Names for your Medieval Identity
Names for your Medieval Identity
In Medieval Times, a person’s name was one major way to tell what a noble’s rank is.
Royalty
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a ‘Royal Epithet’
You will then be ‘King/Queen ____________ the ______________ of England.’
e.g. ‘William the Conqueror, of England’.
Nobility
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a Medieval Hometown.
You will then be ‘Lord/Lady _____________ of _____________.’
e.g. ‘Lady Margaret of Canterbury’.
Knights
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a ‘Knight’s Epithet’.
Choose a ‘Medieval Hometown’
You will then be ‘Sir/Dame ____________ the _____________.’
e.g ‘Sir Bron the Brave of Shrewsbury’
Tradesperson or Craftsperson
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a Medieval trade or craft name. That will be your surname.
You will be _______________ ______________.
e.g. ‘William Thatcher.’
Farmer
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a ‘patryonic surname’. OR You can choose the surname ‘Farmer’.
You will be _________________ ________________s/son.
e.g. ‘John Stephenson or Billy Farmer.’
Monk/Nun
Choose a Medieval First Name.
Choose a ‘Religious Epithet’.
You will be ‘Brother/Sister _____________ the ______________.’
e.g. ‘Brother John the Blessed.’
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Names for your Medieval Identity
Common Medieval English First Names
Male:
Abraham
Charles
Henry
Martin
Richard
Adam
Christopher
Hugh
Mathias
Robert
Adrian
Cuthbert
Humphrey
Matthew
Roger
Alexander
Daniel
Isaac
Michael
Rowland
Allen
David
James
Miles
Samuel
Ambrose
Edmund
Jerome
Nathaniel
Simon
Andrew
Edward
John
Nicholas
Solomon
Anthony
Francis
Joseph
Oliver
Stephen
Arthur
Geoffrey
Julian
Oswyn
Thomas
Avery
George
Lancelot
Peter
Tobias
Barnaby
Gerard
Lawrence
Philip
Valentine
Bartholomew
Gilbert
Leonard
Piers
Walter
Benedict
Giles
Luke
Ralph
William
Bernard
Gregory
Mark
Reynold
Agnes
Christina
Frances
Lucy
Rachel
Alice
Clemence
Frideswide
Mabel
Rebecca
Amy
Constance
Gillian
Margaret
Rose
Anne
Denise
Grace
Margery
Ruth
Audrey
Dorothy
Helen
Maria
Sarah
Avis
Edith
Isabel
Marion
Susanna
Barbara
Elinor
Jane
Martha
Sybil
Beatrice
Elizabeth
Janet
Mary
Ursula
Blanche
Ellen
Joan
Maud
Wilmot
Bridget
Ellen
Joyce
Mildred
Winifred
Catherine
Emma
Judith
Millicent
Cecily
Florence
Julian
Parnell
Charity
Fortune
Lettice
Philippa
Female:
Source: http://www.mygen.com/users/outlaw/English%20Names%20of%20the%201500s%20-%20Outlawe.htm
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Names for your Medieval Identity
Epithets
An ‘epithet’ is a title or nickname. People would earn them through their great deeds.
Royalty would earn an epithet for how well they ruled.
e.g. the Great, the Conqueror, the Kind, the Mean
Knights would earn an epithet to show their achievements in battle.
e.g the Brave, the Cowardly, the Strong, the Hardy
Monks would earn an epithet to show how holy they were.
e.g. the Blessed, the Holy, the Pious
You can choose any adjective as an epithet, but it must suit your character and their role.
Medieval Hometowns
No two nobles or knights can be from the same hometown (unless you’re married!)
Amesbury
Merryfield
Berwick
Newark
Canterbury
Oxford
Darlington
Pevensey
Exeter
Queenborough
Frampton
Rothwell
Gateshead
Shrewsbury
Hastings
Tintagel
Ipswich
Ulverston
Kingsbridge
Whitby
Lancaster
York
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Names for your Medieval Identity
Medieval Surnames
The English didn’t always have surnames. Surnames began to be adopted after the
Domesday survey (a massive census undertaken by the Normans in 1086). Starting with
the nobility, and then trickling down to the lower classes, by 1400 most of the English and
the Scottish Lowlanders had surnames. The Irish, Welsh and Scottish highlanders held out
until the 17th century.
English surnames come from several broad categories:
Patronymics
and
Matronymics
Richardson, Williams, Johnson, Tillotson
Occupations
(jobs)
Smith, Archer, Baker, Milner, Cooper, Warner,
Church, Chapel, Parish Bishop, Priest, Abbot.
‘Patronymic’ means ‘from the father’. Often
Medieval people (and us too!) have surnames
that show who their father is. For example, the
surname ‘Roberts’ means ‘son of Robert’ or
‘Robert’s son’.
Personal
Short, Long, Brown, Whitehead
characteristics:
Geographical
and place
features:
Hill, Lee, Wood, Fields, Castle, Croft, Barnes,
House
Source: http://www.keepdna.net/keep_family_dna_project_003.htm
Patronymic Surnames
Here are some common Patronymic Surnames:
Adams, Adamson
Addison
Alfredson
Benson
Davis, Davey (son
of David)
Gilberts,
Gilbertson
Hughes
Johns, Johnson
Lawson (son of
Lawrence)
Nicholson
Peters, Peterson
Richards,
Richardson
Roberts,
Robertson
Rogers, Rogerson
Simons
Thompson
Walters
Williams,
Williamson
Personal Characteristics
You could give your medieval identity based on their characteristics:
Blanc, Whitehead:
blonde, pale haired
Bridde: birdlike
Brown, Browne: brown
haired or dark skinned
Campion: pro fighter;
champion
Fish: good swimmer
Gregory: watchful
Hendman: handsome,
courteous
Lightfoot: speedy
Long, Talle, Tall: tall
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Russ: red haired
Sharp: smart, quick
Short: short
Wigge: beetle like
Names for your Medieval Identity
Medieval Trade / Craft Surnames
Archer: archer
Bailey: bailiff
Baker: maker of bread
Barber: cut hair; surgeon
Baxter: female baker
Berger: shepherd
Bowman: archer
Brewer: brewed ale
Brewster: female brewer
Butler: wine steward
Carpenter: maker of
wooden objects
Carter: made or sold
carts, transported goods
Carver: sculptor
Chaffer: merchant
Chalker: white washer
Chandler: candle maker
Chaplin: chaplain
Chapman:
merchant/peddler
Cheesewright: made and
sold cheese
Clark, Clarke: clerk,
scholar, cleric or secretary
Cleaver: either worked in
a butcher shop or split
wood
Collier: sold charcoal
Conner: inspected for
weights and measures
Cooper: wooden bucket
maker, barrel maker
Crocker: made pottery
crocks
Dexter: female dyer
Draper: maker/seller of
woolen cloths (drapery)
Falconer: kept and
trained falcons (a very
significant occupation in
medieval times)
Faulkner: kept and
trained falcons
Fisher: fisherman
Fletcher: maker of arrows
Foster: guardian of lord's
forest
Fowler: keeper/catcher of
birds
Fuller: thickened cloth by
trampling it (in urine!)
Glazier: glass worker
Glover: made gloves
Goldsmith: worked with
gold
Hammer: made stone
hammers
Harper: played or made
harps
Hooper: fitted metal
hoops to barrels and
casks
Lander: laundry worker
Leadbetter: lead worker
Lorimer: made spurs
Marshall: in charge of
horses
Mason: mason;
stoneworker
Mercer: merchant, esp. of
fine cloths (silk, velvet
etc.)
Miller (Milner, Muller):
one who ran the grain mill.
Nash: dweller by the ash
tree
Naylor: made and sold
nails
Parson: parson; rector
Payne: pagan
Piper: played or made
pipes
Plummer: plumber; lead
worker
Potter: potter, potmaker
Redman: roof thatcher
Roper: ropemaker
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Sadler: made saddles
Sandler: sandal maker
Sawyer: sawed wood
Scully: town crier
Shearer: sheared wool
from sheep
Skinner: tanned hides
Smith: blacksmith
Smith, Smythe: smith
Smoker: made smocks
Spencer: dispensed lord's
provisions
Spicer: sold spices
Stewart: Steward
Stringer: made strings for
bows
Tanner: tanned hides
Taylor: maker of clothes
Thatcher: thatched roofs
Todd: Fox hunter
Trainer: trapper
Travers: tollbridge keeper
Tucker: cloth worker
Turner: made small
objects by turning them on
a lathe
Tyler: made and sold tiles
Wainwright: made
wagons
Walker: shrunk woolen
cloth
Ward: watchman; guard
Waterman: boat operator,
ferryman
Wayne: wheel maker
Weaver, Webb: weaver
Webster: female weaver
Wood: dweller by the
wood
Woodward: forester
(forest warden)