#sa notes

Did this influence you writing and the information for Way of Kings? If so, neat! What did you like about it that stuck in your brain?

Do, the Chinese character use here, did stick with me. It's not just used in Wangdo, as mentioned above, but Kumdo (the Way of the Sword) and in other similar applications. That did strike with me; I liked the flow of that on the page, and in my mind. Something like "The Way of the Sword" or "The way of the Kings" felt like it would make a great title. (And indeed, Sejong the great is one of the inspirations for Nohadon, author of The Way of Kings in the books. I did a big talk about Sejong on my book tour a few years ago.)

I was reminded of this idea as a title in 2002 while reading The Fall of the Kings by Delia Sherman and Ellen Kushner at a world fantasy convention. By then, I was working on Stormlight full time, and the title was just perfect--that's when I started inserting Nohadon into the history of the world.

So yes, this is a direct inspiration. I probably wouldn't have been able to pull it off the top of my head now, almost twenty years after working on the initial outline, if someone hadn't posted this though--the memories didn't really spark until I saw the plate posted above. So I enjoyed seeing this posted.

OP: What I've never really noticed before is the importance of the bridge number. 4 is, in East Asian cultures, considered unlucky or cursed. In Chinese 4 is nearly a homophone to the word death. Buildings will skip the 4th floor, companies will skip from version 3 to version 5 of their products (Palm, OnePlus, I'm sure there are other examples but I can't think of them right now).

We already know that The Stormlight Archive finds some of its inspiration in anime/manga. We know that the Alethi are what we would consider ethnically East Asian. Dark hair, tan skin, and they don't have the large, round eyes of the Shin. It seems very fitting that the least lucky bridge, the one responsible for the most death, is Bridge 4.

Of course, Kaladin comes to believe he isn't cursed as he uses his powers to defend his bridgemen. 4 becomes the most envied bridge as they suffer the fewest deaths, have camaraderie, and eventually become squires to a radiant.

They are numbered unlucky and cursed, but turn out to be the most "lucky" of the bridge crews.

This all struck me today because at the end of Oathbringer, Dalinar casually mentions that his personal guard from Bridge 13 isn't there because that bridge crew became Teft's squires. 13 is the number in Western culture that we consider "unlucky" or "cursed," so fitting that it would be the second bridge crew to become squires of a radiant! With that realization, everything about bridge 4 clicked in my head.

Brandon: A lot of things fans find are coincidence...but neither of these are, actually. Those are both intentional, as are a few other little numbers things.

Brandon on lighteyes’ caste system:

Note that only the king is first Dahn under the Alethi system, however. His heir is second, until crowned. Sixth Dahn, as you've identified, is the "landed" cutoff--if you have land, even a little, you're at least Sixth Dahn.

If you were of a specific dahn (say, seventh) but were elevated by something unusual (say, you got appointed to an appointment that would raise you above this) your children will often be elevated to a rank just beneath you. So, for instance, if a tenner got a shard, he'd immediately be elevated to fourth, and his family would likely be elevated to fifth.

The only thing I'd offer a warning on is that sometimes, people shortcut "Captainlord" to just "Captain" which drives Peter crazy, and so it can be hard to pick out rank from title. 

Note that getting a Shardblade isn't the only reason someone could be elevated, and isn't the only reason why children might not be the same dahn as their parent. Most of it has to do with titles, and who inherits, and that sort of thing. The answer is probably more boring than you're hoping.

An overall correct list found in the thread, for ref's sake:

1st Dahn: The King.

2nd Dahn: Highprinces, their direct heirs, and the King's direct heir.

3rd Dahn: Generals?, Highlords, and the non-inheriting children of 1st and 2nd dahn lighteyes.

4th Dahn: Battalionlords, Citylords, Shardbearers, and other mid-ranked nobles.

5th Dahn: Companylords?, along with lower-ranked nobles.

6th Dahn: Captainlords, along with the lowest-ranked nobles and landholders?

7th Dahn: Lower-ranking landless officers, along with higher-ranking (or very wealthy) landless lighteyes?

8th Dahn: Soldiers, along with high-ranking (or moderately wealthy) landless lighteyes?

9th Dahn: Landless lighteyes with some wealth, like merchants and master craftsmen.

10th Dahn: "Tenners", essentially any lighteyes who has to work for a living.

Other refs:

Tor.com Q&A in 2014

Lighteyes entry on the Coppermind Wiki

17S topic: Rank - Lighteyes and Darkeyes

Answers from Peter:

What are the differences among "Brightness", "Brightlady" and "Highlady"?

Brightness is used for any lighteyes. Brightlady would maybe be 5th dahn and lower (higher status). Highlady would be 3rd dahn and lower (higher status). The latter two could also be called Brightness. Highladies could be called all three.

What's the difference between "Captain" and "Captainlord"?

No difference except that a Captainlord is a lighteyes.

In WoR Ch. 87, Elhokar called Lopen's mother "nanha". Is this a Herdazian word or an Alethi word? I believe this is not her name. Do people use it to call elder women?