the vagaries of medieval handwriting. In 13th century documents what we see
for this name would (in so far as it's possible to demonstrate using modern
type) appear "Aliiia" b/c scribes wrote the "i" and both vertical strokes of
the next letter identically in what are known to palaeographers as "minims."
They acquired this name because the word "minim" is the classic example of
the problem thus created: in medieval documents the word "minim," written
as a continuous series of these little strokes, appears "iiiiiiiiii" (w/o
the dots, of course).
Exactly how to decipher and render these minims when the letter "v/u" is
involved is a virtually insoluble problem unless some further source can be
brought to bear on the problem to prove the matter one way or the other.
The present practice in a diplomatic or textual edition by a
palaeographer/historian/textual critic is to use the letter "u," so the name
would appear "Aliua" in an edited text. This is considered the most
accurate way to indicate to readers that the minim crisis is at work as well
as reflecting as accurately as possible the form of the original manuscript.
It also has the great advantage of sparing the scholar the necessity of
coming down on one side or the other when it isn't possible to be certain.
Obviously for general genealogical use, however, it isn't exactly helpful.
There are arguments for and against rendering the name either "Alina" or
"Aliva." "Aliva" could suggest an Anglo-Saxon derivation, but some might
object that the descendant of a Norman family would not have received an
Anglo-Saxon name. We know today that that isn't necessarily true; in the
3rd quarter of the 12th century, the _Dialogus de Scaccario_ makes it clear
that Anglo-Saxon & Norman families had intermarried so much that it was no
longer possible to distinguish Englishmen from Normans; by the 13th century
the Anglo-Norman nobility were fully assimilated in England, and English
names were used in many families.
Regards
John P.
From: PDeloriol@aol.com
To: GEN-MEDIEVAL-L@rootsweb.com
Subject: re: Scholars and Gentlemen
Date: Sat, 16 Apr 2005 06:32:51 EDT
Just a wee point -
I wasn't aware that there were right and wrong ways to spell Christian
names
and patronymics in the middle ages. I distinctly remember that spelling
only
became standardised in the latter part of the 19th Century, in England,
that
is.Surely waht matters is the biographies of the people inviolved and the
k
nown dates of these individuals, followed by scholarly work, advice and
research on the primary and secondary sources available to us to help us to
identify more on the individual, or even refute certain claims founded on
woolly or
mistaken previous research...at least that is what I believe a gentleman
ought to try to do...
apart from:
"Three unspeakable precious things: freedom of speech, freedom of
conscience
and the prudence never to practice either of them." (Samuel Langhorne
Clemens)
regards
Peter ( de loriol)