Gnomes

Gnomes do not really have gender based naming conventions of any kind. As previously discussed names are more social title than just name. They grow as one collects prestige and climbs in society. There is structure to this tied in part to certain inflections and syllables in their own language, that is Gnomish, and different key parts of words or titles or professions, taking small pieces and stitching them in a specific way unto their own personal name. As one might guess, this can make identifying individuals with documentation and such a great difficulty. Thus it is worthwhile to note the other purpose of a nickname. Very normally this will be the birth name, that is the root piece, the one given at birth, and that appears on legal documentation. Which is a blessing for the rest of us, allow me to assure you. Below you will find some of the more memorable names (and the nickname/legal name) as well as pronunciation guides as best I could manage once again, for your reference.

Of all the ancestral cultural artifacts in naming tied to linguistics and well ancestry, perhaps the oddest I've ever come across is that of the Gnomish peoples. Gnomish is an interesting language, in that its spoken and written structures and philosophy are completely divorced from its naming conventions, specifically for people. It could almost be compared to scientific notation for how it is written, mostly, that is how precise it is in its rules, and equally in how it is spoken. Its twenty-three characters and four symbols that can be used to represent specific inflections on certain syllables form a unique structure. Yet when we arrive to naming conventions, all of the above seems to take a backseat.

Gnomish names are notoriously unstable. They are in some ways equal parts accolade, title, bragging right as well as personal identifiers. Thankfully this is less noticeable in family names, which we shall discuss momentarily. However within naming structures writ large, understand that for a gnome, your name is like a bragging transcript. The higher your societal position the more syllables your name will have. Family names are thankfully mostly exempt to this rule, though this does not mean they are not just as strange and complex in both spelling and pronunciation even when translated. I will do my best to explain more thoroughly how the naming structure of personal names works below. For the moment just understand that there is a reason most gnomes you meet, if they are even remotely polite, they will introduce themselves formally with the long and strange syllabled names and then offer 'However you may call me nickname. It is because they know most cannot manage the strange structures, syllables and pronunciations of their naming structures.

Personal Name	Pronunciation	Nick/Legal Names
Viest	{V-eye-ss-tah	Vie
Cheepqeembem	{Ch-ee-puh-k-ee-mah-b-i-m}	Cheep
Drard	{Da-ri-a-ri-de}	Dran
Hicduid	{H-eh-k-doh-y-de}	Hidu
Tulint	{T-oo-l-ee-n-t}	Tuli
Grazicko	{Gah-ra-s-ee-ah-k-o}	Grazi

So with all that understood, here are some examples of familial names I came across. I, in spite of my own advice, have tried my best to include a proper pronunciation notation for each where it felt necessary, however I am willing to admit that I am unsure how trustworthy it truly is.

Example Familial Names: Arndeg; {Ahh-r-uh-n-duh-gg}, Fizbogwaan; {Fah-ee-ss-b-o-g-w-aa-ee-n}, Tah, Waggle, Ualnelmock; {Oo-all-n-eh-la-m-ah-k}, Zittlidrosp; {Zee-tt-l-i-duh-rah-o-ss-p-uh}

Gnomes are an interesting peoples in that they do not really generally see beauty as most others do. For most any other people they seek some 'height' of something, some idealized version of something when seeking beauty. Attractiveness, physical shape, symmetry, whatever the driving views might be fueled by they do seek them. Gnomes however don't. They don't see beauty in 'perfect' they see beauty in the imperfect. For in that 'imperfect' there is limitless potential. There is untold knowledge. There is undiscovered understanding. Even to write this out feels strange to describe, and to truly understand it one would need to discuss the ideal of beauty itself, what it means, what the word should entail, with a gnome for some hours over stiff drinks. It is however a most fascinating discussion to have and I would highly recommend it should anyone find themselves with such an opportunity.

For a gnome, a romantic partner is also an intellectual partner. They are constantly bouncing ideas and thoughts and theories off each other, their small talk ideally would sound like university shop talk between two professors working on a cutting edge paper or study. It cannot be emphasized enough how much gnomes value intelligence and curiosity of the academic sort amongst people close to them, particularly lovers for any long term commitment.