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January 30, 2020 7:35 AM   Subscribe

Help me name my fictional [cult / brotherhood / organization].

If I were to become a cult leader (see above re: fictional) I'd need a name for my cult. I want to go with the two-word style - it doesn't have to be in the form of Adjective Noun but most of the ones that stick out in my memory fit that mold. Examples would be things like Branch Davidian, Shining Path, Black Hand. Even the name of Gaudi's incredible Sagrada Familia has that feel to it, if you know what I'm saying.

No restrictions other than avoiding use of Gold or Golden.

Bonus points for subtly conjuring the idea of beneficence instead of malice.
posted by komara to Grab Bag (29 answers total) 5 users marked this as a favorite
 
Argent Grace
Argent Heart
Celestial Hand
Lucent Seed
Divine Scion
posted by Adridne at 7:44 AM on January 30, 2020 [2 favorites]


For this and so many other purposes, the Fantasy Name Generators site can't be beat.
posted by Made of Star Stuff at 7:51 AM on January 30, 2020 [3 favorites]


It would be helpful to know the alignment of your cult, i think. If you are a cult of necromancers, your name would be dark and evoke death-cultish themes (the Fifth Sepulchre or somesuch); if your cult is about your own divinity, you could incorporate some allusion to you in it (Pax Komara, or Komara Divinitus). How would you brand your cult?
posted by OHenryPacey at 8:22 AM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


So many prophets called their message "the way", or some variant thereof, I think I'd go with that imagery. Maybe Rightous Road, or Protean Path, or the like.
posted by SemiSalt at 8:57 AM on January 30, 2020


Response by poster: "It would be helpful to know the alignment of your cult, i think."

Hadn't really thought about that but if I had to answer I'd say a skull or skeleton-themed benevolent organization. We're all on this planet for a while so we gotta help each other out but death comes for us all in the end. That's the best I got off the top of my head.
posted by komara at 8:59 AM on January 30, 2020


Lumen Essence
Truth Beyond
Wisdom Seeds
Astral Wayfarers
posted by mareli at 9:00 AM on January 30, 2020


The Zygomatic Arch is the curve of your skull that makes up your "cheekbone" while at the same time sounding like some wild occult architectural feature.
posted by Rock Steady at 9:06 AM on January 30, 2020 [8 favorites]


Cleansing Interregnum? Sort of playing with the idea that death is a process of time, skeletal remains as a sign of that rite of passage having come complete. Might be a little bit of a mouthful for the cult name, though, maybe just a rite within the mythology.

Time's Gift? Merciful Skull? Core Emergent?
posted by cortex at 9:06 AM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


Skull of Komara is a Cultand and a video game.
Soul Success, Soul Progress is a cult and an Amway downline. (Soul of Success)
Komara Family
Star Truth
Temporal Beauty
posted by theora55 at 9:07 AM on January 30, 2020


Temple of the Worm
Divine Soil
Golden Lotus (is this already taken?)
Worm in the Lotus
posted by Lawn Beaver at 9:30 AM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


Implacable Servitude
posted by Midnight Skulker at 9:36 AM on January 30, 2020


The Long Path
posted by Dmenet at 9:54 AM on January 30, 2020


Response by poster: I promise I had not actually meant to think about this, I didn't have any deeper meaning, I just wanted to see what you all came up with. However, having to define my cult's alignment left me unable to stop chewing over this. I love the word 'argent' and started on 'argent coil' and/or 'argent vale' (mortal coil / vale of tears) but both of those have been used at least once by some fantasy writers. Not that I'm actually going to do anything with this, it's all just for fun, but still. I thought maybe I had landed on a winner.
posted by komara at 10:19 AM on January 30, 2020


I once a captain in a fake cavalry/paladin order called "the Rainbow Ascension". But that's not so skeletony.

Thinking about death, I've always like the phrase "momento mori" (reminder of death). But I don't know if it works for a cult.

Other ideas:

- The Quiet Dissolution?

- Guiders to the Light?
posted by jb at 10:28 AM on January 30, 2020


The Silver Fontanelle
posted by Mizu at 10:34 AM on January 30, 2020


Sojourners Blessing
posted by RolandOfEld at 11:55 AM on January 30, 2020


You could go with some latin sounding things that put skull and argent together like "cranus argentus" or "calivaria argentum".
posted by 445supermag at 12:15 PM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


We're all on this planet for a while so we gotta help each other out but death comes for us all in the end.

Benevolent Friends. (There's something nicely off-putting about a society with a pleasant name that uses a skull as its symbol.)

Calaveran Society. (A bit more on-the-nose, since "calavera" means "skull.")
posted by SPrintF at 12:27 PM on January 30, 2020 [4 favorites]


"transitum pacificae" is Latin for "peaceful passing."

Latin's good for making something feel like it's been around for a while, and you can use any number of euphemisms.
posted by explosion at 1:32 PM on January 30, 2020


Argent Repose
posted by robocop is bleeding at 1:41 PM on January 30, 2020


Memento Auxilium
posted by Iris Gambol at 2:42 PM on January 30, 2020


Gentle Night
posted by glasseyes at 3:57 PM on January 30, 2020 [1 favorite]


Doux Repose; Latin: Reliqua Gentle or so google says)

The Velvet Touch
posted by glasseyes at 4:09 PM on January 30, 2020


Playing with the idea of time:
Argent Hour
Argent Season
Argent Epoch
Argent Span

Ilium is a bone (part of the pelvis), but also the name of several ancient cities, including at one point Troy.

Argent Ilium
posted by Adridne at 6:20 PM on January 30, 2020


I would go with either Societas Mortis or Funtimes Friendclub
posted by Sterros at 11:02 PM on January 30, 2020


I just thought of two Shakespeare quotes about bones:

The evil that men do lives after them; the good is oft interred with their bones. (Julius Caesar)

Full fathom five thy father lies; of his bones are coral made. (The Tempest)

This leads me to something like The Buried Good or Full Fathom Five. And speaking of Willy Shakes and bones also suggests Yorick's Visage or similar.
posted by Rock Steady at 4:57 AM on January 31, 2020 [1 favorite]


The Close Friends
posted by Transmissions From Vrillon at 6:48 AM on January 31, 2020


Response by poster: After speaking to my Latin-knowin' friend I think I've settled on the very literal Mors Argentea (silver death). I do like the sound of Argentum mortis (silver of death) but that's been used here and there.

Bonus: we both learned about Feralia as well as "there's also this crazy word 'ferali' which means funeral, sort of, but is just the adjective form from the verb "to carry" which is what you do with a corpse" so I will hold that in my pocket for the next cult.
posted by komara at 9:25 AM on February 3, 2020


For this purpose I would use NameGenerators. They have many suitable generators.
posted by palegirl at 7:17 AM on November 12, 2020


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