Universal Nomenclature

What to call a universe? Realistically speaking, the inhabitants of a universe would simply refer to it as "The Universe", and stop there. This isn't going to be very useful for readers or an author, and so a decent name is required. This is what most authors have done with their universes, hence the names Arda, Narnia, Oz, Flatland and Wonderland. It makes the fictional universe much easier to refer to. Other series have no names per se, instead relying on their series titles : The Wheel of Time Universe, The Foundation Universe, The Revelation Space Universe and so on. With science fiction it's a little more acceptable to rely on series titles, since the stories are usually set in the future of the universe we live in. However in a fantasy universe, which is meant to be distinct, it does, to my own sentiment, warrant a unique name; its inhabitants would hardly refer to their universe via title of a book in our reality.

The only reasonable excuse for concocting a name for an alternate universe would be to say that it is the word which its inhabitants use to refer to "the universe" in their language. I am, unfortunately, not a linguist, and while I am working on a language for my sub-reality, it'll be years before I devise anything as polished as Quenya.

Moving on to the name itself. In English and its related languages at least, places have a tendency to end their names with an "A". Australia, America, Asia, Africa, China and India to name a few. Perhaps this is simply a remnant of Latin, with Brittainia, Hispania, Gallia and Italia. And in turn characteristic of PIE languages, with Persia, Lydia, Assyria and Phoenicia.  This tendency carried over to the Inklings, and Tolkien chose Arda while Lewis chose Narnia. I feel inclined to break this trend and end with a sound other than an 'A', not in the least because I hail from a different cultural background.

Then it occurred to me that if a the universe was named by Eleyon, its initial name might not even be something you might express in speech. Our vocalised names are only manifest in a physical reality of sound. Then again, for the purposes of communication with humanity, Eleyon would have selected a name that would accomodate physical speech and his own experience of the universe. With all these criteria in mind... I am really rather at a loss to pin a name onto my sub-creation.

The thing that I've found with names, with the characters and locations I've established, is that they tend to sound strange when you first contrive them, but after iterated use, they seem to adopt a euphonic quality that they did not possess before. So I suspect that if I do think of a temporary name, with intentions to amend it in time, it will mostly likely establish itself as a permanent one.

Syllable-wise, I would be most comfortable with two. Referring to the universe should be simple. I would think a single syllable would be the most appropriate, such as how the names of other natural objects are monosyllabic, the sun, moon, world, sky and sea. But that leaves me with a dearth of sounds to select from. Somehow a disyllabic seems to strike a balance between flexibility and simplicity in this respect.

Ergo, two syllables; the question now progresses to "Which two?" I would say no voiceless plosives, no fricatives, no sibilants and no affricates. They don't seem to sound full enough for the name of a universe that is supposed to contain everything in reality. I've also thought that anything bilabial wouldn't sound primeval enough. The universe is related to the idea of origins to me, so the lips seem too far removed from the vocal chords to suggest a relation to a source. An 'R' also strikes me as a tad complex, since I will likely decide that 'R's should be trilled in the language is devise, so that's out as well. 'G' reminds me of guttural, garish, gun; well it seems a little too harsh. So what am I left with in the English alphabet after the culling...

'L' 'N' 'D' 'W' 

Of course I should technically move beyond English sounds, but very well, I'm writing this in English, so I want English speakers to pronounce the name with the quality that I'm after naturally, not some garbled refraction of it. Perhaps I will change this as time goes on, or as I suspect, maybe not. Alright then, five consonants and two vowels to pick from. An open 'A' definitely has to go in there, it's the most open sound. And an 'E' since it represents the next relatively open sound, and the mouth seems relaxed and natural to me, somehow. 'O' is still fairly open, but seems to stately and formal somehow, as in 'O come, O come Emmanuel'. 'I' and 'U' are too closed for consideration. 'E' should be first and 'A' second. 'E' opening up into an 'A' represents the broadening of experience for me. The thing about 'A' in English is that it can be pronounced like the 'A' in hand, which isn't what I'm going for. I suppose that's may have been part of why Tolkien appended an 'R' to the 'A' in Arda. 

Well after considering various combinations, the one that appeals to me the most is Eldawn. When that came up I felt it fit perfectly in terms of the word 'dawn', although the 'A' should sound a little more open than the 'A' in dawn, and 'El' is a syllable that makes thematic sense with some of the other names I have determined for the rest of the story. 

Well that took a long time to figure out. I honestly didn't filter sounds out with a preconceived idea for the name, the process moved along just as it did in this post. But yes, I admire Tolkien's respect for names, and in that sense, I cannot accept a casually selected word to refer to the entirety of my sub-creation. Naming things can be rather a hindrance to authors who want to get going with the story, but there is satisfaction in a carefully crafted sound that adds greater meaning to the fantasy as a whole.