Alien names, second try

[beccaelizabeth]

Nobody thinks Darwin sounds like an alien. Fair enough.

Poll #9352 Name for an offworlder

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 5

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Do these names sound like an offworlder

View Answers

Yorath
4 (100.0%)

Yash
3 (75.0%)

Yale
1 (25.0%)

Which do you like best for our biologist

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Yorath
3 (60.0%)

Yash
2 (40.0%)

Yale
0 (0.0%)

Comments

[ceruleancat]

What Adam said, and more so, since he's ultimately thinking of human cultures and languages. Without the 'here they call him x' provisio, there's a built in assumption that not only the alien's naming system is similar to human's, but their basic communication method is oral-phonetic with the same phonetic range as a human's vocal system. While my cat knows that I'm talking to him when I say Sammy, I have no idea what he calls himself, or what other cats call him (T.S. Eliot notwithstanding). And even if I can identify some sort of meowling which I associate with Maya calling for him, I not only have no idea it that's a name or just 'where are you', I can't even pronounce it, let alone represent it in writing. So, he's Sammy, but I know that's our human name, to facilitate inter-species communication. And he's at least making sounds in my hearing range.

[beccaelizabeth]

*nods* for properly alien aliens.
For this post I meant offworld humans, humans of another culture that branched thousands of years ago and possibly pre writing.
But it is important, with alien naming, to remember they wouldn't have the same invisible lines that readers are used to. And then balance that with something an actor or reader is going to have to deal with :-)