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Dictionary of Medieval Names
from European Sources
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Sara f. Hebrew שָׂרָה 'princess'.

The name of the Biblical wife of Abraham. Septuagint: Σαρρα; Vulgate: Sara; Wycliffite Bible (1395): Sara.

Her original name was Sarai (in the Vulgate and the Wycliffite Bible; Σαρα in the Septuagint), and in some cases, it is hard to differentiate forms of Sara from forms of Sarai). The usual English spelling of the name was Sara; forms with the intrusive h were always less common. The name was used by both Christians and Jews in the Middle Ages, but was rare outside of Britain and France.

England
Latin
● 1185x1186 Sarra (nom) PR-XXXVI p. 18; 1279–80 Sara (nom) WaHR-SK p. 43; 1377 Sarra (nom) FenPT-2 p. 4; 1381 Sara (abl) Suffolk1381 p. 99, Sarra (nom) FenPT-2 p. 6, Suffolk1381 p. 73
Dutch
● 1572 Sara AuFr Adriaenssen; 1573 Sara ibid. Daneels; 1574 Sara ibid. Carremans; 1575 Sara ibid. Crabbe; 1576 Sara ibid. Beste; 1577 Sara ibid. Bauwens; 1578 Sara ibid. Becks; 1579 Sara ibid. Bogards; 1580 Sara ibid. Beeckmans; 1581 Sara ibid. Gaber; 1582 Sara ibid. Bone, Sarra ibid. Cleijnen; 1583 Sara ibid. Galmardts; 1584 Sara ibid. Franke; 1585 Sara ibid. Clerck; 1586 Sara ibid. Aelbertinck; 1587 Sara ibid. Achtschellinc; 1588 Sara ibid. Beijdaels; 1590 Sara ibid. Anthonissz; 1591 Sara ibid. Bossche; 1592 Sara ibid. Adams; 1593 Sara ibid. Bracht; 1594 Sara ibid. Anyeke; 1596 Sara ibid. Clouwens; 1597 Sara ibid. Bertholomeus; 1598 Sara ibid. Aertsz; 1599 Sara ibid. Coudron
Early Modern English
● 1549 Sarah StAnthonlin p. 8; 1551 Sarah ibid. p. 9; 1552 Sarah ibid. p. 9; 1554 Sarah ibid. p. 10, Sarrah ibid. p. 10; 1561 Sara BarnstapleBap p. 11; 1563 Sarah StAnthonlin p. 15; 1571 Sara OrpingtonKe p. 3; 1572 Sarah StAnthonlin p. 22; 1573 Sarah ibid. p. 23; 1574 Sarah ibid. p. 23; 1575 Sarah ibid. p. 24; 1577 Sarah ibid. p. 25; 1578 Sarah ibid. p. 26; 1580 Sara bruton-vol1 p. 44; 1583/4 Sara HAmar-vol9 p. 3; 1583 Sarah WAmar-1 p. 16; 1586 Sarah StAnthonlin p. 32, Sarie SaxhamSf p. 4; 1587 Sarah DEmar-vol2 p. 13, StAnthonlin p. 32; 1588 Sarah ibid. p. 33, WAmar-1 p. 98; 1590 Sara HAmar-vol9 p. 116, RegFord p. 1, Sarah StAnthonlin p. 34; 1593 Sara BEmar-vol1 p. 16, RegFord p. 2; 1594 Sara BUmar-vol9 p. 8; 1595/6 Sara RegFord p. 3; 1595 Sarah DEmar-vol2 p. 31; 1596 Sara BEmar-vol1 p. 16, Sarah StAnthonlin p. 38; 1597/8 Sara BEmar-vol1 p. 17; 1597 Sara bruton-vol1 p. 55; 1598 Sarah StAnthonlin p. 39; 1599 Sarae ibid. p. 40
France
Latin
● 1147 Serra (nom) clairvaux-12thc 14; 1179 Sara (abl) ibid. 176; 1301 Sarra (nom) MemPic-vol17 p. 202, Sarre (gen) ibid. p. 202
Middle French
● 1562 Sarra RegPCC-1 p. 7; 1563 Sara ibid. p. 20, Sarra ibid. p. 37; 1564 Sara ibid. p. 72, Sarra ibid. p. 48; 1565 Sarra ibid. p. 162; 1566 Sarra ibid. p. 204; 1568 Sarra ibid. p. 393; 1570 Sarra ibid. p. 425
Wales
Early Modern English
● 1594 Sara RegLlantrithyd p. 62
Cite as: J. Uckelman, S.L. Uckelman. "Sara". In S.L. Uckelman, ed. The Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, Edition 2016, no. 2. http://dmnes.org/2016/2/name/Sara.