Crowd-Sourcing for a Name

[Isaac]

Hey all!
Alright, so this is more of an Alternate-History Fiction issue rather than a Historical Fiction issue... sorry. Anyway, I have a fun little dilemma on my hands here. I can't think of a name for a war. I'm sure we've all had trouble with names at least once before, so please take pity on me and share some of your wonderful opinions!

A little background: All of my novels take place in an alternate history of our world, where the main divergence is that the Holy Roman Empire thrived for far longer and managed to unify most of Western Europe. Then, it collapsed. Three of the major states who rose from the ashes (for simplicity's sake think of them as Spain, Italy, and Germany) developed some territory issues and eventually wage a massive war on each other. Anyway, this war is a huge historical event that impacts most of my novels. But I can't decide on a name! I called it "The Great War," but I have had overwhelming feedback saying this confuses the "fake-ness" of the history, and only makes the reader unsure of the setting (it conjures up ideas of WWI, which is not too far off in terms of scale and timing). I've come up with a list of alternatives.
Triskele War
Triskelion War
Triperion War
Triperium War
Triquetra War
Any feedback or opinions would be much appreciated! Thank you all in advance!!!!

[Isaac]

Ah, it also may help to know about the logic behind each name. They aren't just made up for giggles.
Triskele/Triskelion = Two different names for the same symbol motif. Greek roots meaning "three-legged." The symbol is three spirals or other "appendages" rotating into a middle meeting point.
Triperium = Latin roots meaning "three-empires." No known historical context/made up by yours truly.
Triperion = Alternative spelling/adaptation of Triperium. Also made up by me.
Triquetra = Latin roots meaning "three-cornered." Symbol is three leaf shapes overlapping, often interwoven, to form a triangle. Adding a circle makes the familiar Celtic Knot. Symbol is common in multiple religions.
Don't know if that helps your decision, just letting y'all know!

[Lance]

Most real wars are typically named for the participants (Franco-Prussian War, the Punic Wars), the year(s) in which they started or were fought (the War of 1812), the length of time they took up (the Seven Years War, the Thirty Years War), or, if the war is central to a nation's political or social mythology, a name assigned by the keepers of the ideology (the Great Patriotic War, the American Revolution). They'e very rarely named for abstract symbols or concepts that need more than a couple words to explain.

If you want this war to have a name that feels right, I'd suggest you go through the real history of the period for your novel and look at what the real wars were called, then adapt something for your own use.

Also keep in mind that the winners and losers may have different names for the war.

[Lise]

I agree; the simpler the better. The Great War, The Hunger Games, World War, The Anarchy, etc.
So, The Holy War perhaps?

[Mike]

What Lance said. Research the common factors in war names and figure it out from there. If the war is something referred to in little detail, the name definitely needs to clarify the essence of the conflict and avoid being too abstract.