-8603-0181-3), p.lxx. [10] Mari neyn Bryan, unpublished research. These names are drawn from Reaney & Wilson, p.li; and from Bardsley s.n. Taylorson. [11] Talan Gwynek, "Yorkshire Given Names from 1379" (WWW: J. Mittleman, 1997). The name appears in the Latinized form . http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/yorkshire/ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Our reply to a followup question from the client, 10 Jun 2002 Greetings from the Academy of Saint Gabriel! You asked for more information about as a late 14th century English name. The surname you chose isn't one that appears in our data in exactly that form, and depending on your persona, it may not be a good choice. First, it's important to understand that the French article would only ever have been used as a written form to record the name that would have been spoken as . Second, the article may not be appropriate at all, depending on where you want to set your persona and how you want to use your surname. As we explained in our report, most English in your period used inherited family names rather than literally description bynames. That is to say, a woman in late 14th century southern England called was probably the daughter of a man surnamed , and neither of them necessarily had anything to do with the wine business. In general, the use of the definite article in surnames is associated with literal surnames rather than inherited ones; so in most of England in your period, is unlikely. However, the custom of using inherited family names was adopted as different times in different parts of England. The North was particularly slow to adopt this custom, and indeed, in Lancashire and Yorkshire records we find quite a few 14th century surnames that include the article and which were probably literal bynames. Therefore, if you especially want to use , then we recommend you set your persona in one of these northern counties. If you want to live in the south, then we recommend you drop the article and simply use . In our Northern records from your period, the English was recorded as in quite a few names. However, we don't see examples of : The article was recorded for both men and women. The latest use of we find in English records is from 1316, and that seems to be an unusually late example. We found 1315, 1323, 1316 (Reaney & Wilson, s.nn. Cropper, Crowner, Curzon). Therefore, even if you choose a Northern persona and a literal byname, , we recommend you write it . This name was pronounced \KAHT-@-rin th@ VEE-n@r\. The symbol \@\ represent the sound of the in or . Arval for the Academy 10 Jun 2002