#avvar lore

It’s clearly inspired by the Icelandic name structure (which has been used by all Nordic countries in the past but continues to be actively used by just Icelanders). In real life, it goes “-son” for a son, and “-dóttir” for a daughter. Recently, the suffix “-bur”, meaning "child of", received official recognition and can be used by non-binary people. Icelandic surnames are typically patronymic (based on the father’s first name), occasionally matronymic (based on the mother’s first name). Some people use both a matronymic and a patronymic.

Back to the world of Thedas… It’s not decisively said which one of the parents, the mother or the father, is the source of the name, and if the rules are universal across all Avvar communities.

DA tabletop RPG guides do present some answers to this question, but it needs to be noted that:

A: TTRPG guides were written by Green Ronin (an external company specialising in tabletop RPGs) on the basis of lore provided to them by BioWare, but it’s not known which elements came directly from BioWare and which were created by Green Ronin, and that makes it hard to say if the new lore additions are 100% in line with BioWare’s vision.

B: the naming structure from the older TTRPG guides, “Blood in Ferelden” and “Player’s Guide Set 1”, has not been applied to any of the Avvar characters from the main canon and appears to have been phased out

C: the explanation from the newer TTRPG guide, “Core Rulebook”, appears to have been adjusted to fit the main canon (particularly the Jaws of Hakkon DLC that was released in 2015), however, one of the naming rules it lists is difficult to verify against the main canon sources

“Player’s Guide Set 1” (p. 31) says the following:

“ Avvar names have three parts: first name, byname, and clan name. The clans are matrilineal (as they say, one’s mother is obvious to all), so the byname indicates an Avvar’s mother by use of “An” (daughter of) or “Ar” (son of) and then the clan’s name.”

As I mentioned, this naming structure has not really been used outside of the Green Ronin’s tabletop guides, so I’m not going to focus on it right now (I’ll return to it at the end of this section).

“Core Rulebook” (p.42) says instead:

“Avvar go by two names, a first name and either a byname or a legend-mark. First names are roughly Nordic or Germanic inspired. Bynames indicate the parent of the same gender as the child with “sen” for son or “dotten” for daughter.”

“sen” and “dotten” were indeed used in the main canon, so I assume that the TTRPG guide updated its infobox because of the Jaws of Hakkon DLC (most of the Core Rulebook conveys the same information as the older Player’s Guide, with notable exceptions such as this). However, there’s no clear evidence that “bynames indicate the parent of the same gender as the child” is a rule used in the Avvar communities.

Let’s now take a look at the Jaws of Hakkon DLC, which I generally believe to be the vision of the Avvar as BioWare wished to present them to the audience.

Examples of Avvar surnames:

Stone-Bear Hold:

Finn Caldansen – his father was Caldan Enversen

Fullna Hethsdotten – her father was Heth Mule’s-Head

Arvid Rolfsen & Helsdim Rolfsen – their parents are not identified; Rolf is a masculine name, thus likely indicating a father (also it’s not made explicit if Arvid and Helsdim are brothers, or if their fathers simply have the same first name)

Arrken Feldsen – his parents are not identified; Feld is not an existing first name

Caldan Enversen – his parents are not identified; Enver is a masculine name

Gulda Elsdotten – her parents are not identified; El is a masculine name (there’s a possibility it might stem from Elsa instead, which is a feminine name)

Gyda Myrdotten – her parents are not identified; Myr is not an existing first name

Ivar Jerriksen – his parents are not identified; Jerrik is a masculine name

Runa Lyrsdotten – her parents are not identified; Lyr is not an existing first name

Sigrid Gulsdotten – her parents are not identified; Gul is not an existing first name

Svarah Janesdotten – her parents are not identified; Jane is a feminine name

Jaws of Hakkon, formerly Red-Lion Hold:

Gurd Harofsen – his father was Harof Talespinner

Unspecified hold

Ivatt Jovsen – his parents are not identified

Rekkas Hildsen – his parents are not identified; “Hild” might stem from Hilda, a feminine first name (that’d mean Rekkas was using his mother’s name as a surname) 

Virmik Torsen – his parents are not identified; Tor is a masculine name

Seddra Yildsdotten – her parents are not identified; Yild is not an existing first name

The sample size is rather small, so it’s impossible to definitively declare what kind of a rule do people of Stone-Bear Hold (or other Avvar holds, for that matter) follow when it comes to creating surnames. Among the characters whose parents are identified, all of them bear surnames derived from their fathers’ names.

There is only one woman with a given surname whose parentage is established, namely Fullna Hethsdotten. She identifies herself as a daughter, yet her surname is created using her father’s name as the basis – so it doesn’t follow the “bynames indicate the parent of the same gender as the child” rule presented in the “Core Rulebook” (I’ll be calling it the “same-gendered parent” rule from now on. There’s a possibility that she’s supposed to be an exception; perhaps because her father earned himself a legend-mark (a derogatory one, but a legend-mark still) and this supersedes the usual naming traditions. Or perhaps her mother died early, or left the hold, or did something else that led Fulna to taking her father’s name for the surname – instead of her mother’s name as the “Core Rulebook” claims is customary.

Examining the names of characters whose parents are not identified isn’t especially helpful, since many of their surnames are based on first names that don’t seem to exist in real life, e.g. Feld, Lyr, Myr, Gul, Yild; and so it’s unclear whether they’re supposed to be feminine or masculine, and consequently which parent they’re meant to indicate. Out of the few character names that do offer such clues, we’ve got : Rolfsen (fits the “same-gendered parent” rule), Enversen (fits the rule), Elsdotten (may or may not fit the rule), Jerriksen (fits the rule), Janesdotten (fits the rule, and would be the only example of a woman’s surname being based on her mother’s first name), Hildsen (goes against the rule), Torsen (fits the rule).

On another note, you can notice that in women’s surnames, the suffix “-dotten” is usually preceded by the letter “s” (e.g. Hethsdotten, Lyrsdotten, Gulsdotten, Janesdotten, Yildsdotten). The one exception is Gyda’s surname, Myrdotten. I’m pretty sure that this “s” serves as a possessive ‘s; e.g. Fullna is Heth’s daughter => Hethsdotten. This is how Icelandic names are formed, e.g. Einar’s daughter would have the surname Einarsdóttir. In case of male Avvar surnames, possessive “s” + “sen” might’ve become contracted to just “sen”; e.g. Finn is Caldan’s son => Caldanssen => Caldansen. In real life, there’s no contraction, e.g. Einar’s son would be called Einarsson.

Let’s check out the seemingly retired name structure that has been featured in the older TTRPG guide. As I explained, the new guide makes no mention of it, and the main canon sources have never followed it. The basic rule goes like this:

“An” = daughter of

“Ar” = son of

So the old TTRPG guide claims that the clans who use “ar/an” name structure are matrilineal… but even the example they give doesn’t seem to be following that rule.

Arcill Ar Dubne – example of an Avvar name; it means that Arcill is the son of Dubne, yet Dubne is listed as a male name

Kothag Ar Daeorn – appears in the “Buried Pasts” adventure; his father is Thane Daeorn

Azur Ar Brosna – his parent are not identified; Brosna is likely a feminine name

Balan Ar Malad – his parent are not identified; Malad is not an existing first name

Lowenna an Aenor – her parent are not identified; Aenor is a feminine name

Owyne Ar Rainne – his parent are not identified; Rainne is not an existing first name

Visant Ar Norig – his parent are not identified; Norig is a feminine name

So are the clans that use this name structure actually matrilineal? Who knows…

As a side note, Kell ap Morgan, an Avvar Grey Warden from the second DA novel, “The Calling”, bears a unique name, falling neither into the “sen/dotten” nor “ar/an” category. It uses yet another term “ap”, though its in-universe significance isn’t made explicit. “ap” was likely inspired by Welsh surnames. Historically, Welsh people utilized patronymics, which were formed in the following way: “ap” or “ab” meant “son of”, while “ferch” meant “daughter of”. In the early DA installments, such as the first game and the novels written by David Gaider (including the aforementioned “The Calling”), a lot of elements of Avvar&Alamarri cultures were borrowed from real-life Celtic nations (e.g. Bann Conobar, old husband of Flemeth in the times of Alamarri tribes, takes his name after Conchobar from Irish mythology; Ruadan, an Avvar mage, shares a name with the son of Bres and Brigit, Ruadán, likewise from Irish mythology).

Perhaps the TTRPG writers took this inspiration and modified it so as not to borrow from real-life wholesale, creating “ar/an” structure as a result. It works basically like “ap/ferch” does.

For my own headcanon purposes, I just settled on the idea that all of these surname styles are used among the Avvar to an extent; different holds have different traditions. I imagine some holds are matrilineal, some are patrilineal, some use both matro- and patronymics, some follow the “same-gendered parent” rule, and some use other factors to determine the byname.

Going back to the main canon, there’s one more fact that should be brought up – it’s possible to lose one’s surname under certain circumstances. Finn Caldansen faces such a possibility in the event of his father’s death, as Finn was unable to provide the required funeral offering due to his injury.

Finn: Inquisitor, I’m honored by your visit. I’m Finn Cal… um, Finn Caldansen. Forgive me if I don’t stand to greet you properly. [...]

Finn: He won’t be my father much longer. [...]

Finn: I can’t make the offering. When the sky burial’s complete, I’ll lose the right to bear my father’s name.

~~

Master of the Hunt: Finn failed to complete the rites. That’ll see him disowned when the burial’s complete.

~~

Gyda: Some souls—such as Caldan's—are chosen to return. The augur reads the signs at birth. It is a rare honor. In order to return, an offering is made to Korth the Mountain-Father and buried beneath the body. A piece of the soul thus remains, allowing the rest to return to this world and be reborn.

Inquisitor: Will someone not be given proper rites?

Gyda: Caldan Enversen is one of the few whose soul may return. Blood-kin must make an offering to the huntmaster, who prepares it. Or so it should be. Caldan’s son, Finn, has failed in this duty.

It’s not quite clear if the loss of a parent’s name is a risk in all cases of failure to provide the funeral offering, or only when it’s the special offering to Korth that’s made in rare cases of souls chosen to return. I assume it can occur with regular sky burials too, as the Avvar place importance on proper rituals. As Gyda says, she must “prepare these souls for their greater journey—particularly those who depart without the reverence due.”

Gyda suggests the Inquisitor be the one to provide the offering in Finn’s place, as a gift from them cannot be refused. You get the choice to either bring the offering directly to the Master of the Hunt, or bend the tradition and hand it to Finn. If you decide to give the offering to the Master of the Hunt, Finn indeed loses his surname.

Finn: The offering will be prepared for burial. My father… no, I’m only Finn. Still, I rest easy knowing Caldan’s soul will journey well. Thank you, Inquisitor.  

2.1 Legend-marks

A legend-mark typically consists of two hyphenated parts. Once granted, it’s used in place of the surname. (Example: “My father was Heth Mule’s-Head.”) Sometimes, even the first name is omitted, leaving the legend-mark as the only identifier of a person. (Example: “They say many things about Bright-Ax and the Lady.”)

A legend-mark represents a significant trait or accomplishment – it can be positive as well as negative, the former being more common. The cognomen is bestowed by other members of the hold; the person who receives a legend-mark cannot decide how it should sound. Choosing a legend-mark for yourself is considered childish behaviour. 

Inquisitor: Can you choose a legend-mark for yourself?

Fullna: (Laughs.) Only if I wanted to be scorned as a child!

Covert attempts to suggest your own legend-mark’s style are also looked down upon.

Avvar woman 1: The Master of the Hunt saw me shoot that Hakkonite archer through the eye! Said I had an eagle's sight...

Avvar woman 2: (Scoffs.) You're not trying to spread your own legend-mark!

Avvar woman 1: What? No! 'Course not.

Known legend-marks and their roots:

Svarah Sun-Hair – thane of Stone-Bear Hold, her hair was lit on fire during a battle but she kept fighting despite it.

Tyrdda Bright-Axe (also spelled Bright-Ax) – founder of the Avvar, defended her tribe using a fire-staff that was gifted to her by her leaf-eared lover.

Thelm Gold-Handed – adversary of Tyrdda, wished to travel across the Waking Sea and assail the golden city in order to gain its riches.

Ivatt Stone-Thunder – deterred lowlanders from attacking his hold by rolling a boulder off the edge of a cliff and killing half of the enemies.

Rekkas Feather-Fall – was jealous of Ivatt’s legend-mark and wanted to get one for himself by killing a flying monster that lived near their hold. He managed to grab it, but the beast took off with Rekkas on its back. Eventually, he plummeted down with torn feathers floating around him.

Ivar Snow-Favored – founder of Stone-Bear Hold, led his people out of a snowstorm by following a sight of a great bear that turned out to be a piece of stone, which the Avvar interpreted as a sign of Korth’s favour.

Sindri Sky-Breaker – climbed the summit of mountain Belenas where Korth’s throne used to stand. Korth gave him great gifts, which prompted other adventurers to scale the mountain, eventually leading Korth to ask the Lady of the Skies to make the peak of Belanas inaccessible to mortals.

Heth Mule's-Head – father of Fullna Hethsdotten, refused to let go of any quarrel.

Gulda Gilden-Song – skald of Stone-Bear Hold before Fullna Hethsdotten, she created a new tale that was well-liked by her tribesmen and spirits.

Inquisitor First-Thaw – if the Inquisitor gains the recognition of Stone-Bear Hold, defeats the Jaws of Hakkon and releases Hakkon from the form of an ice-dragon, they will receive the title "First-Thaw" from the people of Stone-Bear Hold.

Bjorn Reed-Beard - local deity of Stone-Bear Hold, patron of fishermen.

Harof Talespinner - father of Gurd Harofsen, origin of the title unknown. He might’ve been the skald of Red-Lion Hold, or just someone who liked telling stories. Gurd seemingly inherited his talent, as in his journal he boasts “I bed many women with my tales.”

Star-Caller - sample legend-mark from the TTRPG, Core Rulebook; origin of the title unknown.

As you can see, most legend-marks are positive, serving as a reminder of an individual’s merits, talents, accomplishments - especially in connection to protecting or improving an Avvar hold. Conversely, a negative legend-mark is an “alert” of traits that can be harmful to the community, such as greed, jealousy, argumentativeness.

I believe that the structure “the [Something]”, e.g. Movran the Under, is also a form of a legend-mark. This hasn’t been confirmed in the lore, but I’m pretty sure it falls into the same category. “the [Something]“ functions similarly to a regular legend-mark, replacing the surname of a person with a descriptive title.

Examples:

Gurd the Cutter – leader of the Jaws of Hakkon. “Gurd Harofsen, called the Cutter, wyvern-slayer, lowland-bane” is a verse in the “song of savage Hakkon'' that Gurd chants to summon the spirit into himself.

Havard the Aegis – childhood friend of Maferath, they were born in the same Avvar clan. Maferath was the one who dubbed Havard “the Aegis” because they fought many battles side by side.

Imhar the Clever – legendary trickster, local deity of Redhold, is known for his clever and inventive approach to problem solving.

Movran the Under – leader of an Avvar clan from the Fallow Mire, father of Hand of Korth, origin of the title unknown.

3. Clan names

The Avvar people are divided into clans that live in settlements referred to as holds. Each clan is linked to a sacred animal called a hold-beast, which is where the clan&hold name usually stems from. Hold names are often hyphenated, the animal species being paired with a significant descriptor, e.g. Stone-Bear. Alternatively, holds are sometimes named after local landmarks, e.g. Kinloch Hold. The physical settlement can be relocated to another area but the hold’s name appears to stay the same. For example, Arvid Rolfsen says that his hold used to be located further north, but they migrated when he was very young and have been living in the Basin for a few generations now.

Known holds and their hold-beasts:

Stone-Bear Hold – currently located in the Frostback Basin, named after a vision of a great bear that an Avvar tribe, led by Ivar Jerriksen, was following through a snowstorm. When approached, the animal turned out to be a piece of stone, which the Avvar interpreted as a sign of Korth’s favour. Their hold-beast is a bear, currently a she-bear named Storvacker.

Red Lion Hold – defunct hold, suffered heavy losses during the Fifth Blight, rebranded itself as the Jaws of Hakkon under Gurd Harofsen’s leadership. Their hold-beast died with “genlock blood in his jaws” according to Gurd’s journal. It was most likely a red lion.

Wyvern Hold – extinct hold, it was located north of the Waking Sea; when the Tevinter Imperium began expanding, inhabitants of Wyvern Hold vanished in mysterious circumstances. Their hold-beast was most likely a wyvern. Wyverns are common in the Vimmark Mountains, especially the western ranges where the Chateau Haine is currently located. An Avvar altar can be found in this area.

Fennec-Tooth Hold – hold of an unknown status and location; it was once visited by an Orlesian noble. Their hold-beast was probably a fennec fox.

Fort of a Thousand Vigil’s – extinct hold, it was located on the south-eastern coast of the Waking Sea, serving as a lookout and defense against the invading Tevinters. In the caves underneath the fort, the Avvar befriended a group of dwarves. Their hold-beast isn’t known.

Kinloch Hold – extinct hold, it was located on the island on the lake that is now known as Lake Calenhad. With dwarven help, the Avvar had built a watchtower there. The hold was razed by Tevinters. Their hold-beast isn’t known. Kinloch, or Ceann  Loch, from Scottish Gaelic literally means “head of the lake”, which refers to the end of the lake that the water flows out of. The island that Kinloch Hold was built on is located near the northern shores of the lake, close to the end from which the water drains into a river and later into the Waking Sea via the Storm Coast.

Skyhold – the fortress was probably inhabited by the Avvar at some point in history, as it changed hands often; other southern human tribes like the Alamarri and the Chasind had also resided in Skyhold in the past. The name “Skyhold” adheres to the style of Avvar hold names, and the fortress is located in the Frostback Mountains, so Avvar influence seems likely. Moreover, there’s an entry examining a set of “Mabari Avvar Pillars” left in Skyhold, though it’s noted as a possible example of early Fereldan imagery (oddly, with Tevene elements mixed in).

Redhold – a hold featured in “Where Eagles Lair” TTRPG adventure. Their hold-beast is a red lion. The fate of the hold depends on the party’s choices, it can be defended from darkspawn onslaught or left to its own devices, in which case the hold is destroyed. (It probably isn’t meant to be the same as Red Lion Hold from DAI, I think the game writers rather used the TTRPG narrative as an inspiration for the Jaws of Hakkon’s backstory.)

Frosthold – a hold briefly mentioned in the “Duty Unto Death” TTRPG adventure. Their hold-beast isn’t known.

Sunhold – a hold featured in the “Buried Pasts” TTRPG adventure. Their hold-beast isn’t known.

Bearhold – a hold briefly mentioned in the “Buried Pasts” TTRPG adventure. Their hold-beast isn’t known.

Treehold – a hold briefly mentioned in the “Buried Pasts” TTRPG adventure. Their hold-beast isn’t known.

Sample clan names from TTRPG:

Eagle-Reach Hold

Craghold

Falconhold

Helmhold

Peakhold

Spearhold

Stormhold

Wyrmhold

As you can see, the “animal-based” hold names are much more prevalent. In those cases, their hold-beast’s species is either clearly identified or can be inferred from the name itself. On the other hand, none of the “landmark-based” holds have had their hold-beast confirmed. I would assume these settlements are linked with their own sacred animals, as the Avvar believe a hold-beast reflects the community’s well-being and ties them to the gods. An illness or death of a hold-beast is a really unfortunate omen, so I think not having a hold-beast at all would be a highly undesirable situation too. I’d imagine the “landmark-based” holds like Kinloch Hold or Sunhold would choose hold-beasts that are somehow related to their founding history and local gods. Maybe Kinloch Hold revered an aquatic animal from the surrounding lake, Frosthold chose an animal that thrives in the cold, and so on.

Whew, that got pretty long! Who knew it’s possible to write down this much on the topic of Avvar names. If you’ve read through it all, I commend you. I hope at least some of it was useful!