Names of characters in Game of Thrones: for and against multiculturalism

Abstract

The Game of Thrones is one of the most popular shows in the world, with numerous audiences since it has been translated into many languages. Like any other such show, the reactions to it function like mirrors of contemporary themes and obsessions. As with most aspects of culture today, ideologues of all types – Marxists, conservatives, traditionalists, Critical Race Theory activists, intersectionalists, feminists, and others – always try to use such widely popular shows to illustrate their ideas and push their agendas. Some aspects of Songs of Ice and Fire have triggered debates on the issue of its characters as being not diverse enough, and thus showing how George R. R. Martin wrote a rather non-progressive book. This paper focuses on the names the author chose for his characters, and argues that the choice of names in the show is due to a wish of the author to evoke important world cultures, to have a sonority that matches the characters’ personalities, and to be both archaic and memorable. I have called such a view a non-ideological and symbolic one, and I think that viewers identify with the characters in the film due to their likes and dislikes, and not according to any kind of ideological claims. Nevertheless, these names can also be considered to be a good illustration of diversity – of ethnic, cultural, and racial background. For such a demonstration the study concentrates on the names of a few of the main characters, trying to come up with possible etymologies (as we know that Martin looked into such names of Medieval England) which are correct from a historical linguistic point of view, but which also can be interpreted as symbolic and have a rich connotation within the literary text.