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3.5: Random Names

Aginor: "Recently, a friend of mine had to read the Iliad. In book 21, a character named Agenor attacks Achilles, and is defeated. Not much is said about him (Agenor) other than that he is "blameless and powerful", and knew that Hektor was stronger than he was. He attacked anyway, figuring that while Hektor was much more combat-capable, Agenor had the gods on his side, not to mention the fact that even the powerful make mistakes. In a few minutes, Hektor defeats Agenor, and Apollo surrounds the loser "in a thick mist", and transports him back to Troy. Some interesting parallels between this and TEOTW's final battle: Each Aginor knew that his opponent was more powerful. Both were full of pride. Both attacked anyway." [Mike O'Malley]

Anath: Anath was a Canaanite deity, a war goddess, a goddess who was believed to insatiable in her lusts. She was also linked to Baal (Bhaal) as his sister and consort. Her lust for blood and/or sex was legendary. Now, Bhaal was one of the Canaanite pantheon that the Hebrews had such a good time demonizing. However, those fun Canaanites worshiped Baal by sacrificing children to him, so he didn't need much vilifying anyway. [Rich Boye]

Asmodean: A demon described in the Old Testament book of Tobit, which is included only in the Catholic canon of scriptures (you won't find it in Jewish or Protestant Bibles; it's considered apocrypha in those circles). In the book of Tobit, Sara had been married seven times, but Asmodeus had slain all of them before they could consummate their marriage (Tobit 3:7-8). Sara eventually married Tobias, the son of Tobit, who was able to banish Asmodeus by burning the heart and liver of a special fish given to him by the angel Raphael in their bedchamber (Tobit 6:16-17, 8:2-3). Asmodeus fled to Egypt, where Raphael caught up with him and bound him up. [Rafael Sevilla]

Ba'alzamon: Ba'al, Baelzebub, or Ba'al Shamin (literally, "the lord of the heavens," an appellation of Ba'al.) Baelzebub, Lord of the Flies, was an ancient Canaanite fertility deity that competed with worship of Yahweh in Old Testament times. Later became a euphemism for the devil from the time of Christ on (see Matthew 10:24, 12:24-27, Mark 3:22, and Luke 11:15-18) from its similarity to Aramaic beeldebaba = enemy, and from the fact that many ancient pagan gods were demonized in Christian times anyway. [Rafeal Sevilla]

Be'lal: Belial, literally means "worthless" in Hebrew, "sons of Belial" is used throughout the Bible to denote evil men. Eventually becomes the name of a demon in Medieval times. [Rafael Sevilla] Belial was often noted as commanding legions, and has been referred to as the general of Hell. Be'lal was one of the noted generals of the Shadow. [John Novak]

Bel Tine: Beltane, a Druidic holiday

Birgitte: Brigit/Brigid, Celtic goddess of fire, poetry, smithery, and/or healing.

Cyndane: Cynthia, a poetic name for Artemis, the Greek Moon Goddess, who also was identified with Selena (see below). [Rich Boye]

Eamon Valda: The current leader of the Whitecloaks may have gotten his name from Eamon de Valera, an Irish statesman (1882-1975) who was variously president of Sinn Fein, Dail Eireann, and Ireland itself during his political career (in between bouts of imprisonment and exile). [Stephen Cooper]

Graendal: Grendal from Beowulf

Illian: Ilion, aka Troy, as in the Iliad

Illuminators: a secret closed society whose technology is going to change the world, causing many deaths, etc., are Jordan's precursors to the modern Illuminati mythos [Mike Hoye, originally credited to Jeff Smith].

Ishamael: Ishmael: In Genesis, Abraham's eldest son (to an Egyptian serving girl Hagar) was called Ishmael. Apparently Abraham's wife took a disliking to young Ishmael and pressured Big Abe into exiling Ish and Hagar into the desert. The name literally means "God has Heard," because God is said to have heard of mother and son's plight at Sarah's hand. Jordan seems to have a taste for irony, methinks, as Ishamael is called the Betrayer of Hope! The whole quote about "every hand raised against him" is interesting, and in full:

"You are now with child and you will have a son. You shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard of your misery. He will be a wild donkey of a man, his hand will be against everyone and everyone's hand against him, and he will live in hostility towards all of his brothers." [Bible: Genesis 16:11-12]

Jehennah: Gehennah, a place of fire and torment. Literally "Place of Torment." A valley near Jerusalem where Solomon, king of Israel, built "a high place", or place of worship, for the gods Chemosh and Moloch. The valley came to be regarded as a place of abomination because some of the Israelites sacrificed their children to Moloch there. In a later period it was made a refuse dump and perpetual fires were maintained there to prevent pestilence. Thus, in the New Testament, Gehenna became synonymous with hell [Encyclopedia Mythica]. In the novels, Jehennah is a poorly run city, filled with mobs and low-class sorts.

Jearom: The greatest swordsman who ever lived, who suffered his only defeat at the hands of a farmer armed with a quarterstaff. Erin O'Toole suggests that RJ's inspiration for that was Miyamoto Musashi, the kensai (sword saint) of Japan. In "Musashi" by Eiji Yokohawa, his bout with the farmer is clearly documented.

Lanfear: French "l'enfer," the word for Hell.

Lews Therin/Lord of the Morning: Lucifer--the morning star

Lothair Mantelar (Founder of Children of Light): Martin Luther?

Masema: I actually came across a reference to a demon named Mastema, which seems to have been an apocryphal name for Satan-- Satan in the sense of Chief Accuser, rather than corruptor. [John Novak] Bill Kte'pi notes that Mastema appears in the Book of Jubilees as the head of the demons. Apparently he is involved with testing Abraham. Jubilees is part of the Pseudepigrapha [Gr.,"things falsely ascribed"], a collection of early Jewish and some Jewish-Christian writings composed between c.200 B.C. and c.A.D. 200, not found in the Bible or rabbinic writings.

Mayene: Mayenne (1573, D F): for Charles de Lorraine-Guise, FP. Passed to Gonzaga 1621. Sold 1658 to La Porte-Mazarin. The title of duke remained by special clause in the letters patent, and became extinct in 1738. Essentially, Mayenne was a small, royal land-grant from the French Crown, that was near the Riviera. [Richard Boye']

Mesaana: Possibly from Messalina, the notorious third wife of Tiberius Claudius Drusus Nero Germanicus, Emperor of Rome.

M'Hael: a possible reference to Michael the Archangel who was Lucifer's chief opponent. (Technically, this shouldn't be in the "Names" section, but I put it here to provide easy comparison with the Lews/Lucifer idea.) Michael, an archangel, was the great prince of all angels and leader of the celestial armies. [Encyclopedia Mythica] Amnon Wenger adds that the Hebrew word "m'nahael" means "principal" or "person in charge".

Neferi: Nefertiti or Nefretete, c. 1372-1350 B.C., queen of ancient Egypt; wife of Ikhnaton (XVIII dynasty) and aunt of Tutankhamen.

Olver: Oliver Twist?

Paaren Disen: Paradise

Perun: Pre-Christian Slavonic (Balkan) god of thunder. His sacred animal was the bull. A war god, Perun's weapons were the axe, the hammer, or "thunder arrows," all which symbolize thunder and lightning. [Rich Boye]. Fred Van Keuls adds: "He was a god of defensive warfare and was depicted with a big blonde beard." Jean Dufresne adds: "Those are his attributes as they had already drifted away from his original role, following the Norse influence on the slavic peoples. Originally, he also had a strong agricultural component mixed with the rest. Which makes him even closer to Perrin than Thor is."

Rahvin: the raven--harbinger of evil. Or, Ravana/Ravan, a demon in Hindu mythology who abducts Sita, Rama's wife, in the Ramayana. (cf Morgase and Sita: Both Queens, both fall under the power of a demon/forsaken, in both cases there are doubts by other characters about whether they were willing or no) [Emma Pease].

"Rhiannon at the Tower": Rhiannon from Welsh mythology. The closest connection between her and a tower that I could find is the following from the story of Manawyddan: Manawyddan, his wife Rhiannon, her son Pryderi, and his wife Kicva were out hunting. They came upon a mysterious castle. Their hounds ran into the castle, and didn't come out. Pryderi went in after them, and saw a large gold bowl. He touched the bowl, and became frozen. After a while, Rhiannon went in to look for him, got similarly stuck, and then the castle disappeared. (They finally got released.)

Saldaea: Chaldaea, region of the Assyrian and Babylonian empires.

Sammael: Either a member of Lucifer's host, or another name for Lucifer himself (depending on one's source). Jeremy Yoskowitz adds that "Samael" is an earlier name for Uriel, the angel of death from the Kabbalah.

Selene: Selena, a Greek goddess of the moon, (Hence the icon) merged in Artemis and Hecate. She loved a youth named Endymion, and put him into a deep sleep so that he would not be conscious of her caresses.

Semirhage: Legendary Assyrian queen mentioned by Herodotus, wife and successor to Ninus, mythical founder of Nineveh. Noted for being so excessively lustful and depraved she even legalized incest within her realm. Dante Alighieri puts her in the Second Circle of Hell with those who committed the sin of lust.

Shai...: (well you KNOW who this is) : Satan. Will Baird notes that Shai... is the Arabic name for Satan literally. Jay Wiggins adds, "In popular Shiism, the Shai... is regarded as a pathetic figure, appealing to God for things humans are acquiring (mosques, prophets) that he wants for himself, i.e., someone inextricably linked to the trivial trappings of material goods and ignorant of the deeper, more spiritual side of existence."

Shayol Ghul: Sheol: Hebrew for hell; Ghul: Gol or Gul, Arabic for Demon

Tamyrlin: Tamerlane, aka Timur (1336-1405), a Mongol conqueror who ravaged most of Southwest Asia. Though given to atrocities like mass slaughter, his positive achievements were the encouragement of art, literature, and science - and "the construction of vast public works". Choedan Kal-sized, maybe... [Pam Korda]

Tarmon Gai'don: Armageddon

Telamon: another character in the Iliad who we might recognize is Aias, (Roman: Ajax) one of the most powerful and respected warriors of the Greek army. Because there was another, unrelated warrior with the same name, Aias was also known by his father's name, Telamon. [Peter Smalley]

Tuatha'an: Tuatha De Danann, "People of the Goddess Danu." A magical race of beings who were supposed to have inhabited Ireland at the time of the arrival of the Milesians (i.e. humans).

Wild Hunt: Wild Hunt, of Celtic legend. The Wild Hunt is a supernatural force that sweeps across the land at night. The actual object of the Hunt varies from place to place. In some areas it searches for anything that might be unfortunate enough to be in its path. Others say it hunts evildoers. The leader of the Hunt also varies. In Celtic Britain it is usually led by Cernunnos, the horned god. In Wales it is led by Gwyn ap Nudd, and sometimes Bran. After the Anglo-Saxons had settled in England, Cernunnos became Herne the Hunter. The Wild Hunt also appears in Teutonic myth, its leader being Woden or Odin. [Encyclopedia Mythica]

Heroes of the Horn, from [ACOS: 21, Swovan Night, 362]:

• Mikel of the Pure Heart: Archangel Michael?
• Shivan the Hunter, Calian: "He was said to herald the end of Ages, the destruction of what had been and the birth of what was to be, he and his sister Calian, called the Chooser, who rode red-masked at his side.": two Hindu deities: Shiva the Destroyer and Kali, goddess of death.
• Amaresu, with the Sword of the Sun: Amaterasu, ancient Japanese goddess of the sun, from whom the Japanese royal family claims descent.
• Otarrin: "Otarrin instead of Oscar" could refer to an Irish folk hero, and member of the Fianna. He is either the son or the grandson of Fionn McCool (varies in different stories), whose mother was a nature spirit who took the form of a stag. He was allegedly the greatest of heroes, who held back the forces of hell themselves at one point, thanks to a boon he was once granted of a strap on his flail that would never break. [Ciaran Conliffe]

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