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Archiver > GEN-MEDIEVAL > 1996-07 > 0836264157


From: Jared Olar <>
Subject: Re: Sven Estridssons ancestors
Date: Mon, 1 Jul 1996 18:35:57 -0500
In-Reply-To: <4r93ls$14r@madeline.INS.CWRU.Edu>


On Mon, 1 Jul 1996, Todd A. Farmerie wrote:

> In a previous article, () says:
>
> >Svein, Harald, Tostig and Gyrth. Two two first are probably of
> >political reasons named after Svein "forkbeard" and Harald "bluetooth"
> >but what about the other two Tosti is a hopocorism for Thorstein and
> >Gyrth is probably a short form of Guthfrith, but who were they?
> >What about Godwins other children? Snorri has in "Heimskringla"
> >a "Valtjof" ("Valtjuv" in a Swedish tranlation). Names ending
> >with "-tjof" are most probably Icelandic or maybe Norweigan.
>
> In this case, this is Snorri's transcription of the Northumbrian name
> Waltheof. This son is well known to historians, having been a hostage of
> William I from as early as the 1050s until his death.

The first "Waltheof" of whom I am aware is ruler of Northumberland, as
you say, Todd. However, he is from a time after Danish settlememt was
well underway, so the name could have been a borrowing from Scandinavia.
Whatever, it was apparently established as a good Anglo-Saxon name by the
latter half of the 1000's.

Jared

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