Therian Guide: Forums

I do see my theriotypes as part of my being. Since I'm on the mental side as well I see no point in naming them.

But if others want to do that or experience their therianthropy/otherkinity differently that should be okay.

I think some people could get it confused with not being comfortable with a human name and they want a name that is more like a name you'd give to a pet. But I agree it's unhealthy to make it seperate from yourself

there is an old joke
Dialogue between two friends:
- what is your cat's name?
- day or night?

cats have many names. irbis, white cat, ирбиш, Ак ирбирс, snow leopard, снежный барс, etc. which people came up with.

I believe that animals communicate nonverbally, they give names, but it's more like an image about another creature, not words and text.
I think for this reason, I often see the names of therianthropes in the form of images, reflections.

what is a human name?
American Indian names are an image with clear definitions.
The names of pagan gods? find two different gods with the same name.
These are roots from the animal world. dig deeper and we will find an image by which animals distinguish some creatures from others.

I think it's not an unhealthy idea, but it just may not make a lot of sense. I know I go by a lot of different names (Not in relation to Therianthropy) so perhaps someone wanting to know their Therian name could be because of something like this reason?

I'm not so sure, perhaps it's just something to do for fun. I know Therianthropy can be seen as a super scary, serious practice. And people may wanna add some fun aspects to that.

I think finding ones therian or otherkin name is an experience that certainly varies from one person to the next. I can see how it is strange for those with wild animal types, but I also can see it as just someone looking for what they prefer to be called within the community. Perhaps it is words being put to a scent, a translation of how animals recognize each other to a simpler way as we are forced to live as humans. Then there are those with a more spirtual view of things who may believe names to be a more meaningful part of their animality. I don't see the harm in it either way.

For myself as a member of the dragon community, it is not uncommon for us to have a dragon name or be in search of one. The name I go by for instance, Azaphaer, is one that I meditated on until it felt right. My name originally came to me one night in deep thought: Zaphaera. This name though would not fit my experience forever to where it morphed into my current one. Do I as a dragon actually have a spoken name though? No, I do not. My actual "name" is not a word, a scent, or an image; it's an energy signature. Similar to an aura, it's a wave of life that is distinctly my own and recognized by other spirit beings to identify me by.

My other type being more alien nature has a name that was given to me in that life. This is very different from animals however, being a member of an alien race with a culture that revolved around calling names. That name, Starscream, is not my true name either though for that particular life. It's a human translation, an english one, that only reflects what my name means in my native language of neocybex. We don't speak with tongues or organic bodies. These are spoken with metallic rings, clicks, and hums. Nothing similar to an earth creature.

I can see why other beings would have names for so many other reasons than my own, which are both already so different from one another. Having multiple names isn't so unheard of when we consider our natures. The names are still all connected to one individual, no matter which part of ourselves we are using them to describe.

-Azaphaer