373 replies to this topic

[BBQman]

All provided information will be put in the OP, unless it has already been mentioned.

Quote

PATTERN
Explains the naming conventions of the race.
EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
A list of non-player-characters in Guild Wars and Guild Wars 2 that can be used as reference.
RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
A list of real cultures and time periods of our world the race shares names with.
LINKS
A list of useful links related to the race and its naming conventions.

Other Races - Although only 5 races are playable in Guild Wars 2 Vanilla, you can also provide information on NPC races. This may turn out to be useful, should future expansions feature more playable races.

Information for all categories is welcome, so don't be shy and share your knowledge! I am looking at you, Jeff and Ree. ò.o

Playable Races

Asura

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Asuran names often have double consonants.[HellzMailman]
  
• Females normally end in a vowel whilst males end in a consonant.[Naut]
  
• Confirmed by Jeff Grubb:
  The asura do not have last names or surnames. They may take on honorifics ("The Mighty") or titles ("Councilor"), but the nature of family is different among them (as seen by Vekk and Gadd). Their names tend to sound like a SFX from Mad Magazine (Ker-Flunk!). Male names tend to end in a consonent. Female names tend to end in a vowel.
  
• Confirmed by Ree Soesbee:
  The asura are ‘not from around here,’ so their names do sound a little odd to human ears. Usually, their names consist of a short, sharp first name of one or two syllables (‘Vekk’). Those with two-syllable first names, particularly if the second syllable being a -a or -i (Vekka, Vekki) tend to be female – or get teased horribly in Asuran primary studies schools.
  
  In social usage, asurans follow the human tradition of Jobname Name (‘Crew Leader Zeen’) rather than having a last name as humans would identify it. To the asurans, their job title and their krewe are the most important distinctors that one can have. It’s typical for an asura to use his krewe’s name as a last name when dealing with humans, although this can also sound funny to those used to Krytan conventions – Fivv of Universal Necrotics, or Blira of Hyperthetical Industries.
  
  There are a few instances in the two hundred plus years between GW1 and GW2 where unconventional asura have taken on a more ‘human’ naming pattern in order to better socialize with their targets… er… friends. Those instances are rare and fairly uncommon, and other asura make a habit of conveniently ‘forgetting’ about their friend’s embarrassing eccentricity.

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Oola
Vekk
Gadd
Florggi
Jezza
Blimm
Zinn

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
LINKS

Charr

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Charr like to use nicknames like: Swift, Cowl, Roan, Pyre, Ember.[Pear]
  
• Charr favor consonants that are brash, like: D, R, T, G, K, etc.[Pear]
  
• It is possible that names that do not represent real-life concepts such as Ember, Pyre, etc. adhere to certain guidelines that help dictate what names are appropriate for each gender. Ex: Kalla sounds more feminine than Rytlock.[Pear]
  
• It is easy to supplement additional "r, a, z, d, t, and k" for a more robust charr characteristic.[Pear]
  
• The first half of the surname is the warband. The second half is some attribute of the charr.[Pear]
  
• Confirmed by Official Wiki:
  They are given a name to claim, which the cubs within a single warband derive their surnames, such as Fierceshot or Doomclaw.
  
  The primus warband of any legion carries the name of that legion–Ash, Blood, Iron and in the case of the Gold Legion, Flame. This singular legion is hereditary, but the leader must claim the name through blood challenge–a fight between descendants of the Khan-Ur for supremacy within the legion.
  
  Occasionally, non-descendants of the Khan-Ur join the primus warband, taking the name of their leader as their own, as is Charr tradition. But the leader of the primus is always a descendant of the Khan-Ur, the foremost heir of the legion and their rightful inheritor of the crown of leadership among the Charr.
  
  It is also possible for Charr to leave the warband of their youth, either due to a promotion or to perform a specific duty, or even because the Charr cannot fulfill assigned duties. A Charr moved from her original warband still holds loyalties to that first “family” (and therefore, such movements are unusual), however, that Charr must change her name and quickly learn to fit in with new companions or she will be nothing more than meat on the battlefield.

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Bonwor Fierceblade
Pyre Fierceshot
Swift Fiercejustice
Roan Fierceheart
Cowl Fiercetongue
Seer Fiercereign
Gron Fierceclaw
Hierophant Burntsoul
Bonfaaz Burntfur
Vatlaaw Doomtooth
Garfazz Bloodfang
Rend Ragemauler
Bathea Havocbringer
Kalla Scorchrazor
Rytlock Brimstone
Forge Ironstrike
Gaheron Baelfire
Brinstar Keenmind

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Human

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Human names depend on the nation, but they tend to share the kinds of names which would be seen in the real world in the area that the nation is influenced by. Ascalon=English; Kurzick=German; Luxon=Greek; Canthan=Asian; Orr=Arabian/Hebrew.[Konig Des Todes]
  
• Krytan seems to be overall European. Primarily southern/southwestern/western European. Italian and English names have been noticed in the original Guild Wars.[Konig Des Todes]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
English
German
Greek
Asian
Arabian
Hebrew

LINKS

Norn

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Norse surnames often begin with the parent's name and end with the suffixes "son" or "dottir" and mean "son of ..." and "daughter of ...", respectively. Ex: Björnsson(son of bear), Ormsdottir(son of snake)[Jonzzon]
  
• Norn second names are "title like" in nature. These are given names. Their second name consists of their most worthy or notable attribute. However the second names are mostly English names unlike their first names. Ex: a Norn would likely be named "Ragnar The Guardian" instead of "Ragnar Sigurðr" which is old Norse for "Sigurd" meaning defender or guardian.[Helikaon]
  
• Some Norn are named differently (most probably younger Norn who have yet to earn a "given name") or Norn from a very distinguished family such as Olaf Olafson. These "descendant names" are unusual in that they are in the Norse style of son and daughter; -sson and dottir.[Helikaon]
  
• Typical fantasy naming: "Frostfist" "Truthseeker" and so forth - basically 2 words combined. This is shared among other races, too.[Konig Des Todes]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Hogni Truthseeker
Kobach the Ferocious
Olaf Olafson
Jana Liefdottir

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
Norse
9th Century Germanic
Viking Scandinavian

LINKS
GW1 norn names:
http://wiki.guildwar...i/Category:Norn
List of Norse names with meaning:
http://www.behindthe...mc/sca-myth.php
In depth analysis of names, sounds suffix's and prefix's (long read):
http://www.behindthe...mc/sca-myth.php
Very useful source on Viking names, shows meaning of names:
http://hem.passagen....ram/l_namn.html

Sylvari

Spoiler

PATTERN

• The Sylvari seem to have one name, Killeen is most likely related to the Irish name Cillian meaning Shadow. Faolain pronounced as "Fee lahn" means "little wolf" from the Irish word Faol meaning wolf. The Irish name Felan is a derivative of this.[ShadowedSin]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Faolain
Killeen

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
Scottish Gaelic
Welsh
Irish

LINKS
Behind the Name - Irish:
http://www.behindthe...com/nmc/iri.php

Quote

Note:
"y" and "w" names and "k' are welsh in basis. So if you see Trystan instead of Tristan, you can know one is welsh the other Gaelic. They are related languages, but they are from two different branches of the same language family, that being the Celtic Languages.

One branch is Goidelic (Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx) and then Brythonic (Welsh and Breton)

Other Races

Heket

Spoiler

PATTERN

• The second word of the heket names in Eye of the North seems to be taken from the Aztec Nahuatl language. Roughly translating, "Amini" means "hunter", "Tlamatini" means "wise man", Nahualli means "evil magician" or "warlock", and "Cuicana" means "singer".[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
Aztec Nahuatl

LINKS

Forgotten

Spoiler

PATTERN

• The names of the Forgotten typically include many S's and soft hissing sounds, probably to replicate the way the snake people talk and their language. Harsh consonant sounds are rarely found in their names.[Lyssa]
  
• They have both a first and last name, whether the last name is to do with family, simply another name (like Human second names) or something different all together we do not know.[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Dassk Arossyss
Byssha Hisst
Goss Aleessh
Ayassah Hess
Wissper Inssani

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Naga

Spoiler

PATTERN

• The Naga have a snake-like naming convention. Nearly all of the known Naga have names starting with S.[Lyssa]
  
• They have short first names, commonly only having one sylable, but there are some with two (none with more.) Naga appear to have titles rather than second names, and these titles seem to be named after a particular characteristic.[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Sarss, Stormscale
Sessk, Woe Spreader
Siska Scalewand
Ssuns, Blessed of Dwayna
Sskai, Dragon's Birth
Xiriss Stickleback

Quote

Note: that this is the only name beginning with something other than an 'S' and yet it still produces a similar sound).[Lyssa]

Tin Dao Kaineng*

Quote

Note: An anonmaly amongst the Naga and their naming conventions. This Naga appears to have a very Canthan name, and even bears the same last name as the city. It follows none of the set conventions.
It is unknown if this is an error or not.[Lyssa]
*Kaineng is Canthan for "Lord Emperor."[Konig Des Todes]

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Centaur

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Without exception every Tyrian centaur has a first name with exactly two syllables (some Elonian centaurs, such as Zhed and Laph, have a single syllable). In many of these cases the name can be spelt with just 4 English letters, which should be indicative of the short-sharp nature of them. Second names are a combination of two words: A part of the Centaurs body and an adjective for it.[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Aguo Gruffmane
Huma Cleansinghoof
Moro Stormcalf
Rubi Spottedmane
Fawa Torncalf
Geno Darkheart
Numa Plaguemane
Yino Burlyhaunch
Zalo Soulhaunch
Ramtha Brokenhoof

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Titans

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Titans have a first and last name which are written in Latin. Though, there were a few in Nightfall who didn't. Usually the name follows the lines of: ''I do this'' or ''I do that''[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Gigas Expi (roughly: I atone for Giants/Giants atonement)
Creo Vulnero (roughly: I create Harm/Pain/hurt)
Exuro Flatus (roughly: Burn Breathe/ I Breath fire)
Ignis Cruor (roughly: Blood of Fire)
Scelus Prosum (roughly: I gladly do Evil)

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES
Latin Language

LINKS

Grawl

Spoiler

PATTERN

• The Grawl typically have two names. The first name usually has two sylables and often three - though some names only have one such as 'Mok'. Many first names end with a vowel - the most common being O and A. None have been observed to end with an 'E' or a 'U'.[Lyssa]
  
• Many second names are two simple 1 sylable sounds put together like 'WaagWaag'. On rarer occasions these two sounds are slightly different like 'Yawpyawl'. And sometimes the second name doesn't follow this convention at all, like: ''Arronn''[Lyssa]
  
• Many Grawl share their second name with one other Grawl, like ''Salani Pipppip'' and ''Kekona Pippip''. It's never been observed that three grawl share the same name, so this second name may be unique to each couple.[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Alana Kepkep
Edibbo Kepkep
Sakalo Yawpyawl
Jono Yawpyawl
Allobo Dimdim
Gougi Gakula
Kaia Wupwup
Ipillo Wupwup

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Ettin

Spoiler

PATTERN

• Ettins have two names. The first name is a very simple. A single sylable sound that probably refers to their low intelligence levels and poor grasp of language.[Lyssa]
  
• The second name seems to commonly have to do with the Ettin's weapon or a particular attribute of the Ettin in question.[Lyssa]

EXAMPLE NPC NAMES
Droog Stoneclub
Ferk Mallet
Glutt Wallop
Rull Browbeater
Smuush Fatfist
Vulg Painbrain

RELATED REAL WORLD CULTURES

LINKS

Edited by Kvinna, 19 September 2011 - 03:10 PM.
typo

[BBQman]

-reserved for future use-

[Jonzzon]

Well... norse afternames are often -son or -dottir. and are meant as "son of -" or "dougther of -"

like Ormsdottir means "dougther of Orm" (or accualy dougther of snake)
and Björnsson* is "son of björn" (or son of bear)

*alltho due to the keybord of most people Bjornsson

For first names and names in the aftername just search for old noric names or something similar...

[HellzMailman]

Asura names often have double consonants.
Ex: Zojja, Blimm, Zinn, Oola...

[Naut]

Well Asura names normally consist of double letters.

Oola
Vekk
Gadd
Florggi
Jezza

Along with this, females normally end in a Vowel whilst Males end in a Consonant...

Male:
Gadd
Vekk
Hoff
Oggy

Females:

Oola
Florggi
Jezza


I imagine there are Asura who break the rule though.

[MooCube]

Charr's surnames come from their warband

[Pear]

Charr

Patterns

Quote

Charr like to use nicknames: Swift, Cowl, Roan, Pyre, Ember.

Quote

I think the charr favor consonants that are brash... like D, R, T, G, K, etc.

Quote

Perhaps names that do not represent real-life concepts such as Ember, Pyre, etc. adhere to certain guidelines that help dictate what names are appropriate for each gender. Kalla certainly sounds more feminine than Rytlock, for example.

Quote

It would be easy to supplement additional "r, a, z, d, t, and k" for a more robust Charr characteristic

Quote

The first half of the surname is the warband. The second half is some attribute of the charr.

http://www.guildwars...mes-t12300.html

Example NPC names

"Guild Wars wiki" said:

    * Bonwor Fierceblade
    * Pyre Fierceshot
    * Swift Fiercejustice
    * Roan Fierceheart
    * Cowl Fiercetongue
    * Seer Fiercereign
    * Gron Fierceclaw
    * Hierophant Burntsoul
    * Bonfaaz Burntfur
    * Vatlaaw Doomtooth
    * Garfazz Bloodfang
    * Rend Ragemauler

http://wiki.guildwars.com/wiki/Charr

"Guild Wars 2 wiki" said:

Bathea Havocbringer
Kalla Scorchrazor
Rytlock Brimstone
Forge Ironstrike
Gaheron Baelfire
Brinstar Keenmind

http://wiki.guildwar.../Category:Charr

Related Real World Cultures

"Guild Wars 2 wiki" said:

The charr have many similarities with three time periods and groups:

    * The ancient Mongols - they were once just clans fighting amongst each other, and were united under a Khan. They also broke through an enormous wall of a southern kingdom, China in the case of the Mongols, Ascalon in that of the charr.
    * The Roman Empire - many titles, words, and their modern military appears greatly inspired by Rome.
    * The Industrial Age - they're the most technologically advanced race which appears to be in a parallel stage of development.

IDarko said:

None of those names eccept Kalla exists in real life. According to this website.

[Gmr Leon]

Drax and I were just discussing a thread like this (quite literally) and how we were going to do it. We were also discussing getting the community involved to offload some of the work on ourselves...And then this came up! :D So while we're sorting out what to do with the old name threads, I'm going to sticky this to reduce the recurrence of threads of that type.

As BBQMan said, don't feel shy. (And I may dig up the old threads and link them here for convenience of trawling through to find good posts.)

Here are a few right off the bat (this will include some already linked to):
Norn naming question.
Charr names.
Asuran surnames.
What's in a Name?
Sylvari and the Sidhe. (Pages 3-5 have some discussion on names and existing sylvari name origins/influences.)

[Ginkgo]

Sylvari names seem to have some relation to Gaelic nomenclature, with the two examples I can think of at the moment being Killeen and Faolain.

[Naut]

Related Norn seem to carry similar last names, however this could just be a thing with a certain family...

Gullik Oddsson & Gyda Oddsdottir are cousins.

[ShadowedSin]

Killeen is welsh, Gaelic doesn't have "k's" in it.

Welsh, Irish and Scottish Gaelic names work. I'm one of the few Irish Speakers on the site and I've helped a few people. Mostly with terms and titles. For example, my Sylvari is named, Niall Sceardlann, a formal titled being Niall an Sceardllan, Niall the Brokenspear.

[Ginkgo]

ShadowedSin said:

Killeen is welsh, Gaelic doesn't have "k's" in it.

Welsh, Irish and Scottish Gaelic names work. I'm one of the few Irish Speakers on the site and I've helped a few people. Mostly with terms and titles. For example, my Sylvari is named, Niall Sceardlann, a formal titled being Niall an Sceardllan, Niall the Brokenspear.

I see, good to know.

[Helikaon]

I've done quite extensive research into Norn names, with aid from the kind folks in the lore forum.
List of Norn names in Guild Wars: http://wiki.guildwar...i/Category:Norn

First names

As you can see these names are taken from 9th Century Germanic names (and onwards, developing into Viking Scandinavian names) and Norse Mythology
List of Norse names with meaning: http://www.behindthe...mc/sca-myth.php
In depth analysis of names, sounds suffix's and prefix's (long read):http://www.behindthe...mc/sca-myth.php
Very useful source on Viking names, shows meaning of names: http://hem.passagen....ram/l_namn.html

Second names

Norn second names are "title like" in nature, similar to nicknames.  Their second name consists of their most worthy or notable attribute.  However the second names are mostly English names unlike their first names.  So, for example a Norn would likely be named "Ragnar The Guardian" instead of "Ragnar Sigurðr" which is old Norse for "Sigurd" meaning defender or guardian.

Some Norn are named differently (most probably younger Norn who have yet to earn a "given name") or Norn from a very distinguished family such as Olaf Olafson.  These "descendant names" are unusual in that they are in the Norse style of son and daughter; -sson and dottir.

Edited by Helikaon, 30 January 2011 - 01:03 AM.

[ShadowedSin]

The Sylvari seem to have one name, Killeen is most likely related to the Irish name Cillian meaning Shadow.

Faolain pronounced as "Fee lahn" means "little wolf" from the Irish word Faol meaning wolf. The Irish name Felan is a derivative of this.

Behind the Name: Irish

Note "y" and "w" names and "k' are welsh in basis. So if you see Trystan instead of Tristan, you can know one is welsh the other Gaelic. They are related languages, but they are from two different branches of the same language family, that being the Celtic Languages.

One branch is Goidelic (Irish Gaelic, Scottish Gaelic, and Manx) and then Brythonic (Welsh and Breton).

[Konig Des Todes]

Since I didn't see this mentioned, for asuran names, this may be interesting:

Regina Buenaobra said:

Hiya. :)

This is what our lore masters, Jeff Grubb and Ree Soesbee, had to say about asuran naming conventions:

Jeff:

Quote

The asura do not have last names or surnames. They may take on  honorifics ("The Mighty") or titles ("Councilor"), but the nature of  family is different among them (as seen by Vekk and Gadd). Their names  tend to sound like a SFX from Mad Magaine (Ker-Flunk!). Male names tend  to end in a consonent. Female names tend to end in a vowel.

Ree:

Quote

The asura are ‘not from around here,’ so their names do sound a little  odd to human ears. Usually, their names consist of a short, sharp first  name of one or two syllables (‘Vekk’). Those with two-syllable first  names, particularly if the second syllable being a -a or -i (Vekka,  Vekki) tend to be female – or get teased horribly in Asuran primary  studies schools.

In social usage, asurans follow the human tradition of Jobname Name  (‘Crew Leader Zeen’) rather than having a last name as humans would  identify it. To the asurans, their job title and their krewe are the  most important distinctors that one can have. It’s typical for an asura  to use his krewe’s name as a last name when dealing with humans,  although this can also sound funny to those used to Krytan conventions –  Fivv of Universal Necrotics, or Blira of Hyperthetical Industries.

There are a few instances in the two hundred plus years between GW1 and  GW2 where unconventional asura have taken on a more ‘human’ naming  pattern in order to better socialize with their targets… er… friends.  Those instances are rare and fairly uncommon, and other asura make a  habit of conveniently ‘forgetting’ about their friend’s embarrassing  eccentricity.

Better than community observations - two Anet lore makers confirming community observations!

[Jonzzon]

Naut said:

Related Norn seem to carry similar last names, however this could just be a thing with a certain family...

Gullik Oddsson & Gyda Oddsdottir are cousins.

those last name as i said means "son/dougther of odd"  im not sure but in reality thos names where in the begining wery flexible and was not inherent.

like gullik oddsson gets a son and name him tom then he would be called tom gulliksson.

Anyway that means that if some other bloke named odd gets a kid the kid would allso be named oddsson...

(Alltho now days thay are inherent, im named jonsson alltho my father wasent named jon (~john) but i dont think the name evolution have gone so far yet in game)

Helikaon said:

Norn second names are "title like" in nature.  These are given names or "förnamn. "Their second name consists of their most worthy or notable attribute.  However the second names are mostly English names unlike their first names.  So, for example a Norn would likely be named "Ragnar The Guardian" instead of "Ragnar Sigurðr" which is old Norse for "Sigurd" meaning defender or guardian.

Some Norn are named differently (most probably younger Norn who have yet to earn a "given name") or Norn from a very distinguished family such as Olaf Olafson.  These "descendant names" are unusual in that they are in the Norse style of son and daughter; -sson and dottir.

Förnamn = firstname.

but i think that the 2 types of names serves a different purpose. the -son names are to explain your liniage and as you said the titles are earnd.

Alltho i wouldent realy say that norns have last names at all (i define last name as inherent family names) thay just have titles and stuff to explain who thay are and to seperate them like ragnar migth be known as:

Ragnar bengtsson the guardian.

his name is Ragnar, Bengtsson explains from who he was born and the guardian is what he has been called probely after some deed he did...

Norn names are heavely based on scandinavian names (but in english, after all it is a english game, would be wery enoying for most people with all the ö´s and sutch) and attleast in sweden last name is "efternamn" that litery translate to "after name" (~stuff that comes after your name) and thats what i think norns last names are, not realy last names just alot of titles and stuff to explain who you are and what you have done.

I even think Ragnar the guardian migth be the full name, just the short version that he would be knowen for, migth be something like:

Ragnar son of bengt, the guardian that protected those kids from there mother whene she got mad, the generus who allways buys drinks for everyone, the strong one who manage to open the picklejar, the smart one who accualt manage to read the funny papers from start to finnish, the quick who manage to run away from uncle Sten when he throw a pie in his face etc...

summery: i think norns last names is just a shortend down version of there "song of deeds" or track list of stuff thay done.

[Jonzzon]

Quote

The asura do not have last names or surnames. They may take on honorifics ("The Mighty") or titles ("Councilor"), but the nature of family is different among them (as seen by Vekk and Gadd). Their names tend to sound like a SFX from Mad Magaine (Ker-Flunk!). Male names tend to end in a consonent. Female names tend to end in a vowel.

Wait the doctor was an asura??

http://thatsthewayth...t5_67887055.jpg

...well he is rather smart... hm...

[Helikaon]

Jonzzon said:

Förnamn = firstname.

I was told by a friend it could also mean a "given name."  He said the modern day meaning is first name, although in history a famous person could receive a Förnamn to describe them, which was placed in a title like way.

EDIT: like you say, it is historically given after they die, however Norn in GuildWars receive it during their lifetime.

Edited by Helikaon, 29 January 2011 - 10:58 PM.

[Baktwerel]

Nice thread! Big thumbs up! I wish Anet would have an in game naming guide or generator too at character creation. Like if you go for a male Asura, it would generate names that follow their naming pattern etc. for those who cant think of a good name. Would be awesome and we would see less xXLegolasXx and Naruto123 around and more names that actually fit in. And now I wish Anet devs would read and consider this post X,D

[Jonzzon]

Helikaon said:

I was told by a friend it could also mean a "given name."  He said the modern day meaning is first name, although in history a famous person could receive a Förnamn to describe them, which was placed in a title like way.

EDIT: like you say, it is historically given after they die, however Norn in GuildWars receive it during their lifetime.

Hm, dident know that it ust to mean like "nickname" we say "smeknamn" for that but you migth be rigth...

[BBQman]

Thank you all for your great contribution! I have decided to list the information more organized, so I won't be putting your quotes up--I will still provide a link to your post, though.

It'd be great if the devs could help us out some more. *wink, wink, nudge, nudge*

[Konig Des Todes]

Since official sources is better than community observations, typically:

The Echology of the Charr said:

They are given a name to claim, which the cubs within a single warband derive their surnames, such as Fierceshot or Doomclaw.

This warband serves as the primary social group–and the only family–that a young Charr will ever know. Although cubs are aware of their lineage and their parents, adults have neither an interest nor a hand in the education, rearing, or growth of a young cub once delivered to the legion’s Fahrar. The legion (and the cub’s new warband as a part of that legion) comes before any blood ties.

The primus warband of any legion carries the name of that legion–Ash, Blood, Iron and in the case of the Gold Legion, Flame. This singular legion is hereditary, but the leader must claim the name through blood challenge–a fight between descendants of the Khan-Ur for supremacy within the legion.

Occasionally, non-descendants of the Khan-Ur join the primus warband, taking the name of their leader as their own, as is Charr tradition. But the leader of the primus is always a descendant of the Khan-Ur, the foremost heir of the legion and their rightful inheritor of the crown of leadership among the Charr.

It is also possible for Charr to leave the warband of their youth, either due to a promotion or to perform a specific duty, or even because the Charr cannot fulfill assigned duties. A Charr moved from her original warband still holds loyalties to that first “family” (and therefore, such movements are unusual), however, that Charr must change her name and quickly learn to fit in with new companions or she will be nothing more than meat on the battlefield.

There's information irrelevant to the naming bit, so do paraphrase. But for a link:

http://wiki.guildwar...gy_of_the_Charr

[Helikaon]

Jonzzon said:

Hm, dident know that it ust to mean like "nickname" we say "smeknamn" for that but you migth be rigth...

Perhaps we should forget the Förnamn part, you know far more accurately what words mean than I do.  I can't find any source proving that it once meant given names primarily.

@ OP:  You may need to change the main post where I'm quoted mentioning Förnamn.  This is possibly inaccurate, so I've edited my first post.  Apologies for inconvenience.

Edited by Helikaon, 30 January 2011 - 12:51 AM.

[Lyssa]

I see you have an 'Other Races' section. So heres some stuff on the Heket, courtesy of the wiki:

The second word of the heket names in Eye of the North seems to be taken from the Aztec Nahuatl language. Roughly translating, "Amini" means "hunter", "Tlamatini" means "wise man", Nahualli means "evil magician" or "warlock", and "Cuicana" means "singer".

Awesome thread by the way. Loved the bit on Asura.

[Jonzzon]

Helikaon said:

Perhaps we should forget the Förnamn part, you know far more accurately what words mean than I do.  I can't find any source proving that it once meant given names primarily.  I'll change my post to smeknamn for now since that's more accurate.  Thanks for the help :)

@ OP:  You may need to change the main post where I'm quoted mentioning Förnamn.  This is possibly inaccurate, so I've edited my first post.  Apologies for inconvenience.

Or remove it alltogether as most people probely wont understand it anyway and that i doubth the norn speak swedish. ;)

[Helikaon]

Good point, it doesn't add anything of value correct or not.

Here are some Norn names from GW1 if OP needs for his post.

Hogni Truthseeker
Kobach the Ferocious
Olaf Olafson
Jana Liefdottir

Edited by Helikaon, 30 January 2011 - 01:06 AM.

[Konig Des Todes]

I may be repeating things here...

The norn seem to have 3 naming conventions:

• "-son/-dottir" - the name of the parent followed by the son or dottir suffix (e.g., Oddson, Olafdottir).
  
• Typical fantasy naming: "Frostfist" "Truthseeker" and so forth - basically 2 words combined. This is shared among other races too. I'd personally guess this is used as the same as the third kind of last name.
  
• A title. I'm guessing that this is either used for the most honorable norn, or perhaps those without a known heritage, and at least in one case, an outcast. Course, this may not even be a part of the name but merely a title individuals are known as and they have a real, unknown, last name (most likely case imo). This is shared among other races.

There is also two cases of a fourth kind of last name among the norn, so I don't know if it's commonplace:

Eir Stegalkin
Coldrok Crannor
-------------------------------------------------
Sylvari seem to only have one name. No family name.
-------------------------------------------------
Human names depend on the nation, but they tend to share the kinds of names which would be seen in rl in the area that the nation is influenced by. Ascalon=English; Kurzick=German; Luxon=Greek; Canthan=Asiran; Orr=Arabian/Hebrew.

Krytan, gw2's playable nationality atm, seems to be an overall European even in GW1's time. Primarily southern/southwestern/western European (I've noticed some Italian and English names in gw1). With Kryta being mixed with pretty much all known nations, you can pretty much just go with anything you'd see in rl tbh.

Edited by Konig Des Todes, 30 January 2011 - 01:36 AM.

[ShadowedSin]

Actually Konig, Vikings names followed something to what the Norn use.

A title or term that acts as the aftername, the dottr / sson ending, and also another one being a title "the <whatever>".

[Jonzzon]

Konig Des Todes said:

I may be repeating things here...

The norn seem to have 3 naming conventions:

• "-son/-dottir" - the name of the parent followed by the son or dottir suffix (e.g., Oddson, Olafdottir).
  
• Typical fantasy naming: "Frostfist" "Truthseeker" and so forth - basically 2 words combined. This is shared among other races too. I'd personally guess this is used as the same as the third kind of last name.
  
• A title. I'm guessing that this is either used for the most honorable norn, or perhaps those without a known heritage, and at least in one case, an outcast. Course, this may not even be a part of the name but merely a title individuals are known as and they have a real, unknown, last name (most likely case imo). This is shared among other races.

There is also two cases of a fourth kind of last name among the norn, so I don't know if it's commonplace:

Eir Stegalkin
Coldrok Crannor
-------------------------------------------------
Sylvari seem to only have one name. No family name.
-------------------------------------------------
Human names depend on the nation, but they tend to share the kinds of names which would be seen in rl in the area that the nation is influenced by. Ascalon=English; Kurzick=German; Luxon=Greek; Canthan=Asiran; Orr=Arabian/Hebrew.

Krytan, gw2's playable nationality atm, seems to be an overall European even in GW1's time. Primarily southern/southwestern/western European (I've noticed some Italian and English names in gw1). With Kryta being mixed with pretty much all known nations, you can pretty much just go with anything you'd see in rl tbh.

The norn names you couldent place would probely be the only real last names (as before i define last name as a shared name within a family or group that is passed down)

I think so becouse in the edge of destiny book (god i fell dorky for reading it xD) one man greets eir as from the house of Stegalkin.

The rest is only titles/nicknames and liniage, not last names...

and as far as i understand all sylvari is from the same tree so thay are all the same family...

[ShadowedSin]

House of Stegalkin probably just meant Household of Stegalkin not necessarily a lineage.