Beast Tribe Naming Conventions I

There have been numerous inquiries regarding the naming conventions used by Eorzean beast tribes, so we’d like to take a little time to cover a few of the more intriguing races. Be forewarned, the following lore tidbits do contain some minor spoilers (but nothing realm-shattering).

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Amalj’aa
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Contrary to popular belief, both males and females exist...though it can be nigh on impossible to tell the two genders apart. Not only do they have similar outward appearances, but there does not even exist the concept of male and female names amongst the tribe. Even the Amalj’aa themselves have trouble distinguishing between the two sexes, but to them, this is not that high of a priority. Perhaps Brotherhood of Ash warleader Hamujj Gah says it best when he reminds you that to his people, “tribe, clan, gender--these details matter not.”

When it does matter (as during the mating season), however, biology takes over, with both males and females excreting unique scents which help, let’s say, reduce the possibility of an accident.

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Ixal
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As is the case with the Amalj’aa, the outward appearance of male and female Ixal can be quite similar. Names, however, follow a distinct pattern for each gender, therefore making it easy to distinguish between the two.

Ixali names are comprised of a forename and a clan (or family) name. The structure of the forename is determined by two factors: the child’s sex, and the direction the wind is blowing at the time of birth.

Male
- uzal (north wind)
- azel (south wind)
- ozol (east wind)
- ezul (west wind)

Female
- utali (north wind)
- ateli (south wind)
- otoli (east wind)
- ethuli (west wind)

Finally, a sound of the clan’s (or family’s) choosing is added in front of this, forming the forename.

Example: L+ozol -> Lozol

The names of the Ixali sisters who appear in the FATE “The Four Winds” can also be seen following this pattern:

Sutali Hueloc of the North Wind
Sateli Hueloc of the South Wind
Sotoli Hueloc of the East Wind
Sethuli Hueloc of the West Wind

Most Ixali fledglings are born in the canyons of Xelphatol, so rare is a day when the wind does not blow, even a little. Therefore, to the Ixal (a very superstitious race, who rely heavily on augury in their everyday lives) being born on a day without wind is considered a terrible omen, and such newborns are cast from their nests as to not bring misfortune upon the tribe. However, some Ixali parents reluctant to sacrifice their brood will falsely claim they felt a gust even though there was none and use an name of one of the four winds to spare their child.

There are still further secrets surrounding Ixali naming conventions, but as we are currently planning to reveal them via in-game quests, I’ll refrain from listing them here.

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Sylphs
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While there exist two distinct genders amongst the sylphs, neither fall into what we would label as male or female. As has been revealed in the daily beast tribe quests, sylphs are “grown” from seeds known as “podlings.” These seeds are formed from the flowers which grow on the heads of adult sylphs. Not all adults, however, can produce seeds.

- Sylphs whose flowers bloom only at specific times during the pollinating seasons are capable of producing podlings. These sylphs have forenames ending in ~xio.

- Sylphs whose flowers bloom at irregular times throughout the seasonal cycle are (for the most part) incapable of producing podlings. These sylphs have forenames ending in ~xia. As they do not need to expend their physical and spiritual energies forming a seed, the ~xia sylphs tend to be more adept at wielding magicks.

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Moogles
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Having hidden themselves from the people of Eorzea for so long, moogles remain one of the most enigmatic of the realm’s beast tribes, and so very little is known of moogle language, moogle behavior, or moogle biology, for that matter. What has been determined is that females will have often have forenames that begin with P, whereas males will have names that begin with K.

Examples: Kupta Kapa (male), Pukla Puki (female)