Originally Posted by
Fernehalwes
Ohhhhhh, the /sarcasm command was turned ON. Gotcha ;)
But seriously, at a glance, Roegadyn names can oft appear like a amalgam of seemingly random letters, pounded out by a starved monkey chained in front of a thrift store typewriter.
Ah, but that is where you are mistaken! There actually is a pattern!
...Unfortunately, no one has taken the time to properly explain that system to everyone, and for that an apology is owed. I've spoken with the man in charge of the game's lore, and we both agree that a detailed explanation of NPC naming conventions is long overdue. For now, I can give you a quick overview of Roegadyn names, and hopefully in the near future when we get a to a lull in our patch duties, I can put together something more fancy.
Roegadyn names are actually all formed from two words taken from the ancient Roegadyn language that the race's ancestors spoke before they came to Eorzea. For example, Ahldskyf is a combination of Ahld (meaning 'old') and Skyf (meaning ship). Rostnsthal is a combination of Rostn (rusty) and Sthal (steel). Pronunciation of the names can be a bit easier after splitting the name into its two parts: Ahld + skyf (read "ald-skiff").
Roegadyn Last names can appear even more imposing, but in fact, they follow rules similar to the first names. A last name simply takes the father's name and adds either Syn (meaning 'son') or Wyn (meaning 'daughter'). For example, Limsa Lominsa Admiral, Merlwyb Bloefhiswyn could be broken down like this:
Merl (sea) + wyb (wife)
Bloe (blue) + fhis (fish) + wyn (daughter)
In other words, "Sea Wife, daughter of Blue Fish"
You will see the "old language" used in a lot of Sea Wolf names. The Hellsguard, on the other hand, in an attempt to better adapt to Eorzea, sometimes choose to 'translate' their names from the old language, which is why you will, every now and then, see an NPC named Grizzly Gnat or Immodest Mouse.
I know this is just the tip of the iceberg, but I hope it helps. I'll try to provide more details when I can. Maybe we can even release a dictionary of known Old Roegadyn words.