Abbatissae uenerabili Heanfled agnominatae. An etymological-onomastic note on a unique (?) Anglo-Saxon woman’s name (S904)

Records reveal only one occurrence of an Anglo-Saxon woman with the name Heanfled (S904, c. 1002). This has led to a general interpretation that this unique name is a scribal error (the true version being Eanfled, Eadfled, or Heahfled). Nonetheless, despite its long- standing rejection in the literature, the hypothesis remains that the spelling is no error and that Heanfled is in fact the real name. It is possible that Heanfled was a (Christian) first name in its own right, deliberately created or spelt according to the rules presiding over the formation of Germanic anthroponyms.