Traditional Names
Posted by Apostate on 11/10/19
Q: There's lots of Graysons named 'alar'whatever. I assume most people recognize that goes back to Alar I, and even people who don't really know their history would assume Alarice. There are a number of historical Islands characters whose names start with Don-. Donris Ashcrest, Donrai and Donerian Thrax. (Gilroy's secret includes Donrall Marin, but dubious canonicity at this point.) Is there an Islands hero with a Don- name that lead to that? It doesn't seem to reflect in PC names, but are there lots of Vals in the North, Pro- or -ellas in the Lyceum and whatever you'd do with Sugan in the Oathlands?
A:While the similarities to Alar I are more broadly recognized in the Crownlands, the etymology of the Donr- names in the Mourning Isles is less clear, and there's been three different plausible explanations for the origins, but none are agreed upon by the entire isles.
Donralerius Thrax, the Woe Bringer. The father of Aposyr Thrax, Donralerius fought alongside of Koraj Marin, and survived the destruction of the Marin Fleet. He is said to have organized the surviving Islander houses into a defense that temporarily broke the demonic onslaught at the Battle of the Screaming Dawn on the walls of Maelstrom, where he himself succumbed to his wounds after personally slaying Ulth'ral'vyx the Silent Scream. His dying directive was for his son Aposyr, now King of the Mourning Isles, to bend the knee to Alar and join the Compact. But the legend says he turned to dust after giving those words, and some argue he never actually existed.
The second possibility is Donra Thrax, the daughter of Aposyr who acted as his voice and helped oversee the reconquest and rebuilding of the Mourning Isles through the first century of the Compact, as Aposyr ruled well into his nineties, and was highlord in all but name for the last two decades of his life. Along with her great-niece Marie Thrax, the two established much of the cultural traditions in the Isles.
Donryl, the great, great grandson of Donra, is the third possibility, as a particularly powerful highlord that oversaw Thrax's rise during a period of a weakening monarchy where Thrax operated closer to an independent kingdom. Thrax won wars against every great house save the Lyceum under Donryl, and even directly led to one of the few historical alliances between the Oathlands and the Northlands when Donryl sieged both Sanctum and Farhaven simultaneously. As much of the history of his era has been lost (roughly 200-300 AR), but it's often seen in the Isles that if he had not been assassinated, he could conquered a significant portion of the Compact. Contrarian views outside of the Isles point out that he was mostly capitalizing upon the wars of other great houses, and some believe he was assassinated by Mourning Islanders, as the invasion and destruction of the Isles was imminent.
A:While the similarities to Alar I are more broadly recognized in the Crownlands, the etymology of the Donr- names in the Mourning Isles is less clear, and there's been three different plausible explanations for the origins, but none are agreed upon by the entire isles.
Donralerius Thrax, the Woe Bringer. The father of Aposyr Thrax, Donralerius fought alongside of Koraj Marin, and survived the destruction of the Marin Fleet. He is said to have organized the surviving Islander houses into a defense that temporarily broke the demonic onslaught at the Battle of the Screaming Dawn on the walls of Maelstrom, where he himself succumbed to his wounds after personally slaying Ulth'ral'vyx the Silent Scream. His dying directive was for his son Aposyr, now King of the Mourning Isles, to bend the knee to Alar and join the Compact. But the legend says he turned to dust after giving those words, and some argue he never actually existed.
The second possibility is Donra Thrax, the daughter of Aposyr who acted as his voice and helped oversee the reconquest and rebuilding of the Mourning Isles through the first century of the Compact, as Aposyr ruled well into his nineties, and was highlord in all but name for the last two decades of his life. Along with her great-niece Marie Thrax, the two established much of the cultural traditions in the Isles.
Donryl, the great, great grandson of Donra, is the third possibility, as a particularly powerful highlord that oversaw Thrax's rise during a period of a weakening monarchy where Thrax operated closer to an independent kingdom. Thrax won wars against every great house save the Lyceum under Donryl, and even directly led to one of the few historical alliances between the Oathlands and the Northlands when Donryl sieged both Sanctum and Farhaven simultaneously. As much of the history of his era has been lost (roughly 200-300 AR), but it's often seen in the Isles that if he had not been assassinated, he could conquered a significant portion of the Compact. Contrarian views outside of the Isles point out that he was mostly capitalizing upon the wars of other great houses, and some believe he was assassinated by Mourning Islanders, as the invasion and destruction of the Isles was imminent.