Virgilius Maro Grammaticus in writing. Virgilius Maro Grammaticus Virgilius Maro Grammaticus (Virgil the Grammarian, fl. c. 7th century) is the author of two early medieval grammatical texts known as the "Epitomae" and the "Epistolae". It is unknown exactly when or where he was active: in the eleventh and twelfth centuries he was known to Abbo of Fleury and others as Virgil of Toulouse, and subsequent scholars have tried to attribute him to Spain, the Basque Country and Gaul. Apparent traces of Hebrew have also prompted suggestions that he may have been Jewish. Supposed knowledge of some Old Irish vocabulary and verse has led
Scandinavian family name etymology Scandinavian family name etymology Heritable family names were generally adopted rather late within Scandinavia. Nobility were the first to take names that would be passed on from one generation to the next. Later, clergy, artisans and merchants in cities took heritable names. Family names (surnames) were still used together with "primary patronyms" (father's name plus an affix denoting relationship), which were used by all social classes. This meant that most families until modern times did not have surnames. Scandinavian patronyms were generally derived from the father's given name with the addition of a suffix meaning 'son' or 'daughter' or by