Reading Joe's post below, I remembered that I really like the name Ilyena. It is, to my mind, the best of the made-up names of Robert Jordan's books. And science fiction and fantasy suffers under a tendency to make up some stupid names, frequently unpronounceable, which only seem to be there to make it clear that we are not talking about the real world. Being slightly obsessed with how words sound and also how names fit things, this is something I find rather distressing.
For it to be a made up name, doesn't it have to have been made up for the book and not an existing name?
Helen Mirren, for example, is of Russian descent and her first name at birth was Ilyena.
So.
-What is your favourite made-up name in a work of fiction?
-What is the worst example you can think of?
I can't think of either off hand. I just wanted to be a smartarse and point out that Ileyna isn't a made up name. Or at least not made up by Jordan
Broadly speaking though, I tend to prefer names that are varients on real world ones.
*MySmiley*
Robert Graves "There is no money in poetry, but then there is no poetry in money, either."
Henning Mankell "We must defend the open society, because if we start locking our doors, if we let fear decide, the person who committed the act of terror will win"
Robert Graves "There is no money in poetry, but then there is no poetry in money, either."
Henning Mankell "We must defend the open society, because if we start locking our doors, if we let fear decide, the person who committed the act of terror will win"
Good names
- 19/09/2010 11:25:23 AM
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Hmm.
- 19/09/2010 02:03:49 PM
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Awww
- 19/09/2010 02:06:44 PM
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It makes sense for him, though.
- 19/09/2010 02:12:23 PM
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Re: It makes sense for him, though.
- 19/09/2010 02:14:36 PM
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Re: It makes sense for him, though.
- 19/09/2010 02:19:07 PM
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sorry to keep nitpicking
- 19/09/2010 02:40:35 PM
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Re: sorry to keep nitpicking
- 19/09/2010 02:42:45 PM
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Re: sorry to keep nitpicking
- 19/09/2010 02:44:32 PM
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Mat and Elayne and Thom are pretty recognizable as English names *NM*
- 19/09/2010 04:32:20 PM
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I actually rather like David Eddings' names.
- 19/09/2010 02:26:52 PM
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Ce'Nedra is one of the rare cases where the apostrophe is justified.
- 19/09/2010 04:16:51 PM
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Nynaeve ("Neigh-neev" )
- 19/09/2010 02:45:22 PM
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Mild-may-your-sufferings-be-at-the-hands-of-the-wicked.
- 19/09/2010 04:18:31 PM
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iain m banks has some great names...
- 19/09/2010 04:52:49 PM
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I was grumbling to myself about his names last night
- 19/09/2010 04:56:44 PM
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hehe... sometimes i just make up my own nicknmes when his are too long
- 21/09/2010 04:37:43 PM
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- 21/09/2010 04:37:43 PM
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I've always been quite impressed by Anomander Rake.
- 19/09/2010 10:05:10 PM
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I like that the older beings in Malazan have varying names (e.g. Anomandaris Purake). *NM*
- 20/09/2010 02:20:15 AM
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I was going to mention that one myself, too. Just rolls right off the tongue. Delicious. *NM*
- 20/09/2010 06:13:10 AM
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Robb Hobb has the easiest names in the Fitz series 
*NM*
- 20/09/2010 03:50:07 AM
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*NM*
- 20/09/2010 03:50:07 AM
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oh man, i don't know how i forgot robin hobb...... i adore her names. especially nighteyes. *NM*
- 21/09/2010 04:31:33 PM
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A Song of Ice and Fire tends to have good names. Grounded, but just exotic enough. *NM*
- 20/09/2010 06:14:13 AM
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I don't know who has the best names overall, but I'll always love the name Bellatrix Lestrange.
- 20/09/2010 07:12:18 PM
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