Ich hatte die zwar glaub' ich schon mal gepostet, aber bitte...
9.5) Where did White Wolf get the Clan/Bloodline names from?
Ahrimanes - From the name Ahriman, the Zoroastrian god of evil and darkness.
Assamites - 1) If it refers to a "Follower of Assam", then in all likelihood, the "Assam" referred to here is the western mis-pronunciation of "Hassan" as-Sabbah. A member of the Nizari Isma'ili sect of Islam (sort of), popularly known in the West as the Assassins. The name "Assassin" was applied to them by crusaders from a local term "hashshashin" (hashish eaters). 2) If it refers to a "person from Assam", then there is the remote possibility it refers to a belief that the "Assamites" were coming from Assam. This is one of the states of India, located on the eastern tip between China and Myannmar.
Baali - From the Mesopotamian word Ba'al, meaning a Lord or master of a city
Brujah - 1) from the Spanish/Latin American word brujo or bruja meaning a witch. 2) Or from brouhaha [a disturbance].
Caitiff - Medieval English. A 'caitiff' was someone without honor or power (from the Latin stem 'captivus'; a captive.)
Cappadocian - Cappadocia was a region of the Roman Empire in Asia Minor that was an early stronghold of Christianity.
Daughters of Cacophony - A cacophony is a harsh discord of noise.
Followers of Set - The Latin name for the Egyptian god called Sutehk. Considered the god of the desert and sun. Early Egyptian beliefs placed his nature as a war god. Greeks saw him as the Egyptian version of Typhoon, a Greek god of death and evil.
Gangrel - Medieval British dialect (old English/Scottish), meaning beggar, wanderer, vagabond or rover.
Giovanni - From the Italian name meaning 'young man', English equivalent would be Johnny. More commonly a surname, but is also known to be a family name.
Kiasyd - The Kia-Sidhe (AKA Leanan Sidhe) were blood-drinking faerie who appeared in Ars Magica's Faerie supplement.
Liabon - Term for chief, used by the Masai people of West Africa.
Lasombra - From the Spanish 'la sombra', meaning 'the shadow'.
Lamia - a Vampiric figure of European myth which attracts mortals to her through her voice and drains them not only of blood, but of willpower and strength as well.
Malkavian - It comes from the Hebrew Malak, meaning Angel. A secondary meaning of Malak is king. Not to mention Malach which means to vanish, whose root word is Maal, which refers to one who commits a severe transgression or trespass. (From Dan Greenberg)
Nagaraja - Means "Serpent King", or Lord of the Serpents, from one of the languages of India. (Refers to the Indian god of life and incarnation.)
Nosferatu - This word appears in Dracula, but is found nowhere else in Europe before being made famous by the novel. A common theory is it is a word the arthur (or his source) had heard, but did not see spelled. One researcher believes it may have been derived from the Romanian 'nesuferit', which as a noun means 'a nasty fellow'; as an adjective means "unbearable" or "horrid".
And as the word "nesuferitul" which is pronounced without the "l", translates almost literally into "the insufferable one".
Pander - 1) Joseph Pander is the name of the founder of the organized Caitiff movement of the Sabbat. 2) The British term "pander" means a go-between, usually between those looking for a good time and those in the business of providing a good time. The name comes from Chaucer's story of "Troilus and Criseyde", in which Pandarus arranges liaisons between the two.
Ravnos - 1) Old French 'ravis' - to seize or carry off. 2) from the Romany adjective "Ruvno", which describes something that is wolf-like or lupine.
Samedi - Baron Samedi is a death god of Voudun lore, whose name is derived from the french word for 'Saturday'. Saturday is considered the day of death
in voudun lore as it is the full day Christ spent dead.
Salubri - From Latin word salubrious; favorable to health or well-being.
Toreador - 1) Spanish for bullfighter (actually the spear carrier for the matador). 2) One person claims its Italian for 'entertainer' (Unsupported). 3) Another person claimed it was a slur referring to the style of pants worn by bullfighters (a clan of fancy pants).
Tremere - 1) from the Latin word tremere, meaning 'to tremble'.
Tzimisce - 1) From the name of an Armenian family of the tenth century, one of whom, John I Tzimisces, was Byzantine Roman Emperor 969-976 AD. 2) The name comes from the Armenian word "Tshemshkik" which means "Red Boot".
Ventrue - Feminine form of the French word for pot-bellied, which is a nickname sometimes used for the well feed nobles.
