Gaynard, Gainard, Gaignard, Guénard... - Paperback

Discover the 1,300-Year Journey of a Franco-Irish Name

This book traces a name that has survived from the early Middle Ages to the modern day, from 8th-century Bavarian monks to Irish Independence and French Resistance fighters.

This family mosaic pieces together evidence of the achievements and survival of those who have carried variants of the name: Gaynard, Gainard, Gaignard, and Guénard, to name only a few, with more than 50 distinct mentions in German and French archives between 749 and 1300 CE alone.

A Contribution to Anglo-Norman and Gaelic Irish Family History

At the heart of this narrative is the saga of the Anglo-Normans in the West of Ireland. Discover Carraigin Castle, built by Adam Gaynard III on the shores of Lough Corrib in 1300. Follow the family's journey from knighthood and landholding gentry to forced Cromwellian transplantation to the Mullet Peninsula of Mayo in the 1650s. The book offers a detailed look at their endurance through the Great Famine, emigration to the United States, and their role as Irish nationalists during the War of Independence.

A Global Mosaic of European and American Heritage

This study reaches far beyond Ireland, offering an overview of French family history, Anglo-Norman integration into Gaelic Ireland, and modern Irish history.

- Onomastics: Explore the linguistic evolution of the name from the Germanic root Gaganhard ("hard against enemies") to its Latin and French forms.

- Crusader States Knights: Follow Garin Gainard, a nobleman active in 12th-century Antioch and Jerusalem.

- Renaissance & Resistance: Meet Étienne Gueynard, a prominent 15th-century publisher in Lyon, and Jean Gainard, the Resistance fighter recognised as "Righteous Among the Nations" for saving Jewish children during WWII in Moissac.

- Huguenot Genealogy: Trace the name during the Saint Bartholomew's Day massacres in 1572 Paris, a 1620s Catholic conversion to Calvinism, and the ensuing controversies.

A Practical Resource for Researchers

The book includes extensive reference tables for the names of the Mosaic:

- United States Federal Census records from 1810 to 1940

- Mayo birth, marriage, and death records for the Gaynards from 1864 to 1920

- Guided access to major digital archives in Ireland, France, Germany, and England and an exhaustive index

Whether you are a descendant of the "Gainardus Mosaic" or a lover of history, this book connects the medieval past to our modern world.