WHAT IS IN A NAME?

In consulting old documents relative to Saintonge, we see that the Durands have been living in the region of Doeuil for several centuries. In particular, the Bulletin of the Archives o Saintonge mentions a certain Berenard Durant who lived ata date as far back as 1065 in Dampierre-sur-la-Boutonne. Dapierre is a village situated 8 miles south-west of Doeuil. "Bernard Durant" one reads, "his wife and children hereby give the nuns of Saint-Cyprien, with the consent Hugnes Rabiol, a property with trees and meadows, bordered by the house of Humbert Arduin and the forest of the Boutonne River (Vol. IV, p.301).

Who can say if the charitable Bernard Durant as not an ancestor of Louis Durant(sic)? He must have left a number of descendants bearing his name since he had several sons. (JDaHP -chpt 1, p.11)

My name is Durand. At least a part of my name is. If then, as now, I'd be Thomas David Charles Durand-Bacigalupo. What's in a name, after all? Thomas for my name changing, doubting father; David for my Pian dei Preti [Plain of the Priests, (for which gods I wonder)]peasant grandfather; Charles for confirmation [My god whoever s/he/it is, has both a sense of humor and a sense of history and made me a soldier of Christ for a time. The Jesuit's work did bear fruit. And the funny thing about them is that they might even be pleased with what I believe. I mean, think of Roberto of Goa, follower of Ignatius of Loyola, who said with a grin, as he wiped out some sin, I think I'll read the Kama Sutra. (With thanks to William the Blind {p. 471} who helped me see).] and Uncle Charlie, Grandma Bacigalupo's brother who had a mistress and drove the peasant into his room above the dynamo at St. Kate's and away from his sister and his nephews and nieces because father Davido's English wasn't good enough;

Durand for my unknowing métis mother, Gertrude Lillian, grandaughter of second half cousins who married in the métis way.

Thereby hangs a tale, etymlogically, from the French

Dur is the root, an adjective meaning hard, becomes the noun dureté, hardness which metaphorically becomes cruelty, or duree wear or duration. Durabilite is durability and durable is durable. Dur also names tough customers and hard material. Durcir, to harden, which is inflected to durcissement, hardening, which yeilds, as verb again becomes noun, durcee, duration, or if it stays a verb in its new form, durcee, to last. Similarly durer, to last or endure, carries hardness to action giving us, with further inflecting, durete hardness turning cruel. From this comes the adverb durant, during, measuring the time that hardness persists. (It is suspected that the Durands of Doeuil are descended from "a certain Bernard Durant who was living in 1065 in Dampierre on the Bontonne (sic?) ... a village 13 kilameters (sic) southeast of Doeuil" who with his wife and sons "donated a piece of property to the church of St. Cyprien, directed by Hugnes Rabiol, some land with trees, bounded by Humbert Arduin's house and the Boutonne (sic?) forest. {DFH,16}] From the same root flow endurer, endure; endurant, resistant; endurcir, to harden; endurci, obdurate; endurcissement, obduracy; and peasants who, like the rocks, give up slowly, their obduracy, their resistance, their essence, to William and Ignatius' stream of time (William Vollman Fathers and Crows). All of this extends to durillon, callus or corn, suiting peasant wood-cutters from Doeuil, and, in the plural, cursing Gertrude Lillian's feet in her later years.

And Bacigalupo which in Italian means swinging wolf or kissing wolf (lycanthropy, anyone?) and hangs the other tale in this name.

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