Choosing boys’names circa 1500: Part 2

A couple of observations can be made about the pattern of male forenames in the 1520s that was revealed in the previous post. First, there was a clear difference between west and north Cornwall. The pattern in west Cornwall was somewhat more diverse with a greater variety of forenames. This was almost certainly the result … Continue reading Choosing boys’names circa 1500: Part 2

The lifestyle of the Celtic saints

Around 140 separate Celtic saints were venerated in Cornwall. Later, it was assumed most of them came from elsewhere, from Wales, Brittany or Ireland, even though many were in fact probably native to Cornwall. As time passed, saints became the object of local folklore. In imagining the histories of their saints, the Cornish revealed how … Continue reading The lifestyle of the Celtic saints