This is a reply within a larger thread: view the whole thread

Re: Are these names made up?
Cleopha is undoubtedly a feminine version of the Biblical male name Cleophas. Othmar (in modern times usually spelled Otmar) is a German name. According to Knaurs Vornamebuch, it goes back to Old High German words meaning "possessions" and "famous", and was in regular use in Germany because of an 8th-century A.D. abbot of St. Gallen. I would think Jogli is probably a Swiss or southern German pet form of Jacob (Jakob), since Joggi is listed as a pet form of Jakob in the Knaurs book and I know that -li was a common ending for Swiss pet forms. Sevela is probably a misprint or alteration of Severa, a female form of Severus which according to the Knaurs book was the name of a sainted abbess of a nunnery near Trier.
vote up1vote down

Replies

While looking up some Old Testament names I found Jogli as the name of a man mentioned briefly in the Book of Numbers in the Old Testament. Who's Who in the Old Testament by Joan Comay says that the Old Testament name Jogli meant "my redemption" in Hebrew. Given how many of the other names on this list seem German, a German pet form of Jakob is still possible for your ancestor, but this gives another possible derivation.
vote up1vote down