As you know the Kingdom Heraldic Symposium has been set for the 19th of April at the Springwater Grange southeast of Portland Oregon. Sponsored by the Barony of Three Mountains (and held in conjunction with their Sergeant-Yeoman-Gallant trials), there will be a potluck Fool's Feast in the evening.

The class fees are just $1.00/class (and this gets you the handout), and the site fee $5.00. All in all, a pretty good deal. Harpy Herald (from Laurel's staff) will be here to teach two advanced classes on naming practices, and many of the Kingdom staff will be there to teach and consult with you. To get there take I-205 to the Estacada (Hwy. 212/224 East) exit, and go east to the Carver turnoff. This takes you south to Carver, where you keep to the right (look for the signs to McIver Park). You will immediately go over a bridge and then turn left. About seven (7) miles further you will be there. Look for the SCA signs.

On Sunday, the 20th, the Lion's Blood meeting will be held at 11am (please note this change in time), followed by a Black Lion Staff meeting, both at Black Lion's home (Torric Inn Bjorn). From I-5 Southbound take the Martin Luther King Blvd. Exit and go south to Columbia Blvd., where you turn right. Go approximately 4 mi. to Oregonian Av., and turn right, a few blocks up is Swift St.T urn right and go to the end of the street. Torric's house is the last one on the right. Both these meetings are open to ANYONE interested in how the An Tir College of Heralds operates.

Comments on this letter are due no later than the 13th of June, so I can include them in the decisions made at the meeting on the 14th. I'm still looking for a site for the meeting, so it will be announced next month.

Comments on the March letter are due no later than the 9th of May for inclusion in the decision made at the meeting on the 11th. Spakbjorn de Olnei will be hosting us at his home (2300 S. Alpine St.. Cornelius, OR. Call (503) 359-1519.

Comments on the February letter are due by the 18th of April for inclusion in the decisions made on the April 20th (the day after the Symposium), to be held at Torric's.

Thanks to those who provided commentary for, an/or attended the February meeting: Baron David [Electrum] (Natasha Orionova [Be Wayre], Kateryn of Falconkeep), Dame Zenobia [Courrone Rouge], Aed Deoradh·in (Fire Mountain Keep), Antoinette Jarlshammer [Curragh Mor].

Old Submissions

The following have been forwarded to Laurel and the College of Arms:

Alanus of Bunghea (Device)

Per chevron azure and Or, two leatherworker's head knives respectant Or and a flame gules.

The knives were apparently drawn from the Pic-Dic.

Arontius of Bikelswade (Name & Device)

Sable, a legless wyvern embowed Or maintaining with its tail a quill argent, on a base Or a winged cat sejant affronty sable.

The name is a change from Irenaeus of Bikeiswade. The device is a resubmission to Laurel. The blazon was corrected to reflect the blazon given by Laurel in the return.

Ciaran Cluana Ferta (Badge)

(Fieldless) A boot azure.

Cold Keep, Shire of (Device)

This was pended from February's meeting to allow them to redraw, but as none came, we are sending up the original submission.

Edmund Middleton of York (Name & Device)

Azure, a chevron between three estoiles Or.

Although this contains a double locative, Middleton is an attested surname in period, so we are forwarding the name. The device was found to conflict with Eric of Bhakail: Azure, a chevron throughout between three mallets fesswise Or. A letter of permission to conflict has been obtained from Lord Eric. Those present at the meeting felt that this was clear of Geoffrey Scott: Azure, a chevron and in base a compass star Or, with one CD for the change of type, and another for the number of charges in the secondary charge group.

The following have been returned for further work:

David Wolffury (Name & Device)

Argent, a wolfs head cabossed sable issuing from the ears and mouth flames vert.

None of the commenters were able to document the use of -fury or -fiery as a deuterotheme in Anglo-Saxon, or to make sense in other European languages of such a surname. Several conflicts were found with the device. Vs. Katharine Wulfsege: Argent, a wolfs head cabossed sable within an orle of vines vert, Arielle Tharsis of Foxiea: Argent, a fox's mask sable within a bordure azure, and Paganus Grimlove: Argent, a wolfs head cabossed and snarling sable within a heart voided gules, there is one CD for the peripheral charge group, but no other differences available (foxes and wolves heads seem to be interchangeable in period, and "snarling" carries no difference). Vs. Wulfhere Ironsshield: Gyrrony arrondi Or and gules, a wolfs head cabossed sable and Conrad Stronghand: Or, a wolfs head cabossed sable maintaining a rose gules barbed and seeded proper we count one CD for the changes to the field, but nothing else is available (the rose would have to be of equal visual weight with the wolfs head to count for difference).

James the Obscure (Name & Device)

Azure, in pale a badger statant contourney argent marked sable and an open scroll fesswise argent.

Unfortunately, the only meaning of obscure found in the Oxford English Dictionary (that was early enough to be from the era of descriptive surname formation in English) was "dark or deficient in light, hence gloomy, dim". As the submitter allowed no changes, we had to return the name and the device (which must have a name to register it to). The blazon was corrected to better reflect the emblazon.

William Percival (Device)

Gules, a griffin segreant Or within a bordure sable fimbriated charged with roses Or.

This was returned for fimbriating the bordure, a one-sided charge, which has been held by Laurel to be non-period in style. The exact number of roses on the bordure was omitted in the re-blazon due to the practice of several recent Laurels of blazoning any number of charges on a bordure over six as a semy of charges. Some commenters thought this looked like Or, on an inescutcheon gules a griffin segreant Or all within a bordure sable semy of roses Or. which would give the appearance of arms-of-pretense, giving cause for return.

New Submissions:

1) Aedan Blodhauke (St. Bunstable) new/N

Aedan is shown from Searle's Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum p.63 (sub Aidan). Blodhauk is asserted to be a constructed Middle English nickname. Jan J–nsj–'s Studies on Middle English Nicknames (I. Compounds) (Lund Studies in English 55, ed. C. Schaar & J. Svarhik, CWK Gleerup, Lund no date) p. 32 shows the <noun + noun> pattern of nickname formation in Middle English (among the cited examples: Haukeseye and Haukesheued). P. 202 of this source shows: OE blod 'blood; temper, disposition': Blyssetblode, Hertblod,

Illeblod, Spilblod, Svetblod, Wyghtblod, Wyldeblod. p. 209 of this same source shows: OE heafoc, hafoc: 'hawk': Goshauk, Haukeseye, Haukesheued, Sparhauk. He will accept changes to preserve the meaning OR general sound.

2) An Tir, Kingdom of (for the Rivers Region) new/B

(Fieldless) A sea-lion per fess azure and argent.

A letter of permission to conflict with Alison MacDermot (Per chevron argent and azure, a sea-lion maintaining a round buckle counterchanged) has been submitted.

3) Avicia le Mey (Wyewood) new/N & D

Per pale vert and argent, five hawthorn leaves in cross counterchanged.

Avicia is shown from Withycombe p. 38 dated to 1196 & 1219. Le Mey is shown from Reaney & Wilson's Dictionary of English Surnames (2nd ed.) p. 236 (sub May) dated to 1221, in this form. She wants to keep the sound of the name.

4) Christopher Gow (Valley Weld) new/N & D

Or, a catamount's head caboshed within a bordure purpure.

Christopher is shown from Withycombe (3rd ed.) pp. 65-6 (sub Christopher) to be the modern spelling of Christopherus (dated to 1201). The name is said to be uncommon until the 15th century. Gow is documented in Black, p. 322 (sub Gow) where a George Gow and Henry Gow are discussed as being burgesses of Dysart in 1580. He accepts unspecified changes.

5) Dana na Cahiricveen (Aquaterra) new/N & D

Argent, a dragon rampant coward purpure playing a wooden Irish harp proper.

Dana is the submitters birth name (as attested by a copy of her birth certificate). Na is said to be Irish Gaelic for of. Cahiricveen is claimed to be one of several variant spellings of a place in the Ring of Kerry (while no photo documentation is provided, the submitter cites Adrian Room's Dictionary of lrish Place Names, p. 31) which she translates as "Stone fort of Saidbhin". Assistance with this name would be appreciated. She wishes to preserve the meaning of the name.

6) Garric of Dublin (Glymm Mere) new/N & D

Purpure, a bend sinister between six martlets contourney Or.

Garric is asserted to be a constructed Anglo-Saxon name. Gar- may be found as a prototheme in Searle's Onomasticon Anglo-Saxonicum p. 253. P. 399 of the same book shows -ric as a deuterotheme. He wishes to preserve the sound of the name.

7) Isabel Dancere (Glymm Mere) new/N & D

Sable vetu ploye a bowen knot bendwise Or

Isabel is shown from Withycombe (3rd ed.) p. 164, sub Isabel(la), dated to 1273. Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames, (Routledge, London and New York) p. 125, sub Dancer, lists a Godwin Dancere dated to 1130, and a Ralph (le) Dancere in 1240. She accepts no changes.

8) Isolde de la Vielle-a-Roue (Aquaterra) resub-K/D

Argent semy-de-lys sable, on a bend sinister gules three harps Or.

Her name was registered in March 1992.

9) Isolde de la Vielle-a-Roue (Aquaterra) new/B

Argent semy-de-lys sable, a harp contourney gules.

Her name was registered in March 1992.

10) Jacomus Van de Pontseele (Valley Wold) new/N & D

Gules ermined Or.

Jacomus is shown from Withycombe (2nd ed.) p. 161 (sub Jacob) where it said to be a late Latin form and the forerunner of the Italian name Giacomo (among others). Fernand Renier's Dutch-English and English-Dutch Dictionary (Routledge & Kegan Paul Ltd., London, no year or page number shown)(sub van) shows van, prep. of, from. P. 76 of this source shows de, def.art. the. Hanks and Hodges' A Dictionary of Surnames (Oxford Univ. Press, no date or page number shown) lists several names of the Van de <X> form (examples: Van de Brinck; Van de Kamp; Van de Meij,...). From this same source (no page number)(sub Pont) Pont English, French, and Catalan: topographic name for someone who lives near a bridge. Gustav Fransson's Middle English Surnames of Occupation, 1100-1350 (Lund Studies in English. CWK Gleerup, Lund 1935) p. 135 (sub Seeler) shows a Joh. Le Seeler dated 1327. The name is said to mean a maker of seals. He wishes to preserve the sound of the name.

11) Juliana Kendal (Lion's Gate) new/D

Or, a sexfoil gules and argent, barbed and seeded proper within a bordure rayonny gules.

Her name was registered in July 1996. A letter releasing use of the primary charge has been received from their Excellencies Gerhard and Amanda Kendal of Westmoreland.

12) Seumas Camshronach an Lochabair (for Dun Dreagain Dhuibh) (Valley Wold) resub/B

Sable, a chamfer Or banded gulcs enflamed proper.

His previous submission was returned at kingdom for reasons of identifiability. This is a complete redesign.

13) Shiack nicGeoch (Corvaria) resub-K/D

Quarterly vert and sable, on a tree eradicated argent a wolfs head gules in chief two crescents argent.

Her name was registered in November 1996.

14) St. Bunstable, College of (Western Region) change/D

Sable, on a flame Or a cup purpure, a Laurel wreath Or.

The College's name and current device were registered in August 1981 or earlier. A petition of support signed by five (5) officers of the College, seven (7) others, and the Baron and Baroness of Madrone (where the College is located) has been forwarded with the submission.

15) Susan Paraventur (Port de 1'Eau) resub-K/D

Azure fretty Or within a bordure engrailed vert,

Her name was registered in July 1996. Her previous device submission (Or fretty azure a bordure engrailed vert) was returned at kingdom for non-period depiction of a fretty field. This submission uses the same depiction of the charge, but reverses the coloration of the field and primary charge. She submits as documentation for the depiction of the charge, Foster's The Dictionary of Heraldry (Arch Cape Press, New York, 1989) p. 1 18, which shows the arms of Sir John de Hudleston (c. 1298): Gules, fretty argent. The emblazon on the evidence shows a bendlet sinister over a bendlet interlaced with a voided lozenge which has continuing interlaced lower diagonal limbs. The corners on the voided lozenge are square.

16) Theresia von Villach (Wealdsmere) new/N & D

Per bend sinister azure and vert, a bend sinister dancetty argent between a sun Or and an acorn inverted proper fimbriated argent.

Theresia is shown from Withycombe, p. 276 dated to the 5th cent. in Spain. Villach is shown from Encyclopedia Americana, International Ed.(Grolier Inc., Danbury CT, 1994) v.28, p. 120 as a city in the province of Carinthia, Austria, on the Drau River, part of the see of Bamberg from the 10th cent. She accepts changes to preserve the general sound.

17) Vasilisa Myshkin (Wittanhaven) new/D

Argent, a chevron between three holly leaves vert.

Her name is in the February 1997 Internal Letter.

18) Volodar IvanoviÁ (Fire Mountain Keep) new/N

Volodar is shown from Tatiana Nikolaevna Tumanova's The Compleat Russian Name Book (2nd ed., 1988) p. 46. Ivanovic is shown from Astrid BĘckiund's Personal Names in Velikij Novgorod, (Ahmqvist & Wiskell, Stockholm, no date or page number) speaks of (in the paragraph just before the discussion headed Patronymics and other second Names): "Does. Nos. †153 and †155 (ca.1450) contain the expression of Ivanovicev mezi where: Ivanovicev is doubtless a gen. pl. of the patronymic Ivanovic. He accepts no changes.

19) Y Spike (Dragon's Laire) resub-K/D

Plumetty Or and argent, a lion rampant queue forchee azure.

His name was registered in March 1997. His previous device submission was returned at kingdom in November 1996 for reasons of identifiabilty. This is a complete redesign.

An Tir College of Heralds - Internal Letter - April 1997