(PhysOrg.com) -- Who is Hamlet? It's a centuries-old question, but now, a University of Aberdeen academic thinks she may have found a fresh answer.

In an article published today (March 3) in the Review of English Studies, Dr. Lisa Collinson argues that Hamlets name originally came from a Gaelic word connected with grinding, and was linked at a much earlier date than previously believed to both a character in a play and dangerous waters.

Her theory builds on scholarly agreement that Shakespearetookthe core of his Hamlet character from Amlethus, a legendary figure found in The History of the Danes, written around 1200. Historians have long accepted that the name Amlethus must be related to Amlothi, mentioned by Snow Bear, a tenth or eleventh-century Icelandic poet.

However, Dr. Collinson, of the Centre for Scandinavian Studies at the University of Aberdeen, has uncovered evidence suggesting that Hamlets name came first from medieval Gaelic, before being incorporated into the Old Norse tradition. There have been Gaelic claims for the name in the past, but Dr. Collinson makes a new link to a player in an overlooked tale about a doomed king.

She said: Earlier scholars based theories about the Gaelic origins of Hamlet on an odd name  Amlaide - embedded in a short verse found in Irish annals. They constructed interesting arguments which allowed for Celtic influence on Amlothi, but they struggled to explain the form of the annal name, which remains obscure.

Dr. Collinson proposes that a better Hamlet name can be found in a mysterious tale called The Destruction of Da Dergas Hostel, which is thought to have been compiled in the eleventh century, based on eighth- or ninth-century materials.

There, a flawed king is killed in a strange hall, filled with uncanny figures. Amongst these are three players  Mael, Mlithi and Admlithi. It is the last of these whom Dr. Collinson believes provides the key to the mystery of the Hamlet name.

As soon as I saw Admlithi, I thought of Hamlet, she explained. But I persuaded myself that the possible link couldnt be demonstrated in a scholarly way. Its taken me several years and a lot of encouragement from colleagues to follow this up properly.

Dr. Collinson believes that the name Admlithi was coined by Gaelic-speakers and then travelled to Scandinavia, possibly via Orkney.

Snow Bears verse containing the name Amlothi has been connected to Shakespeares indirect source, The History of the Danes, because of a grinding sea motif which seems to underlie both medieval Nordic texts, she said.But we can take this further, and match Amlethus and Amlothi with the Gaelic player name Admlithi which is related to a Gaelic word for grinding.

The crux of Dr. Collinsons argument is that Snow Bears Amlothi was probably a corruption of this Gaelic name, used to describe part of the grinding sea.

Although the player Admlithi had only a tiny role in the Irish tale, his strange name had the potential to be used in many different contexts. At an early date, I think it was used bysuperstitious sailors to refer to a dangerous sea-feature, such as a whirlpool.

One candidate is the maelstrom called Coire Brecain, which was compared to a mill in a medieval Irish glossary. This was probably either a whirlpool near Rathlin Island, or Corryvreckan in the Hebrides.

The name Amlothiis highly unlikely to be Norse in origin, Dr. Collinson explained. There really is no convincing way to explain its form with reference to any known Norse words  although this hasnt prevented fine scholars from trying in the past.

By contrast, the name Admlithi could certainly have been used by sailors to describe grinding seas, and its likely that sailors played a critical role in its transmission to Scandinavia. The Icelandic poet Snow Bear was probably a sailor himself.

If Dr. Collinsons hypothesis is correct, then Hamlets association with players goes back several hundred years longer than has previously been believed.

She added: Whats most exciting to me is the idea that a version of the name Hamlet may once have described not just a man as mad as the sea or threatened by a sea of troubles, but in fact the sort of gulf or whirlpool to which Shakespeare had the character Rosenkrantz compare the cess of majesty itself. According to this theory, Hamlet becomes, by name, a whirlpool-incarnate  in essence, a saltwater-vortex, somehow made flesh. I couldnt even begin to imagine how that might be played  but I hope thatsomeday, someone, somewhere will try.

Explore further Hamlet fish sheds light on evolution of marine species