Naming customs

**Naming customs** in Odesha differ from that in the real world. Most Odeshan names consist solely of one given name, however nobles hold last names as well as first names. Many people can also hold titles as well.

## Types

### Given names

A given name is the name that a person is given by their parents when they're born. It is the name the person is primarily referred to as throughout their life. Every Odeshan, regardless of class or house, must have a given name. However, the style of given names differs based on the region.

#### Dachlar

In Dachlar, the style of given names primarily follows the trends set by House Westerwind. Names are often very Slavic-sounding, with a heavy amount of "n", "v", and "i". Names are often short as well, with the longest of names only having about three syllables.

#### Dagsgarden

In Dagsgarden, there aren't many evident trends of naming. However, for House Forne, it is tradition to name children after plants or flowers. This isn't practiced for minor houses or commoners though.

#### Heavensrock

In Heavensrock, there aren't many trends for naming and each individual family generally has their own traditions for naming. However, House Morrowjack, the ruling house of Heavensrock, typically names their children with long names involving many vowels, such as "u", "a", and "e".

#### Kale

In Kale, names aren't considered a very important thing. While it is law for everyone to have a name, it is common for non-nobles to simply be given the name of their mother or father, based on gender. This is true for some houses as well. House Bransdott is an exception, instead simply giving names that often include "r", "n", "s", and "m".

#### Kingshead

Naming in Kingshead is the most diverse of the eight regions. There are largely no known traditions for naming, and each family names their children whatever they'd like, often borrowing from other cultures, especially those from the neighboring regions of Kale and Whitewaters. However, for the royal house of House Amberbrook, names often have hard sounds in them, such as "k", "v", "t", and "g".

#### Mark

By law, in Mark all female names must end with "a" and all male names must end in "o". Mark society could be considered matriarchal by many, and thus many times girls are given traditional names of their ancestors to continue the lineage, while boys are given creative names. For the ruling house of House Pyrestarke, many names include soft sounds, such as "l", "m", "n", and "u".

#### Paradiso

In Paradiso, naming is a very important thing and people often have parties for the announcing of the names of their newborn children. Oftentimes, names are chosen because of their beauty and are not common anywhere else in Odesha, and so names in Paradiso are easily distinguishable and thought of as "odd" by others. Names are often Latin-sounding.

#### Whitewaters

In Whitewaters, children are often named after things that remind their parents of them. However, this is not true for the ruling house of House Remnall, which names their children with Germanic-sounding names.

### Surnames

Legally, only a noble can possess a surname in Odesha. Commoners and other people not belonging to a house cannot have a surname. To distinguish between two commoners with the same given name, one would use their father's surname as a distinguisher. For example, "Karl Jonson" versus "Karl Karlson".

Nobles possess the surname of the house they belong to. All members of House Amberbrook, would thus possess Amberbrook as their surname. Typically, a noble will change their surname to their spouse's depending on where they will live as a couple. However, this can be the wife changing her surname to her husband's or vice versa. A noble can retain their originally surname if they'd like as well.

For children born out of wedlock to either a noble and a commoner or two nobles, they must possess the surname "Black" by law. This is seen as a way to shame bastard children, as being a bastard is considered disgusting and very lower-class in Odesha. Typically, these children are raised as commoners (unless born to two nobles, although that is much rarer) and never learn of their noble parent.

### Titles

Titles can be acquired through inheritance or by nomination by a noble. The titles that can be inherited are "king/queen", "lord/lady", "duke/duchess", and "baron/baroness". The Kingdom of Odesha is ruled by a king or queen, while each of the Great Noble Houses are ruled by a lord or lady, the noble houses are ruled by a duke or duchess, and the minor houses are ruled by a baron or baroness. At the death of the titleholder, their oldest eligible heir inherits the title. For many houses, only a male can inherit these titles and thus the female equivalent are titles only obtainable by marriage. However, for some houses (such as House Pyrestarke) only a woman can rule, and thus the male equivalents can only be obtained through nomination. There are also several houses where either a male or female can rule. Many houses also require a child to be a certain age before they can rule in their own right, and thus someone else (usually the child's mother) rules until then. An example of this is in House Remnall.

All of the titles listed above can also be achieved through nomination (nearly always through marriage). Other titles that can be achieved through nomination include sir/dame and castellan. A sir or dame is a member of the knighthood while a castellan is the governor of a city, and is appointed by the ruling house's lord or lady. Most often, the title of sir or dame are given to lower-level nobles or commoners who've proved themselves worthy. Castellans are normally commoners who've sworn their allegiance to a certain house and are thus permitted to reside in the castle.