: Re: Coming up with names for species in fiction? When you are writing a story that is set in a fantasy world (maybe our world with just one made-up element, or a completely different world), what
Any species you invent will have characteristics. Find yourself a creature with similar characteristics, get a good dictionary, and follow the etymology.
Using you 'hawk' example, the etymology says that the OE was habuc or heafoc; midle Dutch was hawic or havic, High German was habuh and Middle German habech: the Norse was hauk-r.
Take any of those, and form your species name from it. Your hawk could, as an example, be a hauch'r, a heafic, or something similar.
There is no special reason for using etymology. I happen to like it, that is all, so you could adapt it for personal taste (foreign words, random Scrabble tiles, etc) as long as it serves to get ideas flowing.
More posts by @Jessie137
: Using Latin words in fantasy I have seen at least a few cases of Latin being used in both fantasy and scifi, and I wonder how it is perceived and how much is tolerated. Being primarily a
: How to use today's moral compass in fantasy? During Roman and medieval times the use of slaves was very common in most civilizations. Crimes often carried punishments that would fall under "cruel
Terms of Use Privacy policy Contact About Cancellation policy © selfpublishingguru.com2024 All Rights reserved.