Household names

[danaeris]

We're revisiting the name for our new household.

It was suggested to darkestembrace that since we both have extraordinarily busy lives, viewing our home as our sanctum or sanctuary made a lot of sense. So, she suggested the idea of calling it, simply, "Sanctuary," or "Sanctum."

I countered with Haven and Avalon.

She countered with the following options. Annwfn has personal significance to me, so I would like that. But it may not be the most appropriate one. Any other suggestions of mythical havens or sanctuaries that are appropriate?

Here's her list:
Annwn or Annwfn, ( "under-world" or "un-world", sometimes inaccurately written Annwyn, Annwyfn or Annwfyn) was the Otherworld, the land of souls that had departed this world in Welsh mythology. Ruled by Arawn, or much later by Gwynn ap Nudd, it was essentially a world of delights and eternal youth where disease is absent and food is ever-abundant. Annwn was said to lie so far to the west that not even Manawydan ap Llyr had found it, for you could only reach Annwn by dying yourself. It was also said, though, that Annwn could be entered by those still living if they could find the door.

Shambhala (Tib. bde 'byung) is a Sanskrit term meaning "place of peace/tranquility/happiness". (Not sure I like the rest of the historical/religious connotation to this one, though).

In Irish mythology, Mag Mell ("plain of joy") was a mythical realm achievable through death and/or glory. Unlike the underworld in some mythologies, Mag Mell was a pleasurable paradise, identified as either an island far to the west of Ireland or a kingdom beneath the ocean. This otherworld is a place where sickness and death do not exist. It is a place of eternal youth and beauty. Here, music, strength, life and all pleasurable pursuits come together in a single place. Here happiness lasts forever, no one wants for food or drink. It is the Celtic equivalent of the Greek Elysium or the Valhalla of the Norse.

Shangri-La is a fictional place described in the 1933 novel Lost Horizon by British author James Hilton. In the book, "Shangri-La" is a mystical, harmonious valley, gently guided from a lamasery, enclosed in the western end of the Himalaya. Shangri-La has become synonymous with any earthly paradise but particularly a mythical Himalayan utopia — a permanently happy land, isolated from the outside world.

Tír na nÓg, called in English the Land of Eternal Youth or the Land of the Ever-Young, was the most popular of the Otherworlds in Irish mythology. Tír na nÓg was considered a place beyond the edges of the map, located on an island far to the west. It could be reached by either an arduous voyage or an invitation from one of its fairy residents. Otherwise seems almost identical to Mag Mell.

In the mythology of the British Isles, Bebhinn (pronounced bev-in) was a goddess of the underworld and daughter of its ruler. More specifically, the Goddess of Pleasure. In addition to being very lovely, Bebhinn was also very strong, independent, and sure of herself. Bebhinn is one of few powerful, intelligent, and feminist characters in ancient mythology. She can easily easily be seen as a modern woman of today's world - yearning for equality but, at the same time, not ignorant or self-absorbed.

Comments

[athereal.livejournal.com]

What about something involving Faerie or the land of the Fey?

[crimson-prime.livejournal.com]

I personally like the name 'Shambhala' best, as it seems more inviting to me than the others. I know how hard it is to come up with a decent name, as I have faced that challenge before (my last place was 'The Core', belonging to three gamers).

[furious-g.livejournal.com]

I am in favour of Elysium.