Will & Inventory of Thomas Holyer 1586 Nether Whitacre Warwick

[okkool]

Just started and already a problem & a question. This will has a latin title I can't make out. second word looks like mamves

secondly on the second line is a symbol I interpret as a missing letter. My question is it for a single letter only or can it mean multiple letters (I notice the symbol reappears several times throughout the will)

I transcibe "ordayne, co(n)stytute & make thys my"

Brian

[Bookbox]

I think the first word could be Emanuel, but I’m unsure of its purpose there. Is this a register will (court copy), or an original will?

The contraction mark that you’ve flagged up can indicate any number of letters omitted, but n and m are common. I agree with your transcription for the second clip.

[okkool]

Bookbox
Since there is no signatures on the will or inventory I would say a this is a court copy.

Thanks for the incite on the contraction mark. I was kind of hoping different marks had different meanings. Other marks in will are

Brian

[okkool]

Bookbox

I did a sample of wills found on Findmypast from the same period and place and found this. Well done sir.
Brian

[Bookbox]

In that case, it's likely to be part of the court's filing system -- either the name of the official who dealt with the probate, or the name of the quire in which the will was filed.

[Bookbox]

I was kind of hoping different marks had different meanings.

They do have different meanings, but these can be quite wide-ranging, and dependent on the habits of individual clerks.

Generally, a contraction (as flagged up in your first post) or suspension indicates something missing in the middle of a word. A superscript letter at the end of a word shows something has been omitted immediately before it, e.g. y^t = th(a)t, w^ch = wh(i)ch, w^th = w(i)th.

In your last clip above, the superscript 'backwards 3' indicates -er, -or, -ur etc. As it's at the end of the line, I suspect it's the first half of the word appu(r)tenances, with the remainder appearing on the next line.

Some of the examples on this page might help ...
http://paleo.anglo-norman.org/empfram.html (from the menu on the left, select Contractions)

[okkool]

Thank you Bookbox  for great explanation and for the reference page ( I have added it to my bookmarked references)

I will leave the Emanuel out of the transcription.

Brian

[horselydown86]

Bookbox, it's interesting that the name John in Brian's cont 2.jpg extract bears a contraction mark. You may recall I had the same occur twice in a will from 1558 recently.

I wonder if should be transcribed as:  Joh[n]n  ?

[Bookbox]

Bookbox, it's interesting that the name John in Brian's cont 2.jpg extract bears a contraction mark. You may recall I had the same occur twice in a will from 1558 recently.
I wonder if should be transcribed as:  Joh[n]n  ?

HD, yes, it's interesting, and I really don't know. I don't recall ever seeing Johnn spelled with two Ns in an English document of this period, though I know it's found in Scottish sources. I wonder if it could be some sort of hangover that reflects the double N in the Latin form Joannes?

In some cases, a contraction mark where nothing obvious has been omitted may be a flourish of penmanship. When transcribing, I tend to add a footnote acknowledging the mark and stating that its function is unclear. Admittedly that's a cop-out, but at least it alerts the reader to its presence, should anyone want to take another look!