[ANSTHRLD] naming help mongolian

[Melissa Barton]

>
> I have a client who wishes to use a Mongolian name.   She is not
> particular about spelling or time period.    The only elements she is
> interested in are the color black and ravens
>
> I am unfamiliar with Mongolian naming practices, but one possibility is
>
> Qara Kheree  "Black Raven"   Would this be correct
>

"Adjective + noun" is a documentable name pattern; it would probably have
been treated as a single personal name unit, but since they're separate
words it passes the two-element SCA rule. Some attested names with animals
include <Qara Bars> 'black leopard' and <Qara Buqa> 'black ox' (although the
latter could also be read as Qara the Ox or Qara the Strong; it's impossible
to say for sure) and <Shira Qush> 'yellow bird'. These are all male names,
but a) we have far fewer female names, not really enough to go into naming
patterns in detail and b) the female names we do have attested are for the
most part relatively unisex (I wouldn't name a women <Berke Buqa> 'stubborn
ox', but <Qara Kere'e> doesn't bother me at all).

<Qara> is the Middle Mongolian word for 'black'. <Kheree>, however, is a
modern word form. I found the following Middle Mongolian words for
raven/crow/rook (there's no strict distinction in Middle Mongolian):

Keri'e
Keriye
Kerige
Kere'e (<qara kere'e> is actually given as an example, although not as a
name)

Qong

Qargha (this is an older form)

There's an attested name, <Kerei>, which probably derives from the first
word (1272, 1352,1360).

Any one of these with <Qara> in front would make a fine name. The 'q' can be
replaced by 'kh' if desired, but as these represent the same sound, they
should NOT be mixed within a single name. The 'k' is an entirely different
letter.

If your client prefers one of these words, I can email you the documentation
offlist. The closest to their suggestion would be <Qara Kere'e>.

-Leonor Ruiz
Bonwicke Baronial Herald