true names
Actual correct appellations
True names is a concept from fantasy and folklore: knowing something's true name gives you power over it.
Demons, spirits, and magical beings guard their real names because speaking them aloud compels obedience or reveals vulnerability.
The idea appears across cultures and persists in modern fantasy fiction.
By extension, true names can mean the essential nature of anything—the real designation beneath surface labels.
Calling forth deliberately
- invocationCalling upon higher authority
- bindingLegally or morally required
- conjurationMagical act of summoning
- incantationSpoken magical formula
sorcery · enchantment · divination · ritual · arcane · esoteric · occult · theurgy
Fundamental nature of something
- soulInnermost animating essence
- selfOne's own being
- authenticityQuality of being genuine
- originStarting point or source
birthname · lineage · ancestry · heritage · personhood · individuality · designation · christening
Act of hiding something
protected · veiled · shrouded · obscured · cryptic · undisclosed · unrevealed · taboo
Act of finding something
- unveilingAct of first revealing
- disclosureAct of revealing information
- unmaskingRevealing what's hidden
- exposureState of being unprotected
learning · knowing · speaking · utterance · pronunciation · divulgence · uncovering · enlightenment
Authority to rule
- controlAuthority to direct
- commandAuthoritative instruction given
- authorityPower to enforce obedience
- masteryComplete skill or control
sovereignty · binding · subjugation · influence · leverage · hold · sway · compulsion
summoning
Calling forth deliberately
- invocationCalling upon higher authority
- bindingLegally or morally required
- conjurationMagical act of summoning
incantation · sorcery · enchantment · divination · ritual · arcane · esoteric · occult · theurgy · cabala
essence
Fundamental nature of something
- soulInnermost animating essence
- selfOne's own being
- authenticityQuality of being genuine
origin · birthname · lineage · ancestry · heritage · personhood · individuality · designation · christening · nomenclature
concealment
Act of hiding something
secret · protected · veiled · shrouded · obscured · cryptic · undisclosed · unrevealed · taboo · sacred
discovery
Act of finding something
- unveilingAct of first revealing
- disclosureAct of revealing information
- unmaskingRevealing what's hidden
exposure · learning · knowing · speaking · utterance · pronunciation · divulgence · uncovering · enlightenment · realization
dominion
Authority to rule
mastery · sovereignty · binding · subjugation · influence · leverage · hold · sway · compulsion · obedience
- magicwizard, wand, sorcerer, witchcraft, mage
- occultwitchcraft, sorcery, necromancy, black magic, tarot
- arcanagrimoire, spellbook, incantation, enchantment, arcanum
- Le GuinEarthsea, Sparrowhawk, Lavinia, Powers
- namessurnames, nicknames, forenames, surname, nickname
- Fairy Courtsfairy king, fairy queen, court intrigue
true namesaliases
Alternate assumed identities
pseudonyms · assumed names · nicknames · cover names · stage names
true namesnicknames
Informal substitute names
pet names · diminutives · terms of endearment · street names · given names
true, truly, truth, truths, truthful, truthfully, truthfulness, untrue, untruth