Names

When you are creating a character or group, you have a great degree of freedom when choosing a name - Arginet is, after all, a hugely diverse fantasy society - but you can use the following naming traditions as an inspiration or guide to what will best suit an Arginese character.

Commoners

Arginese commoners tend to have unfussy, traditional English names, or names describing qualities or natural things. These are usually given by their parents, but it’s not unusual to take on a new name - in recognition of a gender transition, to mark another decisive change in life, or through simple dissatisfaction.

Examples: Ash, Dan, Grace, Holly, Jack, Jo, Mary, Robin, Sarah, Will

To prevent confusion most commoners also have surnames. These might be taken from a parent or adopted as a byname; they tend to be vocations or descriptions.

Examples: Fairey, Goody, Little, Meriwether, Smith, Reed, Rivers, Taylor

Nobles

Arginese nobles favour more extravagant names, usually English, French, or Norman in flavour. Often these will be traditional to the family, and are chosen carefully by parents, grandparents, and sometimes ancestors; it is considered deeply dishonourable to abandon them. If a noble transitions gender and wishes to change their name they are expected to ask for a suitable new one from their family.

Examples: Adela, Barnaby, Clement, Cateline, Evelyn, Genevieve, Jocelyn, Morgana, Reynard, Reginald

A titled noble also passes on their surname to their children. When two titled nobles marry, the children either take the more prestigious or combine both into a hyphenated surname. These family names sometimes reference their home estates (with a combining ‘of’ or ‘de’) but are more often traditional names, again with an Anglo-French flavour.

Examples: d’Auney, Bonville, Carew, Molis, Pomeroy, Serjeaux, Tracey, de Valletort

Foreigners and ideologues

Each of the foreign nations in the world of Arginet has its own tradition of names. Some of these are popular in Arginet itself and they tend to be given or chosen to show a particular philosophical or ideological leaning.

Listenese (French) names are widely used among the nobility, particularly those with connections to the continent.

Examples: Enguerrand, Guiscard, Jacinthe, Lucrece, Pascaline, Remy

Rathanna (Celtic) names are most common in cities and port towns, and are considered a sign of cosmopolitanism and social ambition.

Examples: Aeron, Brigit, Gwydion, Muirenn, Niall, Rhiannon

Bravelling (Germanic and Scandinavian) names are uncommon in Arginet, but are sometimes used by Reformists, especially those with republican leanings. Occasionally they are used as ‘war names’ by revolutionaries.

Examples: Alba, Asger, Grimhild, Ida, Jarl, Wolfgang

Parmenian (Romance) and far-western (Greek and Hebrew) names are adopted by some devout Seekers of the Utmost. They tend to have explicitly spiritual themes, and because of the precarious status of the Seekers, choosing such a name is seen as a sign of zealous commitment to the movement.

Examples: Ariel, Fortunata, Nikias, Samael, Sibylla, Theokleia

Spirits

Ancestors retain the names they had in life. Elemental spirits, however, have their own descriptive names, or none at all.

Part of a series about Arginese society.

Humans - Fay - Wights The Crown - Government - Law - History Social class - Crafts and learning - Sexuality, identity, and relationships - Names

See also: Factions - Offworlders