Post by Ruin on Nov 21, 2015 11:00:38 GMT
The naming habits of certain species
When it comes to naming offspring, each fantasy race/species possess their own traditional habits. These are usually as follows. Only the species with specific naming habits will be listed.
Humans: Humans do not really have any habits when it comes to naming their children. Whether they opt for a name with a meaning that suits their child or not, is up to them. However, there are exceptions to this generality, such as the folk of the Arculian clans, who take the names of their children very seriously.
Humans always have a first name, and a last name, e.g, Braxton Caldwell. They take their last name from their father's side of the family. Some humans often have a middle name as well, e.g, Braxton Jeremy Caldwell.
When it comes to the naming habits of northern clansmen, the meaning of names becomes much more dire. The first name of a clansman or woman always applies to that person in one way or another, whether it is a reference to their appearance or birth circumstances. Sometimes even personality, if they were thought to show much in the line of character during infancy.
A middle name is always given to a clansman or woman, on the day of their sixteenth birthday. This is viewed as a coming of age day, and their middle name is generally a reference to an attribute that has always been associated with them throughout their life up to that moment. Take the name, Ingvar Routa Kendov, for example. Ingvar translates to 'protected', a name that may have been given in the hopes of him earning the watchful eye of the Gods. His middle name, Routa, translates to 'frost', which was given to him on his coming of age day due to the fact that his eyes were such a striking and notable shade of blue.
The last name of a clansman or woman is the name of their family, which is passed to them from their father's family. These can mean anything. For instance, in the example above, Kendov means 'warrior'.
Elves: The surnames of Elves, both high and dark, usually refer to the accomplishments of their ancestors. The first names of High Elves generally have lighter themes than the names of Dark Elves. High Elven characters could be named after elements of nature, for example, while Dark Elves might choose names with heavier and rougher pronunciations.
Orcs and Centaurs: Orcs and Centaurs seem to possess the longest names or titles. An Orc will be given a first name at birth, but no middle or last name. They do not see a need for them, since the orcish race take such pride in their heritage that notable members of the species are usually known by the majority of other orcs, through tales and song. An example of a full Orc name would be Rogdul, Son of Ogrul or Gradba, Daughter of Ogrul. The 'Son of ../Daughter of ..' part of an Orc's name always contains their father's first name.
Centaurs follow the same naming techniques as that of the Orcs.
Dragons: Dragons that are not settled, i.e, living within civilisation in the form of a human, will only have one name, similar to a first name of sorts. They do not carry a family title. This name can be very short, or very long, and is usually very harsh or guttural sounding. They can be hard for any other race to pronounce at times.
Humans: Humans do not really have any habits when it comes to naming their children. Whether they opt for a name with a meaning that suits their child or not, is up to them. However, there are exceptions to this generality, such as the folk of the Arculian clans, who take the names of their children very seriously.
Humans always have a first name, and a last name, e.g, Braxton Caldwell. They take their last name from their father's side of the family. Some humans often have a middle name as well, e.g, Braxton Jeremy Caldwell.
When it comes to the naming habits of northern clansmen, the meaning of names becomes much more dire. The first name of a clansman or woman always applies to that person in one way or another, whether it is a reference to their appearance or birth circumstances. Sometimes even personality, if they were thought to show much in the line of character during infancy.
A middle name is always given to a clansman or woman, on the day of their sixteenth birthday. This is viewed as a coming of age day, and their middle name is generally a reference to an attribute that has always been associated with them throughout their life up to that moment. Take the name, Ingvar Routa Kendov, for example. Ingvar translates to 'protected', a name that may have been given in the hopes of him earning the watchful eye of the Gods. His middle name, Routa, translates to 'frost', which was given to him on his coming of age day due to the fact that his eyes were such a striking and notable shade of blue.
The last name of a clansman or woman is the name of their family, which is passed to them from their father's family. These can mean anything. For instance, in the example above, Kendov means 'warrior'.
Elves: The surnames of Elves, both high and dark, usually refer to the accomplishments of their ancestors. The first names of High Elves generally have lighter themes than the names of Dark Elves. High Elven characters could be named after elements of nature, for example, while Dark Elves might choose names with heavier and rougher pronunciations.
Orcs and Centaurs: Orcs and Centaurs seem to possess the longest names or titles. An Orc will be given a first name at birth, but no middle or last name. They do not see a need for them, since the orcish race take such pride in their heritage that notable members of the species are usually known by the majority of other orcs, through tales and song. An example of a full Orc name would be Rogdul, Son of Ogrul or Gradba, Daughter of Ogrul. The 'Son of ../Daughter of ..' part of an Orc's name always contains their father's first name.
Centaurs follow the same naming techniques as that of the Orcs.
Dragons: Dragons that are not settled, i.e, living within civilisation in the form of a human, will only have one name, similar to a first name of sorts. They do not carry a family title. This name can be very short, or very long, and is usually very harsh or guttural sounding. They can be hard for any other race to pronounce at times.