From Elfin to Garlick: Take inspiration from this list of medieval dog names
<p dir="ltr">In a world of Bellas, Spots, Lunas, Milos and more, one 600-year-old document could be the source of a unique name for your new best friend.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The <em>Names of All Manner of Hounds </em>is one of several texts included in a manuscript dating back to the 15th century, with an apparently unknown author, which includes a hefty list of 1065 medieval names used for hunting dogs.</p>
<p dir="ltr">While the manuscript itself is owned by a private collector (and unavailable to be analysed), one researcher, David Scott-Macnab, has compiled a list of the names, which include proper names, descriptions, virtues, vices, and human occupations.</p>
<p dir="ltr">The list categorises the names for the type of dogs, like running hounds, terriers and greyhounds, as well as by gender.</p>
<p dir="ltr">According to Scott-Macnab, the list has plenty of names taken from history and mythology, including Boleyne, Charlemagne, Nero, Arture, Achilles, Hercules, Romwlus and Pompeye.</p>
<p dir="ltr">Others refer to desirable qualities for hunting dogs, such as Birdismowthe, Fynder, Corage, and Cachefaste, while some, like Filthe, Oribull, Plodder and Cruell, are less positive.</p>
<p><span id="docs-internal-guid-9caea0a3-7fff-433e-671b-4fc9f112a6ea"></span></p>
<p dir="ltr">The names also seem to be inspired by nature - like Dolfyn, Flower, Garlik, Sycamore and Dyamound - as well as nationalities - Jewe, Romayne, and Ducheman are just a few - and occupations and human categories, such as Leper, Archere, Wodeman (or woodsman), and Monke.</p>
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">in the early 15th century, edward, 2nd duke of york, wrote a list of 1,126 names he considered to be suitable for dogs. highlights from the list:<br />-nosewise<br />-garlik<br />-pretyman<br />-gaylarde<br />-norman<br />-filthe <a href="https://t.co/7MuvHJKM5f">pic.twitter.com/7MuvHJKM5f</a></p>
<p>— weird medieval guys (@WeirdMedieval) <a href="https://twitter.com/WeirdMedieval/status/1595169422448201751?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">November 22, 2022</a></p></blockquote>
<p dir="ltr">The lengthy list of names in Middle English, known as the language of Chaucer, also contains Middle English words found nowhere else in the texts that have survived from that time period, adding to its value and giving us a snapshot of 15th century life.</p>
<p dir="ltr">These include Mownferaunt (<em>mun </em>‘my’ + <em>ferant </em>‘grey’), Aufyne (a term of contempt), Kilbucke (‘kill buck’), and Lwfkyn (‘little love’).</p>
<p dir="ltr"><strong>A snapshot of life</strong></p>
<p dir="ltr">While it’s amusing to think of dogs named Clowder, Crabbe, Pretiboy or Plodder, Scott-Macnab argues that <em>All Manner of Hounds</em> sheds light on the language spoken day-to-day in the fifteenth century, a period where writing things down wasn’t the norm or accessible to everyone.</p>
<p dir="ltr">“It is clear from the hunting treatises that I quoted earlier that high-status hunters felt little need to record the names of entire packs of hounds; they make their point with a few representative names,” he writes.</p>
<p dir="ltr">“But dog-handlers who trained, bathed, nursed and fed the hounds on a daily basis, and who whipped them into line when hunting, must have lived by a different imperative, one that required them to know their dogs as individuals.”</p>
<p dir="ltr">These names also show that the relationships between us and dogs hasn’t changed much hundreds of years later, with equal numbers of names showing affection and “ironic displeasure” - from Litilman, Nise (Nice) and Best-of-all to Rude, Noty (Naughty) and Symple.</p>
<p dir="ltr">To see the full list and read Scott-Macnab’s full paper, head <a href="https://www.academia.edu/44222801/THE_NAMES_OF_ALL_MANNER_OF_HOUNDS_A_UNIQUE_INVENTORY_IN_A_FIFTEENTH_CENTURY_MANUSCRIPT" target="_blank" rel="noopener">here</a>.</p>
<p dir="ltr"><span id="docs-internal-guid-2d827b29-7fff-7de9-026d-31b2406bd8bb"></span></p>
<p dir="ltr"><em>Image: Trivulzio Book of Hours</em></p>
