Return to Azhkendir – an occasional work-in-progress blog

What's In A Name?

Names are very important to me when starting out on a new story. If the name I've chosen for a character or a place is wrong, then the story often stalls until I change it and get it right.

Gavril started out as Tian Andar. That name just didn't suit him at all. Because all my fantasy stories feel more like alternate histories, I want to give each country an identity of its own – and names to match. So it made sense for Gavril – the son of an Azhkendi ruler and a Smarnan artist – to have an Eastern European name.

And now that I've returned to Azhkendir and am writing – for my own pleasure (and I hope that of all those of you who have been kind enough to ask me 'What happened next?') – I find myself introducing new characters and searching diligently for new names that will suit them.

So here are a few Azhkendi names (originally from Eastern Europe/Russia) and their meanings:

Larisa Nagarian (daughter of Gavril and Kiukiu) – sea bird, sea gull

Vartik – friend of Vassily, Bogatyr Askold's younger son

Kion – martyr (Ninusha's son with Anders)

Krasa – beautiful (Gavril's roan mare)