I hope this thread is not completely dead.

A long time ago, in my high-school days, I remember being shown a neat little device to generate fantasy, alien, futuristic or other xenocultural names, that are nonetheless internally consistent (i.e. they all belong to the same cultural horizon).

For each distinct culture or "naming sphere" you:

(1) Draw up three columns.

(2) In the first column, write down, one underneath the other, 7 consonants of your choice. In the second column, write down 3 vowels of your choice. In the third column, write down the same 7 consonants you had before. (Sometimes I vary a couple of the letters in the first and third columns.)

(3) Use the resulting table to generate a set of consistent syllables, that you will combine to come up with your names.

So, for example:

k o k
w u w
v e v
d d
f f
l l
p p

This is your basic Different-Yet-Consistent-Name-O-Matic. To illustrate use, pulling a three syllable name off the sample table: "Pelweduk". Refine by snipping, slicing, dicing, massaging, punctuating (I'll avoid the thorny issue of apostrophes) as strikes your fancy to get the finished product --"Pelwedu". Repeat as neccessary.

Ok. It still does not entirely allow us to dispense with all our other devices (taste, ear, intuition, personal whimsy, a little bit of creative effort etc.), since, using the above table can lead you to names like: dukdokduk, fukvew etc.

But it does make the task of coming up with names easier, as, at the very least, it helps ensure that all the names generated sound like they originated from the same place/culture/language. Try it and see. No matter how strange a couple of syllables or names in isolation may seem, generate a couple of dozen, and you will realize that, when regarded as a group, you find a nice, solid, natural and real feeling about them.

To take it a step further, write out a "behind-the-scenes" glossary, with one to four syllable-words assigned to concepts that commonly make up place or people names ("iron", "hill", "big", "eagle", "moon", "orbital station", "victory" etc.) and so on. Then come up with the actual names (whether place or character) by combining these concepts "completely-piss-drunk-on-two- shots-of-tequila", "it-will-take-a-whole-lot-more-than-two-shots-to-floor-and-could-you-pass-me-the-limes-please"
etc.).

But, this latter bit seems to be a fairly widespread and well-known convention. It's the syllable-generator that I have not seen anywhere else. Is it old news?

-- jeet

Message #127 left by Jeet Sukumaran on Jan 18, 2000 at 4:23

Whoops. The layout of the sample table got mangled. Here it is again, with * serving as a placeholder in the vowel column:

k o k
w u w
v e v
d * d
f * f
l * l
p * p
 

Message #128 left by Thomas Ecclestone on Jan 19, 2000 at 9:08

Interesting. I used the technique to run off a new language in a few hours, and i might use it in world building for a novel.
 

Message #129 left by Mary on Jan 19, 2000 at 18:02

Never heard of it before, but I think it could have its uses.  Lends itself to a certain pattern of name, though; you can't get anything that looks Polish out of it. :)
 

Message #130 left by Jeet Sukumaran on Jan 20, 2000 at 1:26

re: fixed patterns of name --

Well, that is the underlying goal when using the system. :) However, I see what you mean--as I have outlined it above, the entire itself seems limited to a specific types of pattern, consisting of three letter syllables. But there is no reason for that--you can always get quite creative with the table. For example, there is no reason why your consonant list cannot look like:

q
t
th
gry
qu
f
p

So, to add a touch of Polish to your namespace, have "consonants" (what's the term for multiple consonants acting as one atomic linguistic unit?) that look like "wczy" or something.

Similarly, your vowel list can include diphthongs, apostrophes, or some symbol representing "a guttural sound, unpronouncable by humans" :).

You might also expand the consonant list, having a dozen or so consonants. Alternatively, you could have the basic seven commonly used consonants, and a few others others that are more rarely encountered (perhaps representing some historical linguistic "pollution" or "immigration" event, or maybe syllables with these are found only in a certain catogery of words/names,
e.g. in aristocratic names, or perhaps for names pertaining to people/places of religious significance).

As I mentioned, I first learnt this technique when I was in school, almost two decades ago. I wish I could attribute credit, but it has been a long time. I do believe that it came from an article in some fantasy gaming magazine (Dragon? Dragonslayer?), but that might just be my screen memory at work (with due nods to Freud).

The fact is, though, if that Electronic Book of Names that I found on this thread was available back then, I would hae probably used it in the place of this old-fashioned table method--the EBON is a real gem of packaged, automized creativity.

The table allows much more finer control though, and is flexible enough to have a wide range of applications (world-building exercises, for example, where you've got to name rivers and mountains and seas and cities and whatnot, is something that the table would be a better choice than the EBON). And it does not feel like cheating :).

-- jeet

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