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Kingdom of Atenveldt Home Page

Kingdom of Atenveldt
Heraldic Submissions Page

(administered by the Brickbat Herald)

September 2003, A.S. XXXVIII

Kingdom of Atenveldt

Unto Francois la Flamme, Laurel King of Arms; Mari Elspeth nic Bryan, Pelican Queen of Arms; Zenobia Naphtali, Wreath Queen of Arms; and the commenting Members of the College of Arms,

Greetings from Marta as tu Mika-Mysliwy, Brickbat Herald!

The Atenveldt College of Heralds requests the consideration and registration of the following names and armory with the College of Arms. Unless specifically stated, the submitter will accept spelling and grammar corrections; assistance in these areas is appreciated.

1.  Amy Marie MacCormack

Amy Marie is her legal given and middle names (photocopied documentation provided). Amy is dated to 1402 (“A List of Feminine Personal Names Found in Scottish Records, Part Three: Post-1400 Names,” Talan Gwynek ( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/talan/scottishfem/)

Marie is the French form of the popular feminine name Mary (pp. 211-2, ibid.). Marie dated to 1296 in Part II of Talan’s article, above.

The spelling of the surname is an undated anglicized form of the Scots Gaelic MacCormaig (p. 476, Black).  It appears from her submission form that the lady would prefer the spelling McCormack, her legal mother’s maiden name; is this an acceptable alternative?

2.  Amy Marie MacCormack: NEW DEVICE

Per chevron inverted vert and purpure, a chevron inverted embattled-counterembattled Or between a harp argent and a spaniel statant Or.

The submitter provides documentation that the spaniel types of dogs were found throughout period, and that Mary Queen of Scots was permitted to keep her English toy spaniel with her in her last days and have it accompany her to the gallows; Henry VIII permitted “some small spanyells for ladies” to be allowed inside his palaces (p. 124, Dogs: A Historical Journey, The Human/Dog Connection Through the Centuries, Lloyd M. Wendt, Howell Book House, NY, 1996).


3.  Angus MacGregor of Argyll: NEW NAME

Angus is a masculine given name, the Anglicized form used in Scotland of the Irish Gaelic Óengus (pp. 148-9, Ó Corráin and Maguire).

MacGregor is an Anglicized Scots surname (pp. 505-6, Black).

Argyll is the region to the west of Glasgow and includes 26 inhabited islands; it was the first area of Scotland to be Christianized by St. Columba’s efforts in 563 (http://www.argyllonline.co.uk/index.asp?ID=20&pID=19).

The original name submission (returned within kingdom), Angus MacGregor, was in direct conflict with Angus MacGregor, registered in May 1992. Adding the locative clears the conflict.

4.  Angus MacGregor of Argyll: NEW DEVICE

Azure semy of annulets, on a bend sinister Or three bulls heads cabossed palewise azure.

Considering Richard Andreivitch of Rus, Azure, on a bend sinister Or an estoile sable.; Denis Flaxenhelm, Azure, on a bend sinister Or, a goblet upright sable.;  and  Katerina Arondel, Azure, on a bend sinister cotissed Or three swallows volant fesswise, wings elevated and addorsed, azure., there is 1 CD for the cumulative difference to the tertiary charges and 1 CD for the addition of the semy to the field.

5.  Anna Carye: NEW DEVICE

Per chevron azure and gules, on a pall inverted engrailed between two natural dolphins haurient embowed and a lighthouse argent, six escallops palewise gules.

The name was registered May 2003.


6.  Bryon l'Ours d'Argent de Bourgogne: NEW BADGE

Per pale sable and gules, two bears combattant within an orle argent.

The name was registered October 1986.


7.  Cecily d’Abernon: NEW DEVICE

Azure, on a pale between two turtles argent, three damask roses proper, slipped and leaved vert.

The name was registered July 2002.

According to the Pictorial Dictionary (2nd edition), damask roses were a breed known and found in Elizabethan herbals, and are a pink color.  I have been unable to find any precedent that prohibits this type/color of rose as a usable charge.

8.  Corwin de Harfleur: BADGE RESUBMISSION from Laurel, July 1997

Azure, five annulets interlaced in saltire, a bordure argent.

The name was registered October 1987.

The original submission Azure, five annulets interlaced in saltire argent., was returned for conflict with Bowen (important non-SCA badge), (tinctureless) A Bowen knot., only 1 CD for change to the field.


Vert, a double-headed eagle Or and a bordure embattled Or ermined vert.

9.  Donnghal Buchanan: NEW DEVICE

The names submission appears in the 25 August 2003 Atenveldt Letter of Intent.

10.  Fáelán Cameron: NEW NAME

Fáelán is a masculine Irish given name, meaning “wolf” (pp. 92-3, Ó Corráin and Maguire). 

Cameron is the name of a Scottish clan, with the Gaelic form–the two not related–being Camshrón, a descriptive, “crooked nose” (p. 35, MacLysaght). We suspect that the given name might lose its diacritical marks if the late-period spelling Cameron is maintained.

11. Fáelán Cameron: NEW DEVICE

Per bend sinister azure and vert, semy of wolf’s pawprints Or, in dexter chief a wolf’s head Or.

As the semy is not mentioned as being throughout, the current blazon should be accurate enough to indicate that the semy only extends to the vert portion of the field.


12. Hrafn Bloodaxe: NEW NAME

Hrafn is an Old Norse masculine given name, found in “Viking Names found in the Landnámabók,” by Aryanhwy merch Catmael

( http://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/landnamabok.html). 

Eric Bloodaxe was the favored son of Harald Finehair and is credited with the unification of Norway, becoming king after his father. This title was usurped by his brother Haken, and Eric relocated to the British Isles. He died in 954, and his sons later succeeded in becoming kings of Norway (http://www.bbc.co.uk/history/ancient/vikings/bloodaxe_01.shtml ).  This is an Anglicized form of the byname. Bloodaxe has a rather popular following in the SCA Armorial.

13. Hrafn Bloodaxe: NEW DEVICE

Per chevron sable and argent, in base a double-bitted axe, all within a bordure gules.

14. Jens Sveinsson: DEVICE RESUBMISSION from Laurel, May 2003

Argent, a merman proper crined sable maintaining in his sinister hand a torch sable, enflamed azure, on a bordure engrailed vert three escallops argent.

The name was registered May 2003.

The original submission, Argent, a merman proper crined sable maintaining in his sinister hand an open book argent fimbriated gules all within a bordure engrailed vert semy of escallops argent., was returned for the bordure engrailings being too numerous and too shallow for easy identifiability, and the near invisible fimbriation/binding of the book.  Some redesign has solved these problems.

During the review of this resubmission,it was noted that “A caucasian mermaid cannot be placed on an argent field, as human (caucasian) flesh proper was sometimes depicted as argent in period sources.” [Lachlann Wick of Brindle Myre, 11/99, R-Caid] Precedents - Elsbeth, under Proper. The proper merman on argent violates RfS VIII.2.

While this precedent has been addressed and reiterated several times by several Laurels, it was not mentioned in the course of the original return. It is our feeling that the resubmission should be considered “as is,” the submitter made all the corrections requested by the CoA and was not aware of this contrast issue/precedent.

Knute Hvitabjörn cites a recent ruling: “...The Laurel office has been known to give the benefit of the doubt to a submission when a possible problem was not mentioned in the previous return, but was present in the previous submission and was clearly visible to Laurel when viewing the submission. Such a "clearly visible" problem could include possible problems with the artwork of the submission or the general heraldic style of the submission...”  LoAR 06/03 [Charles the Grey of Mooneschadowe R-Ansteorra].   Caucasian proper on argent is a style problem that should have been clearly visible to Laurel on the previous submission.  According to this recent precedent, the submission has a reasonable chance of being passed by Laurel and should be passed up.

But, wait!  There’s more!  Further correspondence with the submitter has determined that he would really prefer the merman not to be a typical “Caucasian” merman, but rather brown-skinned (like an Islander, East Indian or Native American, population groups that Western Europeans were aware).  The “Brown Precedent,” set by the CoA in March 2002, states “Henceforward, and more in line with period heraldic practice, animals which are normally brown may be registered simply as an {X} proper (e. g., boar proper, hare proper). Animals which are frequently found as brown but also commonly appear in other tinctures in the natural world may be registered as a brown {X} proper (e. g., brown hound proper, brown horse proper).”  We were hoping that this precedent would apply to humans as well, as humans can be found as “normally brown,” too, which would provide good contrast with the field. However, commentary on “Brown People” in the December 2002 Cover Letter indicates that the human part of Jen’s merman doesn’t match any of the established heraldic brown people (Turk, Moor/Blackmoor, Saracen) due to lack of characteristic facial hair (Jens’ merman has a mustache and a bit of a beard, but not the bushy mustache of the Turk, nor the single topknot on an otherwise shaved/bald head) or distinguishing headgear (turban, torse or crown).  As it stands now, the best change of registration is to give the submitter allowance to place the Caucasian merman proper on the argent field.

15. Jonathon von Trotha: NEW HOUSEHOLD NAME, jointly held with Deille of Farnham, for House Astrum Aureum

The personal names were registered June 1995 and July 1999, respectively.

The household name is Latin, “Golden Star.”  (Latin translation was made using Cassell’s New Compant Latin-English English-Latin Dictionary, Cassell and Co., Ltd., 1963, and Using Latin I, J.F. Gummere and A. Horne, Scott, Forsman and Company, Chicago, 1954.) “English Sign Names,”  Mari Elspeth nic Bryan (http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/mari/inn/)–shows period inn signs using an adjective + noun construction (Grayhorse, Whitehors, Black Boye). Rendering the name into Latin avoids conflict with Order of the Golden Star, registered to the Barony of Ered Sul, January 1999.

16. Malise Athelstan MacKendry: NEW NAME

Malise is a masculine given name, derived from an undated Gaelic masculine given name, “servant of Jesus,” ( p. 204, Withycombe). Athelstan  is derived from Ethelstan,an Old English masculine given name, a king of Wessex and documented in the Domesday Book 1086 (p. 35, Withycombe); Withycombe comments that the name and its variants didn’t survive much past the Norman Conquest.

MacKendry is an Anglicized form of the Scottish family name from the Gaelic MacEanruig, “son of Henry.”  Black doesn’t show this particularly spelling, although many variants exist (p. 509).  One piece of provided documentation shows MacKendrick, but not MacKendry (Tartans: Their Art and History, Anne Sutton and Richard Carr, New York, Arco Publishing, Inc., 1984, p. 187).  A MacKendry was registered by the CoA in January 1995. 

The submitter does not allow major changes to the name.

17. Malise Athelstan MacKendry: NEW DEVICE

Purpure, a matchlock musket and a rapier crossed in saltire and point pointed argent charged with an open book sable.

Weapons: A Pictorial History (Edwin Tunis, Thomas Y. Crowell Co., 1954) notes the Spanish development of the matchlock device from the earlier arquebus in the late 15th C., and its subsequent adoption throughout Europe in the 16th C.

18. Mariana Vivia de Santiago: NAME APPEAL from Laurel, March 2002 from the current registered name Mariana de Santiago

The original name submission, Mariana Vivia de Santiago de Compestella, was altered as no documentation was provided and none was found for Vivia as a feminine given name, and that no documentation was presented, nor could the College of Arms find any, that de Santiago de Compostela was used in a locative byname. “People from Santiago de Compostela were known as de Santiago.” [Livia Teresa de Compostela, 09/99, R-Atlantia]

The submitter cites Vivia as appearing in Apellidos Castellano Leoneses, p. 91.  It is found under "Aposicion de dos nominativos latinos o latinizados," and the entry reads “Vivia < Vivius Sch. 102: <Petrus Vivia> (1071. V.)."  I’m at a loss knowing what this means and ask the College for assistance. (Is it possible that Vivia is a family name, and that it could be used here as such?)

19. Mariana Vivia de Santiago: DEVICE RESUBMISSION from Laurel, March 2002

Argent, a heart sable winged gules within a bordure embattled azure.

The original submission, Azure, a heart gules winged argent., was returned for poor contrast of the gules heart against the azure field. This slight redesign resolves that issue.


20. Nicholas Fletcher of Canterbury: NEW DEVICE

Azure ermined argent, a greyhound courant, on a chief Or an arrow reversed gules.

The name was registered May 2003.

21. Tatiana Laski Krakowska: NEW ALTERNATE NAME, Sancha Galindo de Toledo

The submitter’s primary name was registered September 2000.

The alternate name is Spanish. Sancha is a feminine given name found in “Cordobese Names of the 15th Century”

( http://www.historiaviva.org/nombres/nombres_cordob15-ing.shtml).

Galindo is a patronymic surname found in “Spanish Names from the Late 15th Century,” Juliana de Luna ( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/juliana/isabella/patronymic.html).

de Toledo is a locative byname also found in Juliana’s paper

( http://www.s-gabriel.org/names/juliana/isabella/locative.html).

I was assisted in the preparation of this Letter of Intent by Knute Hvitabjörn (thank you very much!), Aryanhwy merch Catmael, Da’ud ibn Auda, and Brendan mac Artuir.

This letter contains 5 new names, 1 new alternate name, 1 new household name, 1 name appeal, 9 new devices, 1 new badge, 2 device resubmissions and 1badge resubmission. This is a total of 21 items, 17of them new.  A check to cover fees will be sent separately.

Thank you again for your indulgence and patience, your expertise and your willingness to share it.

I remain,

Marta as tu Mika-Mysliwy

c/o Linda Miku

2527 East 3rd Street; Tucson AZ  85716

brickbat@nexiliscom.com

atensubmissions.nexiliscom.com

Commonly-Cited References

Black, George F. The Surnames of Scotland.

Geirr Bassi Haraldsson. The Old Norse Name.

MacLysaght, E. The Surnames of Ireland. Dublin, Irish Academic Press, 1991.

Miller, B., and K. Munday. The Pictorial Dictionary of Heraldry, 2nd Edition, 1992.

Ó Corráin, Donnchadh and Fidelma Maguire. Irish Names.

Reaney, P.H. and R. M. Wilson. A Dictionary of English Surnames, 2nd Edition, 1976, reprinted 1979.

Withycombe, E.G., The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names, 3rd Edition. London, Oxford University Press, 1977.


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