The Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory - SCA Heraldry

NPN. Non-Personal NamesThe Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory:The Rules for SubmissionsNon-personal names are names other than personal names. They include branch (local group) names, award andorder names, household and association names (including guilds), and heraldic titles. To be registered, a nonpersonalname submission must meet the following standards:- The designator and substantive element must be demonstrated to be suitable for the type of item.Each type of element must be suitable for a specific time and place or must otherwise meet thestandards set out in NPN.1.- The name as a whole must be demonstrated to be grammatically (structurally) correct. This meansmeeting the standards for lingual and temporal compatibility set out in NPN.2.- The name must be free of conflict and presumption as set out in NPN.3 and NPN.4.- The name must not be offensive as set out in NPN.5.NPN.1. Non-Personal Names ContentA. Definitions: Non-personal names consist of two parts: the designator and the substantive phrase. A designatoris the word or group of words that describe what kind of non-personal name it is, such as House, Barony orOrder. The substantive element is the part of the name that is specific to the item being submitted. That is, itspecifies which household, branch, etc. is being referred to. The preposition and article which often link thedesignator and substantive element are for the most part treated as part of neither, but in general should matchthe designator in language.For example, in the name Barony of Carolingia, Barony is the designator and Carolingia the substantiveelement. In the name Black Lion Principal Herald, Principal Herald is the designator and Black Lion thesubstantive element. In the name the honurable Ordre of the Gartier, the honurable Ordre is the designatorand Gartier the substantive element. In the name Hous of Julyane Huxster, Hous is the designator andJulyane Huxster is the substantive element. In each case, the preposition and article that may link them arepart of neither one.B. Designators: The designators which may be used are determined by the type of non-personal namesubmission. In general, if the lingua Anglica form of a designator is used, the prepositions and articles whichjoin the designator to the substantive element will also take the lingua Anglica form. Lingua Anglica allowsEnglish translations of certain elements; it is discussed in greater detail in C.2.c below.1. Branch Designators: The designators for branches (local SCA groups) are fixed by the GoverningDocuments. The list may be found in Appendix E of this document. These designators are considered to becompatible with any place name construction. This is true whether or not period forms can be found withsuch a designator. Shires are not limited to the forms of English shires, nor baronies to the kinds of namesfound for baronies in period. In addition, each type of branch may be registered with other designatorssuitable for that branch type. A college may be named following the pattern of medieval colleges. Thesedesignators may take the lingua Anglica form, using the form Designator of X regardless of the language ofthe substantive phrase. Alternately, a translation for the appropriate type of branch may be proposed. A listof translations that have been registered can be found in Appendix E.In general, changes of status for a branch, such as changing from shire to barony, do not need to besubmitted. The Laurel office does not track those changes in status (that being a duty of the Seneschal andBoard of Directors). However, it will acknowledge them when a new submission is made. The exception iswhen a branch wants the approval of a new alternate form of the branch designator, such as a non-Englishform. Such approval requires Laurel approval, but is an administrative action (which does not require fees)Standards for Evaluation of Names and Armory – April 29, 2012 - Page 22 of 73