Saturday, May 11, 2019

A Small Collection of Late 6th Century Merovingian Given Names


Mistress Alys Mackyntoich (Alissa Pyrich)
July 2020

            This set of given names was compiled from multiple letters to and from Brunehild, queen of Austrasia and Burgundy, which are published on Epistolæ (http://epistolae.ccnmtl.columbia.edu/), a website maintained by Columbia University collecting writings to and from women in the Middle Ages. The letters are transcribed in the original Latin with translations by Professor Joan Ferrante of Columbia University. 
            The name data in this article are extracted from letters originally written in Latin between 580 and 602 C.E. Since the names are in Latin, their spelling varies depending on the form and tense.  The most common nominative form – in other words, the direct form used in given names – is identified as the bolded header form.  The forms actually appearing in the text are listed below the header.  Where the form appearing in the text is a variant spelling of the nominative form, it is marked with an asterisk (*).  Note that, for SCA purposes, only nominative forms can be used to create given names.
For submitters who do not want to use the Latin forms, in most cases, the vernacular form can be identified by dropping the –us from the end of male names.  For example, the probable vernacular form of Hildebertus is Hildebert.
            The source documents did not contain full names, only given names and titles.  Therefore, we are unable to discuss naming patterns specific to this time and place.  However, simple patronymic bynames can be created as follows:

[male given name] + filius (“son”) + [genitive form of father’s name]

[female given name] + filia (“daughter”) + [genitive form of father’s name] 


Female
Anastasia
Anastasie
Brunehildis
Brunehildae
Brunehildis
Brunichildae
Brunichildis*
Brunigildae
Brunihildae


Male
Aetherius
Aetherio
Athanagyldus
Athanagyldo
Augustinus
Augustino
Augustinum
Burgoaldus
Burgoaldo
Candidus
Candido
Candidum
Childebertus
Childebertus
Cyriacus
Cyriaco
Germanus
Germanus
Gregiorius
Gregorius
Hilarius
Hilarius
Hildebertus
Hildeberti
Hildebertum
Laurentius
Laurentio
Mauricius
Mauricio
Mellitus
Mellito
Petrus
Petri
Petrus
Sigibertus
Sigibertus
Syagrius
            Syagrius
Theodocius
Theodocium
Vuarmaricarius
Vuarmaricario

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