SCA Life

Medieval Popes’ Names

What’s in a name? A rose by any other name would smell as sweet…

Ummm, yeah, sure it would. I’m positive that women would just be dying to get roses for St. Valentine’s Day if they were called turteblahtfatzenshorg. I’m not even sure if that word is plural or not! Let us face facts. Names do matter. They impact how people see us and even how we perceive ourselves.

So picking your SCA name is not a matter to be treated lightly. Here are some standard rules, tips and warnings to be considered when choosing your nom de SCA.

TITLES: You can’t be Princess anything. Princess, Duke, Baron, Earl, Countess: all of these and many other titles have real meaning in the SCA. They indicate a form of status that the bearer has earned. An upcoming installment of News for Newbies will delve into the mysteries of titles, who has them, when to use them and how to get one. But for now, just accept that you cannot call yourself Princess unless you’ve earned the right. Cope with it.

ETHNICITY: Your name should match your persona. In other words, if your persona is going be French, then calling yourself Kimiko or Vladimir probably isn’t going to work. So research the ethnicity/country of your choice and choose a name to complement that persona. For a French example, I know of a woman in the SCA who calls herself Louise de la Chatte Bleue. Her persona is French and her coat-of-arms includes a picture of a blue cat, so the name is perfect for her. You’ll learn more about the coat-of-arms in another upcoming installment of News for Newbies. For now, if you’re a beginner, you don’t have one.

LOVE: Pick a name you love or, at the very least, like. You are going to be known by that name for a long, long, long time. While it’s true that there are some members of the SCA who change their names on a regular basis, the average SCAdian goes through one or two name changes maximum. And some of these people have been in the SCA for more than three decades. Why are names changed so seldom? Take Eideann as a case in point.

When she joined the SCA, Eideann hadn’t yet selected a name for herself. So she simply went by the name of a character from a book she was writing. Then, when she had found a name to her liking she informed everyone that she was now Cyneswith the Scrivener. One problem, everyone had known her as Eideann for years and they kept calling her that. As a result, Cyneswith dies a cold and lonely death and Eideann is stuck with the name she bore for so long.

Don’t get me wrong, though. Most people will respect your desire to change your name and will make an honest effort to try and call you by your new moniker. But it’s hard! If you’ve ever known a Willie who decided he was Bill at the age of 30, you’ll know exactly what I mean. So take care. Your name may stick around whether you want it to or not.

NICKNAMES: Be especially wary of getting yourself stuck with a bad nickname. Descriptive nicknames are very common in the SCA, and most people enjoy having one. Besides, they’re historically appropriate. The last name originally began as a descriptive used to tell people apart when they had the same first name. Look at last names like Carpenter, Cook, Ford and Paulson. They are all descriptive names that once had literal meaning. In the SCA, this tradition continues. I myself am known as Zeva the Weaver. I am called that because… I weave. It’s kind of a duh.

However, many nicknames reflect personality. Can you picture the personality of Michael the Just, the appearance of Helen of the Flaming Hair or the sheer vocal volume of Obadiah the Obstreperous? I thought you could. Sometimes people choose their own nicknames and sometimes they are quite literally saddled with one. I mean, would you want to be known as Frederick the Forgetful or Stephen the Stingy? No, you wouldn’t. So be careful of what you let people call you. Better yet, don’t do anything to earn yourself a painful name.

AUTHENTICITY: Make sure that the name you pick was actually in use during the middle ages. Otherwise, you’ll never be able to register it with the SCA when you win that glorious Award of Arms. I myself have had problems authenticating Zeva as a name. So when you speak with a herald about registering your name, be sure you bring your documentation with you. Oh, and baby name books don’t cut it. One good way to avoid this problem is to choose your name from the literature of the time period. Some names, like Abdullah and Elizabeth are just obviously okay. But if you find a rare name you wish to use, be sure you are ready to defend it!

Well, that’s all on names for today. So start your research and find something you love! Oh, and here are a few links to get you started.

Medieval Names Archive

Medieval Names

Names

Medieval and Ancient Names

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