Arbogast

Arbogast is an early Germanic name, originating with the tribe of the Salian Franks.^[1][2][3]

On the lid of the Schretzheim bulla, dated c. AD 600, there is a runic inscription which reads as arogisd, which is the origin of the name.^[4] According to archaeologists, "aro" meant "eagle" and "gisd(l)" was a name element which came to be translated as "companion".^[4]

Contact with the Romans led to a Latinizing of the Old Frankish language. The name Arogast, Arogastes, first appears in The Salic Law, written 507–511 AD.^[2] The four authors of the Salic law were "Wisogast, Arogast, Sidogast and Widogast". The systematic version of The Salic Law refers to them as "Wisogastes, Arogastes, etc."

The Latinized Old Frankish became the beginning of the French language. Old Frankish is closest to present day Dutch^[5] In Dutch, "arbo" translates as "health and safety", "gast" translates as "guest".

Notable Arbogasts include one of the four authors of the Salic Law, Arbogastes, a 4th-century Frankish general in the Roman Imperial Service,and a 5th-century Frankish-Roman comes in Trier. Arbogast von Franckenstein was a knight and the first defender to use the name "von Franckenstein". St. Arbogast was an Irish missionary who came to Alsace in the 7th century, where his given name Arascach was adapted to the local name Arbogast. St. Arbogast was a bishop of Strasbourg and many churches were named in his honor. Louis Francois Antoine Arbogast was a famous French mathematician.

Supposedly, the seat of the Arbogasts was in Bourgundy, France where they had a family crest.

Famous Arbogasts

• Arbogast (general), a Frankish general in the 4th-century Roman Empire^[6]
• Arbogast (Count of Trier), a 5th-century Frankish-Roman comes
• Saint Arbogast, a 7th-century Irish saint
• Louis Arbogast (1759 — 1803), French mathematician
• Eberhard Arbogast (1793 — 1875), freed Napoleon Bonaparte from Elba

Fictional characters

• Detective Arbogast, the detective in the film Psycho
• Dr Larry Arbogast, Danny DeVito's character in the film Junior
• Chief of Department Dino Arbogast, John Ventimiglia's character in the television series "Blue Bloods"
• Hans Arbogast, chief character in the book, "The Arbogast Case".^[7]

References

1. ↑ Tours, Gregory of (1927). The History of the Franks Volume II. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press. p. 492. 
2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Drew, Katharine Fischer (1991). The Laws of the Salian Franks. Philadelphia, Pennsylvania: University of Pennsylvania. pp. 59,171,172. 
3. ↑ "salian franks". 
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Looijenga, Tineke (2003). Texts and Contexts of the Oldest Runic Inscriptions Volume 4. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. pp. 255,264. 
5. ↑ Montgomery, D.H. (1899). The Leading Facts of French History. Ginn and Company. p. 42. 
6. ↑ Tours, Gregory of (1927). The History of the Franks. Oxford, England: Clarendon Press. p. 492. 
7. ↑ Hettche, Thomas (2001). The Arbogast Case. Farrar, Straus and Giroux. 

• Tours, Gregory of. The History of the Franks. Volume II. Clarendon Press, Oxford, England, 1927, p.492.
• Drew, Katherine Fischer. The Laws of the Salian Franks. University of Pennsylvania Press, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 1991, pp. 59, 171, 172.
• Looijenga, Tineke. Texts and Contexts of the Oldest Runic Inscriptions, Volume IV. Brill, Leiden, The Netherlands, 2003, pp. 255,264.
• Montgomery, D.H. The Leading Facts of French History. Ginn and Company, 1899,p.42
• Hettche, Thomas. The Arbogast Case. Translated by Elizabeth Gaffney. Farrar, Straus and Giroux.