First naming trend, the nightbrother names...
So far we only know the names of four nightbrothers, but all of them share a very animalistic and quite violent and bloody trend in their names.
So far we have Maul, Savage, Feral, and Viscus.
Maul- verb
(of an animal) wound (a person or animal) by scratching and tearing: the herdsmen were mauled by lions.
Savage- adjective
(of an animal or force of nature) fierce, violent, and uncontrolled: tales of a savage beast | a week of savage storms.
Feral- adjective
(esp. of an animal) in a wild state, esp. after escape from captivity or domestication: a feral cat.
Viscus- noun
an internal organ in the main cavities of the body, esp. those in the abdomen, e.g., the intestines.
So yeah... Nightbrother names! Would not be surprised if the next one we were introduced to was named "Rabid"
Next naming trend is for the Sith. The most common thing used in a Sith name aside from the title of Darth is the root "mal."
There are four legitimate Sith names with "mal" at the beginning; Darth Malak, Darth Malgus, Darth Maladi, and Darth Maleval. And two fake Sith names in the mythos had "mal" heading them off as well; Darth Malitiae and Darth Malus. Even in my fanfic I am currently working on, there is a character named Darth Malvot.
The funny thing about that is that the latin root "mal" means bad. So essentially these Sith's names mean "Dark Bad Guy"... how cliche.
There is another name trend among Sith, this one being less popular, but still noticeable. A few names of Sith contain "Teneb" in them.
We have two birth names, Tenebrae and Teneb Kel, and one Sith name, Darth Tenebrous.
"Teneb" is a root that seems to be in words related to shadow and darkness, with "Tenebrae" being latin for shadows and darkness, and "Tenebrous" meaning dark, shadowy or obscure. So basically we have some Sith who follow the Dark Side of the Force that were seemingly named after darkness and shadows. Also pretty cliche.
Now as you all know, at the end of the Sith Inquisitor storyline in SWTOR, you get one of three names.
If you follow the Dark Side path, your character is given the name "Nox," if you follow the Light Side, your character is given the name "Imperius," and if you stay neutral, your character is given the name "Occulus."
What I find interesting is that all three of these names seem to be spells in Harry Potter, with "Nox" being Nox, "Imperius" being the Imperius Curse, and "Occulus" being Occulus reparo. I find this interesting given that these are all spells in Harry Potter, and the Sith Inquisitor seems to be a mage class fighter, so being named after spells would make sense.
Not really sure if this was intentional, but it does seem a bit suspicious.
Next up is the name of the Duchess of Mandalore, Satine. I find a very interesting possible connection going on here.
I watched Moulin Rouge in a film class at school, and the love interest's name is Satine. Basically, a Duke is trying to court Satine, but she falls in love with Ewan McGreggor's character and eventually dies in his arms.
In TCW, the character Satine is a Duchess, a female duke, and falls in love with Obi-wan, who was played by Ewan McGreggor in the Prequel Trilogy, and eventually she dies in his arms.
Noticing a connection here? As with the last one, not sure if this was intentional, but it does seem suspicious.
Originally posted by Emperordmb
Next naming trend is for the Sith. The most common thing used in a Sith name aside from the title of Darth is the root "mal."There are four legitimate Sith names with "mal" at the beginning; Darth Malak, Darth Malgus, Darth Maladi, and Darth Maleval. And two fake Sith names in the mythos had "mal" heading them off as well; Darth Malitiae and Darth Malus. Even in my fanfic I am currently working on, there is a character named Darth Malvot.
The funny thing about that is that the latin root "mal" means bad. So essentially these Sith's names mean "Dark Bad Guy"... how cliche.
Maladi and Maleval are both based on words with Mal with a root, so no surprise there, what's sort of interesting is Malgus and Malak aren't words.
What I find interesting is that all three of these names seem to be spells in Harry Potter, with "Nox" being Nox, "Imperius" being the Imperius Curse, and "Occulus" being Occulus reparo. I find this interesting given that these are all spells in Harry Potter, and the Sith Inquisitor seems to be a mage class fighter, so being named after spells would make sense.
I think it's more a step up above those- Both the Inquisitor's name and HP are using latin/pseudo latin names.
Nox means Night (see your comments on darkness), Imperius would have to do with commanding, and Occulus watching.
Not really sure if this was intentional, but it does seem a bit suspicious. [/B][/QUOTE]
It's no coincidence. The SWTOR, Sith and Nightbrother naming conventions you describe share the same style as Harry Potter (MALfoy, anyone?) - using Latin roots or obscure English words whose meanings relate to the character, object, spell or whatever.
Maybe they are trying to help prepare kids for their SATs?
A few more nightbrother tidbits...
Savage used as a verb is also a synonym for maul, so these two brothers have names which mean the same thing.
Savage and feral are also synonyms, so Savage's name is synonymous with BOTH of his brother's names, although their names mean different things (albeit all three are thematically related).
Viscus is also related to savage and maul in that someone who has been mauled or savaged is quite likely to have his or her viscera damaged (or worse).
And thanks for teaching me a new word! I did not know that viscus was the singular form of viscera - It never occurred to me that viscera even had a singular form!
I also find it interesting that they gave Savage a French pronunciation. Were they trying to class him up, or give a nod to the French origin of his name. (Maul is also French derived.)
Nice catch with the Moulin Rouge reference. The TCW writers referenced a lot of movies, though the ones I've noticed have all been pretty obvious and all were related to Japanese cinema. Godzilla, Seven Samurai, Rashomon (I think), and another Kurosawa or two whose names escape me. I haven't caught one as clever as the Satine reference, but I'll bet there are many more out there. What others have people noticed?
Speaking of Rashomon, King of the Hill did an awesome tribute Rashomon tribute episode.
To be fair to Malak, that is an actual name. Means 'angel' in Hebrew. He's Darth Angel.
Originally posted by EmperordmbThat's actually kind of cute, I hope it was intentional.
Next up is the name of the Duchess of Mandalore, Satine. I find a very interesting possible connection going on here.I watched Moulin Rouge in a film class at school, and the love interest's name is Satine. Basically, a Duke is trying to court Satine, but she falls in love with Ewan McGreggor's character and eventually dies in his arms.
In TCW, the character Satine is a Duchess, a female duke, and falls in love with Obi-wan, who was played by Ewan McGreggor in the Prequel Trilogy, and eventually she dies in his arms.
Noticing a connection here? As with the last one, not sure if this was intentional, but it does seem suspicious.