He Needed a Name. Questions related to Kyrie have come up from three or four different people this week. That’s FAQ levels of inquiry, so I thought I’d do a blog post. Who knows, maybe you’ve been wondering about this, too. ::twinkle::

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They would give them a home and teach them how to be the best of all worlds. Starting with this little one, who needed them as much as he needed a name. An idea sparked, and Tsumiko started along the path again, aiming for the central courtyard. “I want to show you something.”

A stone archway spanned the broad entrance, and words were chiseled deep into the stone. Argent scanned the Latin and translated, “God Have Mercy.”

“Yes. Kyrie eleison … my favorite song and the school’s motto.  I thought Kyrie might make a good name for a child who needed mercy and found it.”

“Kyrie,” he said, testing the syllables.

—Tsumiko and the Enslaved Fox (Amaranthine Saga, #1)

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Pronunciation. Kyrie’s name is properly pronounced with three syllables (KEE-ree-yay), which is the Latin word for “lord.” You can check out YouTube, where abundant recordings of Tsumiko’s favorite song are available. But since I’m ever and always a fangirl and Death Note‘s OST is memorable for its sonorous Latin choruses, I’ll link you there – Death Note Kyrie, Kyrie II And Kyrie Orchestra.

KEE-ree-yay

Origination. Some of you kindly flagged the above scene in order to correct my reference to Latin, pointing out that kyrie eleison is Greek. You are not wrong. But neither am I. (And this is where I start to sound like a total nerd, but not a defensive one. Because this stuff is really cool, but can be a little confusing.) Continue reading →