[ Models | Lore | Sources | Inspiration ]
With a rich background stretching back decades in time, the various Warhammer games contain a vast array of names (of people, places, items, and so on). Many of these names are original, but some happen to have a meaning in the real world, as obscure terms, foreign words, or cultural references. This page lists some of these underlying etymologies for your edification. Note that some of these are best guesses (speculative fan theory) rather than confirmed derivations.
Where a name is followed by the symbol ¹, if you hover over or click on that symbol you will see when that name was first mentioned in a publication.
| Name | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Alarielle | See: Ariel. [WHFB Elf HighElf AoS Order Aelf Sylvaneth God] |
| Amex ¹ | American Express (founded 1850), a payment card company. [WHFB Elf SeaElf God] |
| Ariel | Ariel, a character from The Tempest (1611), a play by William Shakespeare. [WHFB Elf WoodElf] |
| Avelorn | Avalon, a legendary island in Arthurian mythology. [WHFB Elf HighElf] |
| Druchii | "Dark", ultimately from the Dökkálfar (dark elves) in Norse mythology. [WHFB Elf DarkElf] |
| Elf | Elf, a supernatural being in Germanic mythology. [WHFB Elf] |
| Hekarti | Hecate, goddess of magic in Greek mythology. [WHFB Elf God] |
| Hydra | Lernaean Hydra, a many-headed water monster in Greek mythology. [WHFB Elf DarkElf AoS Order Aelf WH40k Imperial ImperialGuard Vehicle Tyranid HiveFleet] |
| Isha | Aisha (c. 613-678), a scholar in the early history of Islam. [WHFB Elf WH40k Eldar God] |
| Khaine | Cain, a character from the Bible who was the first murderer. [WHFB Elf DarkElf AoS Aelf WH40k Eldar God] |
| Kharibdyss | Charybdis, a sea monster in Greek mythology. [WHFB Elf DarkElf AoS Order Aelf] |
| Kurnous | Cernunnos, god of nature in Gallo-Roman mythology. [WHFB Elf WH40k Eldar God] |
| Laeron ¹ | Laeron, a river in the Roman province Gallaecia (present-day Galicia, Portugal). [WHFB Elf Human] |
| Lileath | Lilith, the first woman in Judaic mythology. [WHFB Elf WH40k Eldar God] |
| Malekith | Latin male, "wickedly" + Middle English kith, "relation". [WHFB Elf DarkElf] |
| Morai-Heg | The Morrígan, goddess of war in Irish mythology, associated with crows. [WHFB Elf WH40k Eldar God] |
| Riolta Snow ¹ | Rialto, part of Venice, Italy + "snow". [WHFB Elf] |
| Snow ¹ | See: Riolta Snow. [WHFB Elf] |
| Inspiration | |
| Warhammer Setting | The Dark Tongue; Daemonic Names; Lexicon; Short Stories; Cut-ups; Cool Stuff |
| Art | Golden Demon; Nurglesque Music |
| Speculation | Chaos God Correspondence; Dark Heresy Backgrounds; Sevenfold Path; Sevenrot; Seven Deadly Sins |
| Real World References | Nergal in Mesopotamian History; Symbolism of Three Circles; Symbolism of Seven |
dedicated to the Master of Plagues and Pestilence