The Basics of Old Norse Names

Names and Name-Giving in the Viking Age

� King’s College 2004 � Mistress Gunnvör sílfrahárr

King’s College 2004 � Mistress Gunnvör sílfrahárr 2

Names and Name-Giving in the Viking Age: Contents

Overview

Sources

Terminology

Construction of O.N. Personal Names

Construction of O.N. Patronymics

Construction of O.N. Bynames

Constructing an O.N. Name for Registration

Documenting an O.N. Name for Registration


Overview: Dates

Dates of the Viking Age

�ca. 793AD to 1066AD

�Exact dating depends on location, some areas preserved a Viking Age culture until almost 1300


Overview: Countries

What countries are involved

� East Scandinavia: Denmark, Sweden, Scandinavian colonies in the Baltic and Russia

� West Scandinavia: Norway, Iceland, Greenland, colonies in the British Isles (Ireland, the Western Isles, Scotland, etc.)


Overview: Countries – Norway & Denmark


Overview: Countries - Sweden

Swedish Provinces

� Ån = Ångermanland

� Bo = Bohuslän

� D = Dalarna

� Ds = Dalsland

� G = Gotland

� Gs = Gästrikland

� Hr = Härjedalen

� Hs = Hälsingland

� J = Jämtland

� La = Lappland

� Nä = Närke

� Me = Medelpad

� Ög = Östergötland

� Öl = Öland

� Sm = Småland

� Sö = Södermanland

� U = Uppland

� Vg = Västergötland

� Vr = Värmland

� Vs = Västmanland

� Sv = other Swedish locations


Overview: Countries – Britain


Overview: Languages

The Germanic peoples were a branching from the old Indo-European stock, and had a major series of migrations ca. 400-600AD. These peoples spoke a language scholars call "Proto-Germanic".

As they migrated, this root Germanic language differentiated into three branches: East Germanic, which gave rise to the now-extinct Gothic language; West Germanic, which gave rise to Old English, Old High German and Old Low German; and North Germanic, which was the language of the Germanic tribes that settled Scandinavia.

North Germanic

Proto-Scandinavian

Old West Norse

Icelandic Faroese Norn (extinct) Norwegian Nynorsk

Old East Norse

Danish Norwegian Bokm ål Swedish


Overview: Languages in Viking Age Scandinavia

Old West Norse vs. Old East Norse

� From the start of the Viking Age (ca. 800 A.D.) there began to be noticeable differences in pronunciation between Norway and the Norse colonies in the North Atlantic vs. Sweden, Denmark, and colonies in the Baltic. These differences are enough that scholars recognize two dialects of Old Norse, Old West Norse (Norway, Iceland, Greenland, etc.) and Old East Norse (Sweden, Denmark). There still wasn't a lot of difference, it was more like the difference between British English vs. American English.

Continental Languages Cause Changes in Old East Norse

� Over time, Sweden and Denmark had a lot of direct trade and influence from the Continent, particularly from Germany, and these influences led to changes in pronunciation. Norway saw some changes in its language, but Icelandic (far away in the Atlantic) changed very little. By 1250 A.D. or so, the Scandinavian languages had diverged enough that one can term them from this point Old Icelandic, Old Norwegian, Old Swedish, and Old Danish.

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400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1150 1200 1250 1300 1400 1500 1550


Overview: Languages in Medieval Scandinavia

Evolution of Old Norwegian, Old Icelandic, Old Danish, and Old Swedish

� In the later Middle Ages - say from the Black Death to the Reformation, roughly 1350-1550 - the Continental Scandinavian languages underwent significant changes. In all of them the original complex inflectional system was greatly simplified.

� Old Norwegian ceased to exist as a written standard in the late 14th century, when Norway came under Danish control, though the rural spoken dialects continued to develop normally.

� Old Danish and Old Swedish were greatly influenced by Middle Low German, the language of the Hanseatic League. Old Icelandic was exceptional: its pronunciation changed significantly during this period, but isolation and a strong and strongly conservative native written tradition preserved the written language almost unchanged.


Overview: Modern Scandinavian Languages

Modern Norwegian, Icelandic, Danish and Swedish

� From about the middle of the 16th century on we can speak simply of Icelandic, Danish, and Swedish; all three written languages were by then much like their modern counterparts, just as Shakespeare's English is recognizably modern compared with, say, Chaucer's Middle English.

� In Norway the situation was different, thanks to Danish rule. The written language was essentially contemporary Danish, and the spoken language of the elite was heavily influenced by the written standard. When Danish rule of Norway ended in the early 20th century, this Dano-Norwegian mixture was codified as a standard language. Its contemporary descendent, called bokmål 'book language', is one of the two modern standard Norwegian languages and is the standard of a majority of Norwegian school districts. The other standard, called nynorsk 'new Norwegian', was created in the mid-19th century by Ivar Aasen. Roughly speaking, it is a reconstruction of what Old Norwegian might have become had it developed with much less outside influence, based especially on the conservative western dialects of spoken Norwegian. The official bokmål and nynorsk standards converged noticeably during the 20th century, but significant differences remain.


Sources: Runic Inscriptions Runes and Runestones

� What are runes?

� Runic script comprises a family of related writing systems. Runes have been used from at least the 2nd century AD to the 16th century.

� Runic inscriptions appear both on large stones and on portable objects. The runic alphabet of the Germanic world is called the futhark, which is simply the first six letters of this alphabet pronounced in sequence. The individual letters are referred to as runes.

� Runic alphabets

� Before the Viking Age: Elder Futhark (24 runes, ca. 0 to c.650 AD)

� Viking Age: Younger Futhark (16 runes, Danish and Swedish-Norwegian variants exist, dating c.650-ca.1050)

� Medieval Futhork: (27 runes, c. 1050 to c. 1400). Latin script had completely replaced the runes by the end of the third period.


Sources: Interpreting Runic Inscriptions

Rundata and the inscription codes

� Rundata is a huge database of runic inscriptions, in Swedish, containing many names in their original spellings.

� Each inscription has a scholarly code, or signum, composed of letters representing the inscription’s find location and a number.

Caveats - problems in interpretation

� Lack of a coherent standard orthography.

� Imperfect preservation such as missing pieces or defacement.

� Transliterations from runes don't necessarily reflect the spoken language at the time.

Caveats - problems in dating

� No carbon dating possible.

� Letter forms and linguistic clues one source of dating.

� Associated archaeological finds may help in dating.


Sources: Histories and Chronicles

Landnámabók

� Survives in five redactions, the earliest two being Sturlubók, composed by Sturla Þórðarson (d. 1284) and Hauksbók, written by Haukr Erlendsson in 1306-1308. An account of the discovery and settlement of Iceland, deals with roughly 430 settlers, their families and their descendants, preserving over 3,500 personal names and almost 1,500 farm names. Many sagas rely upon Landnámabók as a source for genealogical and biographical information.

Snorri Sturluson’s Heimskringla

� The Heimskringla of Snorri Sturluson, written in Old Norse ca. 1225, is a collection of sagas concerning the various rulers of Norway, from about 850 to 1177 AD. Although the early sections especially draw very heavily on Old Norse mythological materials and there is a consistent blurring of fiction and fact, Heimskringla is still considered an important original source for information on the Viking Age, a period which Snorri covers almost in its entirety.


Sources: Sagas Sagas are the prose literature of Medieval Scandinavia, with most being composed in Iceland. They represent a type of historical fiction or romance, not history.

� Sub-genres and dates:

� Postola sögur ("apostles' sagas") - the earliest sagas, beginning ca. 1150

� Konungasögur ("kings' sagas) - ca. 1190-1230

� Íslendingasögur ("sagas of the Icelanders") - most composed in the 13th c.

� Riddarasögur ("knights' sagas") - prose adaptions of European romances - 1226 and later

� Fornaldarsögur ("sagas of ancient times") - most 14th c., Saxo based portions of his work on these stories in the 13th c.

� Caveats

� The transition from oral history to written history

� Romance and märchen elements appearing in sagas

� Issues with literature in translation: translation and normalizing


Sources: Latin Sources There are a variety of chronicles, histories, and Church documents in Latin that touch upon the Vikings. The best-known include:

� Adam of Bremen's Gesta Hammaburgensis ecclestia pontificium, written sometime between 1066 and 1080, recounts early Danish history from 845 to 1072. Adam was most interested in showing the power and success of the Church and the Church hierarchy, and thus distorts his history appreciably to emphasize his concerns.

� Saxo Grammaticus' Gesta Danorum was completed around 1216, and begins with legendary and mythological materials based on oral accounts from traveling Icelanders, and also relies upon histories such as the one by Danish historian Sven Aggeson, a few years earlier. Scholars have shown, however, that Vergil's Aeneid had more influence on Saxo than did Aggeson. Saxo's account is both augmented and distorted by the northern legendary materials.

Caveats

� The transition from oral history to written history

� Problems with backformation from Latin records

� Issues with literature in translation: translation and normalizing


Sources: Views from Outside Scandinavia

The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle

� Compiled ca. 890 to mid-12th century, the ASC exists in a number of Old English manuscripts. Many entries cite the Viking attacks and incursions into Britain.

Arabic Sources

� At least 50 Arabic authors in the Golden Age of Arabic literature (750-1055) and the Silver Age (1055-1258) offer information about Scandinavia and its inhabitants. Arabic sources refer to the Vikings as ar-Rus or ar-Rusiya in Russia and the east, and as al-Majus in writings from Andalusia, North Africa and elsewhere in the west, with mentions of Warank (O.N. Varangians) and al-Urman (Latin Nordmanni) elsewhere. These accounts consist of geographies, traveler's accounts, and histories.


Terminology

Personal name

� The particular combination of sounds employed as the individual designation of a single person. For the Norse, this was a name given to a person at birth or in a naming ceremony. Synonyms: anthroponym, given name, first name, forename, Christian name, baptismal name.

Byname

� A byname (Old Norse upphefni, viðurnefi) is a name other than a person's personal name. "Byname" is a broad term that may include patronymics and various epithets. Bynames were a very common way to tell one person from another with the same given name in period. The pool of available given names was quite small by modern standards, and even in the smallest villages there were bound to be several people named Óláfr or Björn or Þórvaldr. Bynames were formed from all sorts of words and frequently described some physical or social aspect of the person bearing them, and were often not at all complimentary. In period, they were usually comprised of a short, descriptive word or phrase. Synonyms: appellation, eke name, nickname, epithet, sobriquet.

Patronymic

� A type of byname given to offspring to indicate the name of the father.

Matronymic

� A type of byname given to offspring to indicate the name of the mother.

Diminutive name

� A shortened form of the given name, e.g., Beth and Liz are diminutives of Elizabeth.


Terminology, continued Placename

� A placename is a geographical name, the proper name of a locality, region, or some other part of the earth's surface or its natural or artifical feature.

Locative byname

� Locative bynames are related to placenames; they are bynames involving locations or places. There are two types of locative bynames. The first are toponymic locative bynames, which involve proper names of locations, including territorial locative bynames, which indicate places held/owned by the person or their family. The second are topographic locative bynames, which involve descriptions of places rather than placenames.

Grammatical terms

� Nominative - Subject. Used as the name itself.

� Genitive - Possessive. Most important for forming patronymics.

� Dative - Indirect object of verb or object of a preposition.

� Accusative - Direct object of verb or object of a preposition.

Normalized

� A normalized spelling is the theoretically correct spelling according to the rules for the period under consideration rather than the most common spellings actually found in historical records. The normalized form of the name is the form generally used by scholars. Old Norse normalization is based on the forms most commonly found in the early Norse literature, which dates from the 12th century. This scholarly practice is based on the Old Icelandic of the sagas.


Construction of Old Norse Personal Names

How the Viking Age peoples selected names

� Based on recent lineage and recent deceased near kin

� A child was always named after a dead family member, ideally a direct forefather, but also paternal or maternal aunts or uncles, great-aunts, or great-uncles. When a close relative died shortly before the birth of a child, particularly while the child is in utero, the child was always given the name of the deceased. A son born after the father dies was always given the name of the father. When the person-being-named-after has a common name, the child is given the person-being-named-after's byname as well as the personal name.

� Older practices

� Alliteration (the same sound at the beginning of one name is repeated in another). Agni, Alrek, Yngvi, Iörund, Aun, Egil, Óttar, Adils, Eystein, Yngvar, Önund, Ingiald, Olaf were successive kings of the Uppsala dynasty, all with names beginning with a vowel.

� Variation (new name differs from that of others in the family by changing one element in the name). A ninth-century Norwegian Végeirr had sons Vébjörn, Vésteinn, Véþormr, Vémundr, Végestr


Construction of Old Norse Personal Names: Meaning

Viking Age peoples didn't select names based on meaning

Etymology looks at ancient word roots, meaning not always transparent

�From E.G. Withycombe, The Oxford Dictionary of English Christian Names (3rd ed., Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1988, pp. xiv-xvi): "Of the great Indo-European family of languages the general principle was also that of one name for each individual, the majority of names being compounded of two elements chosen from a stock of special name-words, Such elements were naturally for the most part words of good augury, but they seem, in most languages, to have been combined with no particular regard for meaning. As Professor Stenton writes: 'Most compound names can be translated, but the translations often make nonsense. The men who coined the names Frithuwulf (peace-wolf), and Wigfrith (war-peace), were not concerned about their meaning. These are ancient names and they prove that at an early time the sense which a compound name bore was a matter of little importance... in most cases personal or family reasons determined the choice of a name, and speculation as to its meaning, if it came at all, came as an afterthought.' ... The special name-words of which personal names were composed were originally ordinary significant words, but with the passage of time some of them fell out of use in the spoken language, and others underwent phonetic and semantic changes to which personal names were not always subject... The Frankish monk Smaragdus, who wrote at the beginning of the 9th century, shows that even as early as that there was no longer a clear understanding of the formation and meaning of Germanic names: thus he translated Uuilmunt ('will' + 'protection') as volens bucca (‘willing mouth’), and Ratmunt ('counsel' + 'protection') as consilium oris (‘counsel of the mouth’), confusing mund 'protection', with mund 'mouth'. The short uncompounded names were naturally even less comprehensible than the compounded ones; Redin lists 736 such names in Old English, of which he classes 338 as intelligible and 398 as unintelligible."

A note on meaning being important to modern SCA folk and how to use it as a tool to guide clients towards documentable, authentic names.


Construction of Old Norse Personal Names: One- & Two-Element Names

Single element names vs. compound, two-element names

Name elements not "mix and match"

� RFS II.3

� Some name elements only found in first position, others only in second

� Some name elements gender-specific

� Invented names not the best historical recreation

Male Egill Björn Fálki Úlfr

Female Auðr Bera Drífa Finna

Single-Element

Male Þórbrandr (Þórr+Brandr) Björnólfr (Bjorn+Úlfr)

Female Ragnhildr (Reginn+Hildr) Álfdís (Alf+Dís) Halldóra (Halla+Þórr)

Two-Element


Bynames of Relationship: Patronymic Formation

Patronymics were overwhelmingly the most common type of byname in use in Old Norse

Patronymics (or matronymics) must follow the ordinary rules of Old Norse grammar. In modern English, when we want to indicate a possessive (sometimes also known as the genitive case of the noun) we do so by adding an ending (the possessive of John is John's) or else we use a phrase that indicates the possessive (of John). So in modern English, when we want to indicate a son belonging to John, we say John's son or the son of John

In Old Norse, the possessive is indicated by a change in the ending of the word.


Bynames of Relationship: Patronymic Formation Table

Basic rules controlling the formation of Old Norse possessives for use in patronymics and matronymics, from Geirr bassi Haraldsson's The Old Norse Name:

In Old Norse, the possessive is indicated by a change in the ending of the word. Basic rules controlling the formation of Old Norse possessives for use in patronymics and matronymics, from Geirr bassi Haraldsson's The Old Norse Name:

If the name ends in

The ending will change to

Sample name in nominative case Genitive+Son Genitive+daughter

-i -a Snorri Snorrason Snorradóttir

-a -u Sturla Sturluson Sturladóttir

-nn -ns Sveinn Sveinsson Sveinsdóttir

-ll -ls Ketill Ketilsson Ketilsdóttir

-rr -rs Geirr Geirson Geirssdóttir

Most other men's names end in terminal -R, which normally forms the genitive by adding -s:

If the name ends in



-r -s Grímr Grímsson Grímsdóttir

-ir -is Grettir Grettisson Grettisdóttir

Certain men's names form their genitive in -ar. Most of these are names ending in -dr, but others are included:

-dan -endr

-fredr -frøðr

-gautr mundr

-røðr -undr

-varðr -viðr

-vindr -þórðr

-þrándr

If the name ends in



-ar Hálfdan Hálfdanarson Hálfdanardóttir

-ar Auðunn Auðunarson Auðunardóttir

-r -ar Sigurðr Sigurðarson Sigurðardóttir

Mens' names that end in -björn ("bear") or -örn ("eagle") change form slightly in the genitive, becoming -bjarnar and -arnar.

Names ending in -maðr have the genitive form -manns.

Names ending in -ss do not change in the genitive, but in the compound patronymic, one of the "s" is dropped, thus Vigfúss, Vigfússon.


Bynames of Relationship : Matronymics

While people did occasionally bear matronymics it was extremely uncommon. There were a total of only 34 women in Iceland whose sons used their mother's name as a matronymic, and most of these lived in the northern and western districts of Iceland, including:

� Eilif Guðrunarson

� Hrafn Guðrunarson

� Stein Herdísarson

� Bersi Skald-Tórfuson

� Kormak Dolluson

� Ofeig Jarngerðsson of Skarð

From the Academy of St. Gabriel:

� The daughter of Ragnhildr would have been known as Ragnhildar dóttir... Ragnhildar was the genitive (possessive) form of Ragnhildr. Metronymics (surnames that identified someone as her mother's daughter) were far less common than patronymics, but they were used in least some parts of the Viking world. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2708)

� There was also a feminine name Hildr that was common in tenth-century Iceland. Its possessive form was Hildar, and in principle the byname Hildar dóttir ‘daughter of Hildr’ is possible. In practice, however, metronymics -- names identifying the bearer's mother -- were very rare in Iceland, and we don't recommend this alternative. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2769)


Bynames of Relationship : Grandparent Names

Occasionally a person will be identified not only with a patronymic, but the grandfather will also be identified in the name. In such a case, the name of the grandfather occurs in the genitive (possessive) form, but the suffix meaning “son” also is in the genitive case, appearing as –sonar.

� Þórfinnr Sigurðar son Þórsteins sonar (Thorfinnr, son of Sigurðr, who was Thorsteinn’s son) (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/1990)

� Two of the settlers of Iceland were identified in later writings as Þórvalldr Asvalldz son, "Thorvalldr Asvalldr's son," and Olver en hviti son Osvallz Auxna-Þóris sonar, "Olver the White, son of Osvaldr Auxna-Thorir's son". (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2743)

� There are also examples of men identified as the grandsons of their grandfathers, e.g. Hrilfi son Ásgeirs Bjarnar sonar, "Hrilfli, son of Asgeirr Bjorn's son"... Note that in this case, the father's entire name and byname are in the genitive (possessive) case. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2516)


Bynames of Relationship: Marriage It was very uncommon for a husband and wife to share a surname in [the Viking Age]. A woman did not adopt her husband's surname upon marriage, so she would have the same surname only if it were a correct description of her as well as of him. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/1919)

... you might have been known by a name which identified you as his wife. Unfortunately, we have relatively little Swedish data from your period, and all of our Swedish examples of this type of byname are from the 15th and 16th centuries. We do, however, have a handful of examples from Norway ca.1300, e.g., Ragnillde þoralfs kono 1289, Gudrune Eilifs kono 1282, and Bergliot Vþyrms kona ca.1300. We therefore think it very plausible that you might have been known by your husband's name in the genitive (possessive) case and kona 'woman, wife'. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2512) [Note: Bold emphasis mine.]

A woman might occasionally be known as her husband's wife, but you shouldn't think of this as a married name in the modern sense. It's more accurate to call it an alternate description. Lina the wife of Úlfr ... could have been known as Lina Úlfs kona... However, in other contexts she would have been identified by a patronymic, e.g. Lina Snorradóttir. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/1493)

... Scandinavian bynames are typically patronymic, identifying the bearer as a child of his or her father, and a spousal byname would at least be quite unusual. We did find a handful of examples; Þoralfs kona 1289 'Thoralf's wife' and Eilifs kona 1282 'Eilifr's wife' are quite typical... These are Norwegian, but in Denmark we find Elsef Jens Kune 1377 'Elsef Jens' wife'. All of these are a bit later than we'd like, especially the last, but this may be due to the limitations of our sources and the fact that women are quite poorly represented in the early documentary sources. On the basis of the available evidence a hypothetical Old Danish byname Regners kuna would clearly not be the best historical re-creation, but we suspect that such forms were used from time to time. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2721)


A Brief Look at Diminutives Old Norse names often form diminutives (pet names) based on one element

� Diminutives are formed from compound names most often by a sort of contraction and by changing a strong declension into a weak (usually in the second element, but sometimes in the first element of the name), or by adding -si, -ka, or the like. Our best evidence for diminutives comes from runic inscriptions, as the sagas only rarely mention them.

� Feminine: Sigga from Sigríðr; Gunna from Guðrún; Inga from Ingunu; Imba from Ingibjorg; Gudda from Guðríðr; Manga from Margrot; Valka from Valgerðr; Ranka from Ragneiðr and Ragnhildr; Jóka from Johanna; Tobba from Þórbjörg; Sissa from Sigþrúðr; Kata (Engl. Kate) from Katrín; Kitta from Kristin; Asta from Ástríðr; þura from Þuríðr; Dura from Halldóra, etc.; Disa from Valdís, Vigdís, Herdís, etc.; Geira from Geirlaug; Fríða from Names in Frið- or -fríðr, etc.; Þrúða from Jarþrúðr, Sigþrúðr; Lauga from Guðlaug; Asa from Aslaug.

� Masculine: Siggi from Sigurðr; Gvendr from Guðmundr; Simbi from Signumdr; Brynki from Brynjólfr; Steinki from Steingrimr; Mangi from Magnus; Runki from Runólfr; Sveinki from Sveinn; Sebbi from Sigbjörn,Sveinbjörn (rare); Erli from Erlindr (Erlingr); Gutti from Guþormr,or rarely Guðbrandr; Kobbi from Jakob; Valdi from Þórvaldr; Mundi or Asi from Asmundr, etc.; Láki from Þórlákr; Leifi from Þórleifr; Láfi from Öláfr; Eyvi from Eyjólfr; Keli from Þórkell; Laugi from Gunnlaugr; Tumi (Engl. Tommy") from Thomas occurs in Icelandic as an independent name about the middle of the 12th century, and was probably borrowed from the English; Fúsi from Vigfús; Grimsi from Grímr; Jonsi from Jón (English Johnny); Björsi from Björn; Bensi from Benedikt.

Diminutives appear to have moved into name stocks as personal names over time

� Many Viking Age personal names with a weak declension in -i were probably originally diminutives, e.g. Bjarni from Bjorn; Arni (Arne) from Örn; Bersi from Björn; Karli (Engl. Charley) from Karl; Jóra from Jóreiðr; Ragna from compounds in Ragn-, Ragneiðr; Ingi and Inga from compounds in Ing-; Goddi was probably from compounds in Goð- (Guðmundr) as the present Gudda of girls; Boddi (a name of the 8th century) from those in Böð- (A. S. Beadu); Daði (occurs in an Icelandic colonist family from the British Isles in the 10th century) probably from Davíð (Davy); Sebbi and Ubbi occur on Swedish Runic stones; Helgi (old form Hölgi) from Haleygr.


Descriptive Bynames – General Info Bynames largely derogatory, and why

� “The wittiness of many of these bynames reflects not only typical Icelandic humor, which is very direct and earthy, but also human nature universally. Accordingly, one must be prepared for the fact that the vast majority of them are, unfortunately for the person involved, derogatory.” (Christopher Hale. “Modern Icelandic Bynames”. Scandinavian Studies 53 (1981) p. 398.)

� Examples: alicarl (“fat karl”), beigaldi (“weak, sickly”), beiskaldi (“nag, bitch”), breiðmagi (“broad-gut”), dritkinn (“shit cheek”), eitrkveisa (“pus-sore”), inn fíflski (“foolish, moronic”), fretr (“fart”), gleiðr (“bow-legged”), inn halti (“halt, lame”), illskælda (“bad poet”), inn matarrili (“food-stingy”), meinfretr (“harm-fart, stink-fart”), saurr (“mud, dirt, excrement”), etc.

Bynames not acquired until adulthood

A person almost never uses his own byname

� “A person almost never uses his own byname nor is it usually ever expressed to him personally, even though he knows about it in almost all instances. This probably has come about because, as mentioned before, and as is now quite obvious, so many of the bynames are of derogatory nature. Nevertheless, they are used freely in most conversations where the person concerned is mentioned.” (Hale, p. 403.)


Descriptive Bynames - Concise Bynames don't encapsulate a person's entire persona story and life history

� A person might be referred to by more than one byname in differing situations, but never all at the same time. In one context, a person is the son of his father, in another he is described for his appearance or habits, when traveling he may be referred to by his nationality or area of origin.

The CoH has ruled that two (not three, or six, etc.) descriptive bynames in the same name is an acceptable construction under certain circumstances. Note that this construction was not common and is not the best historical recreation of an Old Norse name. The registerability ruling appears in the 05/2002 LoAR under Acceptances, Outlands, in the discussion for the acceptance of the name Þórdís gjallandi eyverska.

� 05/2002 LOAR Ruling - http://www.sca.org/heraldry/loar/2002/05/02-05lar.html/#216

� Ruling: … a name using two non-patronymic bynames in Old Norse is registerable so long as the bynames could reasonably be used to simultaneously describe the same person.


Descriptive Bynames - Lowercase

The lowercase/uppercase descriptive byname discussion was presented for commentary in the 04/2002 LoAR cover letter (http://www.sca.org/heraldry/loar/2002/04/02-04cl.html) and the ruling was in the 10/2002 LoAR cover letter (http://www.sca.org/heraldry/loar/2002/10/02-10cl.html).

� Ruling: When registering transliteration of non-Roman alphabets (including Norse runes), we register the name using modern transliterations standards. We will also register period transliteration standards where such exist. In the case of Old Norse, there are period manuscripts of sagas and other works that are rendered using the Roman alphabet. From these, we can determine that the period standard was to transliterate descriptive bynames in lowercase. (See the cover letter for the April 2002 LoAR for more information.) The modern transliteration standard, both in Europe and the U.S., is to transliterate descriptive bynames in lowercase.


Descriptive Bynames - Grammar

Generally bynames consist of nouns, prefixes, weak adjectives, or strong adjectives.

� An adjective in a byname must agree in gender with the gender of the person being named. (Nouns usually agree as to gender, but not always.)

� After the definite article (inn or in) weak adjectives are used, although they can also appear without the article.

� Strong adjectives do not appear with the definite article.

� If a noun is used as a prepended byname, it is most frequently in the genitive plural.

Weak Masculine Adjective Byname

Weak Feminine Adjective Byname

Strong Masculine Adjective Byname

Strong Feminine Adjective Byname

inn hvíti in hvíta hvítr hvít inn spaki in spaka spakr spök inn gamli in gamla gamall gömull inn óþvegni In óþvegna óþveginn óþvegin inn vísi in visa víss vís


Categories of Descriptive Bynames

Locative, describing place of origin – most common type of byname after patronymics

Physical characteristics – third most common type of byname

Occupation – fourth most common type of byname, includes titles of rank

Habits

Temperament

Biographical – recalls a biographical event in person’s life

Commemorative - named after family members, historical figures. If a child is named after a deceased relative, but the personal name is quite common, they may also be given the person’s byname.


Descriptive Bynames – Locatives

Locatives were the second most common type of byname, after patronymics. (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/1919)

Locatives only in use if you live somewhere other than the place named in the locative

Examples: in bareyeska (“woman from the Hebrides”), breiðdælski (“man from Broad-Dale”), inn enski (“Englishman”), in flamska (“woman from Flanders”), inn gauzki (“man from Gautland”), inn grenzki (“man from Greenland”), inn norræni (“Norwegian”), á Englandi (“from England”), á Írlandi (“from Ireland”), á Skotlandi (“from Scotland”), í Danmörk (“from Denmark”), í Svipjóð (“from Sweden”), í Jórvík (“of York”)


Construction of Locatives with á

Requires a dative object.

Used in locatives in connection with proper names of countries, especially those ending in -land, for instance; á Englandi, á Írlandi, á Skotlandi, á Bretlandi, á Groenlandi, á Íslandi, á Saxlandi, á Vindlandi, á Viulandi, á Hálogalandi, á Rogalandi, á Jótlandi, á Frakklandi, á Hjaltlandi, á Jamtalandi, á Hvítramannalandi, á Norðrliindum, etc.

Used in connection with other names of districts or counties: á Mæri, á Vörs, á Ögðum, á Fjölum (all districts of Norway). From Landnámabók á Myrum (in Iceland), á Finnmörk, á Fjoni (a Danish island); but í Danmörk, í Svipjóð.

Used also before names of Icelandic farms denoting open and elevated slopes and spaces (not too high, because then 'at' must be used), such as -staðr, -völlr, -ból, -hjalli, -bakki, -heimr, -cyri, etc.: i.e. á Þórisstöðum, á Möðruvöllum, á Fitjum.

Place-names in -nes or -fjörðr sometimes take á, sometimes í (in modern usage always í).


Construction of Locatives with í


Used in connection with local names, denoting low land: -fjörðr (“firth or inlet”); -dal (“dale”); -ey (“island”); -holt, -skógr, Lundi (forested areas); -höfn (“haven”). i.e., í Borgarfirði, í Vestfjürðum, í Laxárdal, í Hrappsey, í Viðey, í Orkneyjum, í Suðreyjum, í Sauðeyjum, í Trollaskógi, í Mörk, í Skálaholti, í Lundi, í Höfn, í Kaupmannahöfn, í Hvammi, í Vestr-hópi, í Eyrarsundi, í Fljótshlíð, í Vági, í Vík, í Ósi, í Elliðar-vik, í Rögnvalds-vági, í Salteyrar-ósi, í Laxár-ósi, í Elfinni, í Lóni, í Körmt, í Myl, í Storð (islands), í Víkinni, í Hólmi.

Of towns, í Lundunum (“in London”); í Jórvík (“in York”), í Túnsbergi, í Björgyn.

Of countries, í Noregi (“in Norway”), í Svíþjóð (“in Sweden”), í Danmörku (“in Denmark”), í Austrriki (in the East)


Construction of Locatives with af


Used in connection with a person's domicile, especially denoting a man's abode, and answering to á and í, the name of the farm (or country) being added to proper names (as in Scotland) to distinguish persons of the same name.

Examples: Hallr af Síðu, Erlíngr af Straumey, Ástríðr af Djúpárbakka, Gunnarr af Hlíðarenda (more usual frá), Þórir haklangr konungr af Ögðum (king of Agdir)


Construction of Locatives with at

Requires a dative object. Modern spelling is að, but Viking Age pronunciation was at and usually the spelling also.

Denoting the kingdom or residence of a king or princely person; konungr at Danmörk ok Noregi (king of Denmark and Norway), konungr at Dyflinni (king of Dublin), but i Englandi or yfir Englandi. Also used of a bishop; biskup at Holum (bishop of Hólar).

In denoting a man's abode, at is used where the local name implies the notion of “by the side of”, and is therefore especially applied to words denoting a river, brook, rock, mountain, grove, or the like, and in some other instances, “by, at”, e.g. at Hofi (a temple), at Borg (a castle), at Helgafelli (a mountain), at Mosfelli, at Hálsi (a hill), at Á (river), at Bægisá (river), at Fossi (a waterfall), at Lækjamoti (waters-meeting), at Bergþórshváli, at Lundi (a grove), at Melum (sandhill). The preposition á is now used in modern Icelandic in most of these cases.


Construction of Locatives with frá


When this preposition is used with the names of hills, rivers, or the like, meaning "from", at is more commonly used.

Found occasionally in names; Eirekr frá Ósi, þórðr frá Höfða, frá Mosfelli, frá Hlíðarenda.


Descriptive Bynames – Physical Characteristics

The most common type of descriptive byname is the comparison byname, where the person is felt to resemble something in either appearance or movement

� Comparison to animals is the most common type of byname in this category, i.e., brimill (“large seal”), brúsi (“he-goat”), galti (“boar”), hani (“rooster”), hjörtr (“hart, stag”), kettlingr (“kitten”), kráka (“crow”), merr (“mare”), rostungr (“walrus”), etc., but also dúfunef (“dove nose”), geitleggr (“goat-leg”), kamphundr (“whiskered dog”), ormstunga (“worm-tongue, serpent tongue”), selnasi (“seal-nose”), etc.

� Comparison to inanimate objects also common, i.e., bíldr (“axe”), drafli (“cooked curds”), drómundr (“a type of ship”), hatti (“hood, cowl”), karkr (“stunted tree”), kváran (“shoe”), naddr (“nail, spike”), skökull (“cart pole”), etc.


Descriptive Bynames – Occupation and Rank

Probably the next most common type of descriptive byname after physical characteristics are those naming a person’s occupation, rank, or activities.

� Titles and occupational terms are treated as bynames. They follow the personal name, but precede any other bynames, i.e. Haraldr konungr inn hárfagri (King Haraldr Fairhair)

� Examples: konungr (“king”), dróttning (“queen”), hertogi (“duke”), jarl (“earl, count”), berserkr (“berserker”), skáld (“poet, skald”), ábóti (“abbot”), bogsveigr (“bow-swayer, archer”), búandi (“farmer”), dróttseti (“king’s steward”), gjaldkeri (“king’s treasurer”), góði (“chieftain”), hersir (“chieftain”), kaupmaðr (“merchant”), knarrarsmiðr (“shipwright”), meistari (“master, magister”), prestr (“Christian priest”), sjóna (“seeress”), smiðr (“smith”), spákona (“prophetess”), stallari (“king’s marshall”), etc.


Descriptive Bynames – Habits

After comparison bynames, bynames poking fun at a person’s habits are most common.

� Examples: andvaka (“awake”), barnakarl (“child’s man, no killer of children”), blígr (“staring, gazing”), dengir (“scythe-sharpener”), eldboðungr (“fire-bidder”), inn fiskni (“good at fishing”), gapi (“yawner”), gjallandi (“shrieking”), gnúpa (“crouch, stoop”), hófleysa (“excess, intemperance”), karpi (“braggart”), ofsi (“arrogant, tyrannical”), inn skjálgi (“squinting”), stígandi (“stepper, strider”), þausnir (“romper, rager”), etc.


Descriptive Bynames – Temperament

Some bynames describe the person’s temperament and character.

�Examples: balli (“brave”), fasthaldi (“hold-fast, tenancious”), inn friðsami (“peaceful”), inn glaði (“glad, happy”), inn harði (“hard, stern, severe”), hryggr (“afflicted, sad, grieved”), inn illi (“evil, bad”), jafnkollr (“even-mind, level-headed”), kali (“cold, unkind”), líknarlauss (“merciless”), inn óði (“mad, frantic, raging”), etc.


Descriptive Bynames – Biographical

A biographical descriptive byname is based upon events in the life of the person being named.

�Examples: Brennu- (“burnt, arson victim”), englandsfari (“traveler to England”), Flugu- (“murderer”), hlymreksfari (traveler to Limerick, Ireland), jórsalafari (“pilgrim to Jerusalem”), sundafyllir (“sound-filler”, of a woman who used magic to fill a bay with fish)


Constructing an O.N. Name for Registration with the SCA CoH: RFS I-VI & common problems RFS III - COMPATIBLE NAMING STYLE AND GRAMMAR

� Compatible with the culture of a single time and place. Mixing languages. Registerable in certain cases, but not authentic. The handful of examples we have of Norsemen being referenced in both Norse and Gaelic documents is a good example. The name may have mixed elements from different cultures, but it was written all in one language. “It is a common misconception that people whose parents came from different countries would have names partly in one language and partly in another. Unfortunately, that's not how medieval naming worked. In the rare cases when two people from different countries married, their children were named according to the naming practices of the country where they lived. If they moved from one country to another, they would either retain their original names or use local equivalents.” (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/2150)

� Need at least two name components for registration


RFS IV - OFFENSIVE NAMES Why some bynames may bounce

� Collected Precedents on "Offensive" http://www.sca.org/heraldry/laurel/precedents/CompiledNamePrecedents/Offensive.html

� If "Trixie la Tush" or "John Witchburner" were ruled unregisterable due to offensiveness, will documentable Viking Age bynames such as böllr (ball, glans penis), hnappraz (knob-ass), hokinrazi (crooked-ass), meinfretr (stink-fart, harm-fart), viligísl (lust-hostage) or völubrjótr (witch-breaker) be likely to pass?

� Occasionally, because the name appears in a language other than English, some otherwise “offensive” terms are registered -- but don’t count on it. It’s much better to avoid possible slow-downs in the registration process and returns by picking non-offensive bynames from the start.

Constructing an O.N. Name for Registration with the SCA CoH: RFS I-VI & common problems



RFS V - NAME CONFLICT Some suggestions for clearing a conflict.

� Conflicts can be cleared by adding a name component. A name with three name components is clear of one with only two components, so adding an additional identifier solves the conflict.

� Name + Patronymic - try adding a byname

� Name + Byname - try adding a patronymic

� Add a grandfather's name or a locative byname

� If a personal name has to be changed,

� Consider changing only one element in a two-element name (i.e., instead of Steingrímr, try Steinþórr, etc.)

� Consider registering a documented diminutive form for the desired name (i.e., try Grimsi instead of Grímr, etc.).



RFS VI - PRESUMPTUOUS NAMES - Avoiding mythological elements

�While a number of O.N. names specifically use elements identical to god-names, avoid name constructions that could be construed as claiming the god’s identity, powers, or lineage from the god. Avoid names such as Þórir lopteldsvaldandi (Thorir Lightning-Wielder) or Björn Heimdalarson.

� The Eddas are not good sources for documenting names for SCA registration. Any name with Loki or Fenris is just not going to be registerable.


Constructing an O.N. Name for Registration with the SCA CoH

Order of name elements (arranged in order of frequency)

� personal name only (i.e., Eiríkr)

� While this is the most common Old Norse name usage, the CoH requires two or more name components for registration.

� personal name + patronymic (i.e., Leifr Eiríksson, "Leif, son of Eric").

� personal name + byname + patronymic (i.e., Eiríkr inn rauði Þórvaldsson, "Eric the Red, son of Thorvald“ or Leifr inn heppni Eiríksson, “Leif the Lucky, son of Eric”)

� Note that a "byname" is like a nickname, it's not a middle name. The Vikings did not use middle names or double given names (See http://www.s-gabriel.org/1990)

� personal name + byname (i.e., Eiríkr inn rauði, "Eric the Red“ or Leifr inn heppni, “Leif the Lucky”)


Documenting an O.N. Name for Registration with the SCA CoH

A review of the materials provided on the CD-ROM

WWW Articles

� Access original article, print, and add to submission

� My articles cite original source of information, where to go to find the original data

Dictionaries and Bynames

� The intricate art of nuance

� Making sure invented bynames fit patterns of documented bynames

� To use dictionary as documentation, print scanned title page and page(s) with entry(ies)

Bibliographic Materials

� Using online college library catalogs to find sources

� Using Interlibrary Loan to find sources

A Brief Note on the Few Mistakes in Geirr Bassi Haraldsson’s The Old Norse Name

Documents

The Basics of Old Norse Names