Paulinus

Male
CPL
4 of 5

Discussion of the name

Paulinus is a masculine name which originated in Late Latin as a diminutive of Paulus (Paul) and gained currency among Christians in the Late Antique period (Hanks, Hardcastle, and Hodges 2006: 216; Farmer 2011: 349). Its only use in England before DB was as the name of the priest Paulinus who was among the Roman missionaries whom Pope Gregory I sent to convert the Anglo-Saxons and who served as bishop successively at York and Rochester before his death in 644 (Paulinus 1).

The fame of Bishop Paulinus in England was ensured by Bede, but such Latin names, even of saints, were simply not used by the English until long after 1066. The presence of the name as that of a small Somerset landowner in 1066 is therefore a real puzzle which can only be addressed by speculation.

Bibliography

Farmer 2011: David Hugh Farmer, The Oxford Dictionary of Saints, 5th edn (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011)

Hanks, Hardcastle, and Hodges 2006: Patrick Hanks, Kate Hardcastle, and Flavia Hodges, A Dictionary of First Names, 2nd edn (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006)

Forms of the name

Spellings in Domesday Book: Paulinus

Forms in modern scholarship:

  von Feilitzen head forms: Paulinus

  Phillimore edition: Paulinus

  Alecto edition: Paulinus

Distribution map of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

List of property and lordships associated with this name in DB

Holder 1066

Shire Phil. ref. Vill DB Spelling Holder 1066 Lord 1066 Tenant-in-Chief 1086 1086 Subtenant Fiscal Value 1066 Value 1086 Value Conf. Show on Map
Somerset 25,26 Knowle Paulinus Paulinus 'of Knowle' - William de Moyon Roger 'the man of William de Moyon' 1.00 0.25 1.25 A Map
Totals