LINGUIST List 11.833

Tue Apr 11 2000

Qs: Movie Lang,Social/Historical Ling of Place&Name

Editor for this issue: James Yuells <jameslinguistlist.org>

Directory

1. Hank Mooney, Language in the movie "The Mask of Zorro"
2. Hamilothoris, The Social/Historical Ling of Places and Names

Can anyone identify the language used in two or three places in the
recent movie, The Mask of Zorro? (There's an exchange fairly early on
between Don Diego and his maid; then later a more extensive conversation
in a market place.)

Hank Mooney
hmooneymfi.com

Hello;

A friend is working on a research project and sent me the following
questions. Perhaps persons in historical/social linguistics may have
some insight. Please include references.

in a will dated 1698 Gov Gen Christopher Codrington(ii) states as follows:


"To William, son of Maudlin Marianus, his freedom and L500 (pnds
sterling)at
21, he to be sent to school in England, and to have L 50 per year and to
his
mother her freedom"


This will was written by the Gov Gen of the Leeward Islands(British West
Indies) who was at the time active in both campaigning and various Gov
duties through out the islands and would have had contact with colonists
and soldiers of French and Irish extraction as both enemy prisoners and as
"traitorous servants"....it is also possible he had occasion to keep
hostages to secure agreements with the French etc... William's name is
repeated again in the will of Codrington's son (Gov Gen Christopher III)
dated 1705 wherein the same people are described with modifications as
follows:


"My plantation in St. John's, Antigua to my good friends Col Michael
Lambert
of St. Christopher's and Wm Harman of Antigua,Gt. they to pay L 500 to Wm
son of Maudline Morange at 21 and L 40 yearly for his maintenance and he
is
to be brought up for the sea."


*******Question 1: Can we ascertain with any certainty the nationality of
Maudlin Marianus aka Maudline Morange?

Note: the name as it appears in the second form appears most commonly as a
french surname at this time. Variations such as Morainge and Moraine occur
on Antigua in connection with Scots-Irish and Irish planters circa 1740
but
is not common in that form.

******Question 2: Am I correct in seeing the first version of the mother's
surname as a clumsy latinisation? (Gen Cod to our knowledge, was educated
on
Barbados by one of the Parish Rectors)

*******Question 3: With son Christopher's well documented skills in
language(All Souls, Oxford etc)and his fluency in italian, spanish, french
and of course english, is it likely we can trust his choice of what
appears
to be the common French form of both her forename and surname to indicate
accurately that she was French? Or could this surname easily be a
variation
of the Ulster "Morainge" or "Moran"?

********Question 4: In this time period is the forename "Maudlin"
considered
a variation of "Margaret"? What is the derivation of the forename
"Maudlin"?

I realize there is very little to work with here. I think I've exhausted
the most pertinent questions, but would appreciate any insight someone may
provide.

Thanks

Chris