Monograms

Expert from “Wonderful Wanderings: Diary of the Traveler Ccysol”

Heraldic Monographs: 

After spending some time in the city I have noted some little peculiarities and habits of the people here. This shall be the first of many such entries I am sure!

The people of Nibiru and the surrounding countryside take a strong fondness and pride in their names. This is often reflected in their use of personalized monograms. From the poorest orphans to the high court officials, I have hardly met anyone here without one. Unlike the stylized calligraphied initials uses by the genty in Ǔmbørvą, these monograms are conjoined to form a single shape or image. A simple “CJO” will not do here, the C is instead made large, and the J is placed inside it to form the idea of an open mouth or the O is coming forth as if spoken. I use CJO of course as i grew accustomed to in Ǔmbørvą, however another curiosity here is that these monograms are all of the person's first name. Perhaps this arose from the traditions here of the royalty only having one name (at least in public though one does here rumors). So indeed here my mark cannot be CJO to represent my full name and heritage. Indeed it must be “Ccysol” with letters rearranged in a pleasing way. 

Of course, I at first tried to make my own mark, by forming the O and Cs in  concentric circles, surrounded by the Y and L. I was astonished to find some people sniggering when I set up a sign for an oratory this way. At first I thought this was perhaps a misuse of the monogram marks, but I learned that indeed it was the mark itself that was the trouble. One fellow told me, “No one will listen to you speak and perform with a mark like a banker or a lawyer, mate.” When I asked how I should make it look he only laughed. Later I discovered that this is because it is considered very poor taste for one to make one’s own mark. It shows them to be a child or an imposing outsider trying to fit in. There is in fact a small industry here of gilded tradespeople who make these marks. And no wonder! For I soon discovered that these marks will change during one's lifetime. 

When one is wed the mark might change to show a union to a partner, or it might change as a family grows. Furthermore the stylization reflects not only the profession or life ambition of the client, but also their demeanor and carriage. The mark of a stern governess, for example, might resemble an angry book. And rather than be insulted, she will tout this with pride as she goes to the houses, using it to show her style to the parents so they can evaluate her. The mark of a cheerful baker may resemble a smiling loaf of bread. Or an artificer might have a mark made of very neat and evenly spaced straight lines to show attention to detail. I have learned monogramists will assess many things before designing a person's mark, including often requiring an interview or sealed notes of the client's character from neighbors. 

One item does remain constant in these monograms: All the letters of the person's name MUST appear in the mark! They are often turned of shifted or stretched and sometimes hidden as I have alluded, but they all have to be there in the common alphabet (though i have seen some Orcs and Dwarfs have person runes in their native languages, which I must confess, I do not know the rules for when this is and isn’t done). It seems also that the mark may not have any unnecessary lines outside of the letters of the name, with the exception of the members of the royal court whose marks are often filigreed or mirrored to appear fancier. 

After one has a mark made by one of these monogramists, they are presented with two renditions of their new monogram. A simple version that can be easily written in pencil, chisel, or quill; and a fancier version which is colored and painted. I have seen these fancier marks on banners and store fronts. 

In fact, now that I come to think of it, these monograms are very similar to the heraldic coats of arms used in Ħæphisia. The main difference seems to be that this monogram heraldic symbology is available to everyone, not just the nobility. But, just like the Ħæphisian coats of arms, these deeper meanings all seem to be very obvious to those in the know (though with fewer puns i am thankful to say). Indeed it seems that anyone who would be a Mx. Mrs. Mr. or Mz. has a heraldic monogram to show they have come to a station in life, and as a way of keeping the attention on their first given name, rather than the last name of a family. And, while I do see some banners used by ranked officers, I also see the monograms used over shops and on doors of finer businesses.

C c y s o l

An addendum to this note, fellow traveler. I spoke with a reputable historian and she said that this system evolved, not by the ruling class, but by farmers and traders. Indeed it was a way for the uneducated population to sign documentational arrangements such as orders for feed or seed or tooling, even if they had… a poorer grasp on letters than you or I. By these marks, they would still be known and the identity of who asked for what could be established to avoid later conflicts of confusions over who ordered what. Later of course it became a sort of kitschy fashion in the city, and then the artisans began to use these marks to show what type of work they did, and the gentry took them to show status. Then, like all fads in any land, once the gentry did, a whole mill of specialists arrived to make them and assign rules. 

Indeed I have learned that while there is no inherent magic in these, they do function like signatures, in that they are very hard to accurately copy. Perhaps the monogamists do have some inlaid magic, because it does seem that I can always tell when a mark has been faked… Fascinating. 

Be sure to stop in to one of these monogramists if you intend to spend much time in the city, or wish to establish yourself. Indeed without a proper mark, as I learned from several early nights of empty bowls, you will not be seen as a serious person of business. 

            This is of course just a weird thing that we did as middle schoolers, but i have always enjoyed it, and it can (and has) lend an air of mystery to things, so i decided to add it to the world. These symbols do not have any game mechanics tied to them, but are another way of flushing out the world and bringing it to life. I have spent some time this week making ‘Heraldic Monograms’ for most of the NPC’s we have met so far in the game. Below is a small reference table for them so that if we see one that we don’t recognize, we can come back and look at it. When i made the marks for Sorin and for Matteo, i talked to Ashley and made sure she agreed with their designs first, since those are both characters that she created.

Bostra (cop) - Fancy

Bostra (cop) - simple

Bostra (royal) - Fancy

Bostra (royal) - simple

Cypress - Fancy

Cypress - smiple

Devin - Fancy

Devin - simple

Matteo - Fancy

Mateo - simple

Pulgrok - Fancy

Pulgrok - simple

[UNKNOWN] - Fancy

[UNKNOWN] - simple

[UNKOWN] - Fancy

[UNKOWN] - simple

Sorin - Fancy

Sorin - simple

Kai (like 2004)

Expert from “Wonderful Wanderings: Diary of the Traveler Ccysol”, this note is written in the margin and seems to have been written much later that the first section. 

A last thought on Heraldic Monograms. I have seen some recent comicerialists using only their names written out in stylized letters, rather than in true monogram name symbols. When I had a chance to ask one of these merchant venturists about it, David said the most curious thing, “It’s a new wave of brand recognition.” It is curious to see that this has garnered mixed reactions in the older generations, who seem to either dismiss such a full name sign as ‘show offy”.