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ArchivesWelsh form of Susanna?
I found a genealogy of Lady Godiva and Earl Leofric of Mercia's descendants (http://snipurl.com/c4ay). The family eventually married into Welsh nobility, and one of Godiva and Leofric's great-great-granddaughters was named Susanna, who was probably born in the 1060s. Her siblings were Owain, Cadwalader, Gwenllian, and Gwladys... all Welsh names.
So, my questions are: was Susanna used in Wales back then? Is/was there a Welsh form of Susanna? Or was Susanna named an English name to honour that ancestry, just happening to be the odd one out in her sib set?
Miranda
EDIT: Typo
So, my questions are: was Susanna used in Wales back then? Is/was there a Welsh form of Susanna? Or was Susanna named an English name to honour that ancestry, just happening to be the odd one out in her sib set?
Miranda
EDIT: Typo
This message was edited 1/18/2005, 4:55 PM
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Replies
The really interesting point, in my view, is that Susanna was the only one with a biblical name. Biblical names are of course used wherever bibles are used; and Wales must have been christianised by then, especially the gentry.
As for a Welsh form of Susanna, Merriment will know, if she's around. At that time there would of course not have been a Welsh translation of the bible, so they'd have used the Latin quite naturally. The trouble with old names in written records is that whoever was writing the record down would have tended to use the *proper* (Latin) form of the name regardless of what the child was actually called in real life.
As for a Welsh form of Susanna, Merriment will know, if she's around. At that time there would of course not have been a Welsh translation of the bible, so they'd have used the Latin quite naturally. The trouble with old names in written records is that whoever was writing the record down would have tended to use the *proper* (Latin) form of the name regardless of what the child was actually called in real life.
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