1708: Joan of Arc pt. 2 Aug 18, 2019

Joan of Arc's name wasn't 'of Arc' (d'Arc in French) as discussed yesterday, but it is even more complicated than this. For one thing, her name wasn't Joan as it is in English, or even really Jeanne as it is rendered in French, but Jehanne as she spelt it. It was rendered as Joan in English because there was no other equivalent at the time, though now there are many female forms of John. Also, her father's surname was something like Darc (though there are many other possibilities) but in Medieval society, a woman took her mother's name; in Joan's case her mother's was 'Romée' but she also went by Isabelle de Vouthon. Last names weren't universal in Medieval France though, and she mostly was called "la Pucelle d'Orléans" (The Maid of Orleans).