Do Vulcans have first names...

[Anticitizen]

This is why fanfic and novels are overwhelmingly very silly. What's the point of a secret name, especially to such a logical race that despises bullshit?

 

[Timo]

A refuge of privacy, especially important for a species of telepaths?

Many an ancient Earth culture has believed in secret names, and in the idea that knowing somebody's or something's name gives you power over him, her or it.

Timo Saloniemi

 

[Kirk-Fu]

My Vulcan has a first name. It's S-p-o-c-k. My Vulcan has a second name. It's un-pro-nounc-a-ble.

 

[Anticitizen]

A refuge of privacy, especially important for a species of telepaths?

Many an ancient Earth culture has believed in secret names, and in the idea that knowing somebody's or something's name gives you power over him, her or it.

Timo Saloniemi

Yes, silly illogical Earth cultures.

 

[Mike Farley]

Spock's first name is Benjamin. I thought everyone knew that.

 

[Havri]

This is why fanfic and novels are overwhelmingly very silly. What's the point of a secret name, especially to such a logical race that despises bullshit?

Vulcans do seem to have many rituals (Kahs Wan, Koon-ut-kal-if-fee, koon-ut-so'lik, etc) so perhaps the fourth, secret name is used as a ritual name? Or perhaps Vulcans dropped the secret name at the Time of Awakening, but the Romulans kept using it.

But what I heard about the four name structure was that there was a given name, used in informal situations, then the locative name, which indicates where you were born, and the family name, which indicated your lineage (if you were a member of the clan by birth) or clan of allegiance (if you were a member of the clan by adoption or employment). The fourth, secret name was used only with very close friends and lovers. Source: The Rihannsu Encyclopedia's Name Page

Of course, that applies to Romulans, but perhaps not to Vulcans.

 

[Myasishchev]

A refuge of privacy, especially important for a species of telepaths?

Many an ancient Earth culture has believed in secret names, and in the idea that knowing somebody's or something's name gives you power over him, her or it.

Timo Saloniemi

It's funny that given they are a species of telepaths, we all assume that the unpronounceable--not canonically secret--name is actually linguistic at all. It might be imagery, feelings, mathematical concepts, or a purely abstract sequence of neuronal firings. In this case, Spock would be at a loss to explain it to the cavegirl chick, and iirc Amanda took pains to qualify her ability to "pronounce" the name as "after a fashion."

My Vulcan has a first name. It's S-p-o-c-k. My Vulcan has a second name. It's un-pro-nounc-a-ble.

 

[roguephoenix]

considering vulcans pretty much have the same vocal chords as humans, how can something be unpronounceable? hmmmm...

maybe he meant it more like, "i won't tell you because your species has a way of butchering words and names foreign to you." it's true. how else can quo'nos (or however it is in klingon) turn into kronos....

 

[Myasishchev]

considering vulcans pretty much have the same vocal chords as humans, how can something be unpronounceable? hmmmm...

Take it up with Gene Roddenberry as to why a telepathic species has vocal chords. Betazoids are an even worse offender, with their telepathy at a distance.

The point is language operates largely as a means of making others understand one's thoughts. (It also operates as a cognitive system, making it so oneself understand one's thoughts, but...) A telepathic species could communicate thoughts without verbal content as a form of non-audible symbolic language.

 

[Anticitizen]

Not all Betazoids were telepathic, though, and only some were fully telepathic. Lon Suder, in Voyager, was a non-telepathic Betazoid (and sociopathic to boot).

 

[Myasishchev]

Huh, I didn't know that. Learn something new every day.