Alrighty, so this is a confusion and clarification kinda post. Now I’m not talking about the ever popular “purple humans”; you know, walks, talks, smokes, drinks, swears, and lives slice-of-life day by day like an emotional 20 something year old IRL human that’s ticked off at all their teachers and parents.
Not those.
I’m talking about Norse Mythology. Yggdrassil. Pagan religious practices. The influence for many a Role Player’s in-game favorite race, the Night Elves. Go figure that the Viking version of an elf is huge, brutal, and feral-like.
Now, when I first started RPing nelves, a surprisingly heck of a long time ago now - there was a couple things I noted as fundamental cultural truths. Night Elves were a matriarchal society. Not patriarchal. They revered and followed a powerful Queen, not a king.
They were pagans. Not Christian influenced, pagan nature influenced. Druids. Ancient Celtic undertones.
With these two fundamentals in mind, I always believed that when a child was born into this matriarchal society, the child took the last name of the mother. I also believed that Night Elves didn’t get married in the traditional Christian sense, but rather partook in a type of bonding ceremony that was a little more private and nature based. They didn’t have husbands and wives, but rather, life-mates. Like wolves, and tons of avian species from penguins to eagles, heck, even beavers and voles and seahorses. Mate-for-life.
Have these fundamentals changed? I ask, because I keep seeing TRPs listing Night Elf characters’ parents, and they’re all named after their fathers.
Also, Malfurion and Tyrande got “married”, and I think the wife / husband term get used for them now.
You know, It’s almost as if people cherry picked the lore to flanderize them down, making zero difference between them?..
Why have something ‘Original’ taking on the OG Lore of how ‘Kaldorei were so scary even Demonblood Grom gave them his respect’, when we can have cookie cutter carbon copies of the same ‘Tree Hippy Pacifist’?
I agree going back to their Roots ((Pun intended)), would help with the flanderization, But given I dont pay the ‘Tree Hippys’ subs, Not really much one can do.
Being in SW and being exposed to different denizens of Azeroth and beyond again has sort of softened some sects of the Kaldorei culture, but not all of them. The Wardens and Sentinels for example will still fold Orc or human like an omelette.
Hi, Mercanix! I think it’s worth observing that the night elves also show strong Korean influence, if we’re acknowledging those. You can buy hanbok and dangui. They eat kimchi and mandu and heaven peaches. I believe there’s a cooking quest about ddeok, rice cakes, as well. They celebrate a lunar new year, which isn’t surprising given the Elune thing, but I feel it’s clear where that originates.
Alaaaaaiiine!
Hey.
You know, I didn’t know about that influence, in fact. However, very cool.
And yes, Eldissian, I do realize that. I was more using christianity as the most popularly known point of reference for how a couple is perceived to come together in a bonded, life long union.
Anyhow, back to my query; Matriarchal society? Do we as RPers / gamers still consider Night Elves a matriarch society? Or has that now changed to patriarch? In which case, offspring… father’s or mother’s last name?
Life Mates: husbands and wives through a marriage vows and rings ceremony, or mates for life in a bonding ritual?
I mean…a wedding is a bonding ritual. A spouse is a partner for life. Breaking that bond, once made, is a powerfully difficult and painful thing, no matter the circumstances.
So…I don’t really understand the difference you’re trying to draw.
“Marriage” is just the word our language uses. It’s the same thing, fundamentally speaking, and I think you should RP it however you like using the language that fits your image and story best.
The Night Elves are meant to be feral, primal, and really scary-looking people. Forces of nature not to be trifled with and intimidating to just about everyone.
When I try to compare them to human societies, I think of the Picts (who ritualistically painted their skin and of whom all their neighbors were absolutely terrified) and I consider the ancient Mongols. Absolutely brutal, but also deeply ritualistic and spiritual/religious in their own respective way.
There are ingame indicators that the Nelves are matriarchal - the feminine deity is a big one there - but I have not noticed particular naming conventions for that. Again, I think you have liberty to RP this how you like, and I think having Nelf characters carrying the mother’s name as a family name is lovely.
As far as marriage goes, I just RPed the typical setup, taken at Malorne’s Refuge for thematic reasons.
Most races even in WoW sort of share mostly the same rituals usually just using different items and ways of using them, Orc weddings for instance if both are Warriors would be exchanging gifts like axes and shields and stuff.
I dont really know if they were ever that matriarchal, more so radically egalitarian as originally only male nelves were druids who were incredibly respected in their society.
There are also characters like Jarod Shadowsong who break the whole “Male nelves are forbidden from being warriors trope” pretty harshly. As far as I’m aware there are no lore instances of female night elves being like, cold or cruel to him for this.
Night elven society does not mean men were discriminated against, druids still served an important role in society and Malfurion was the official co-leader of the night elves. But with the exception of the druids night elven society was led by women.
Male night elves were never forbidden from being warriors, only Sentinels.
First of all Humans/vykrul and orcs are way more viking than elves.
Marriage also isn’t solely a Christian thing.
Night Elves are far from the brutal and savage race they used to be. Males can’t even hold a bow correctly.
They are a humanoid race, not animals. Don’t confuse them with the amazing Tauren. Societies change for better or worse. Nowadays all of the races seem to have influenced each other one way or another. People will rp they way they want to whether it be a traditional old school elf or a new age one.
