Approximate read time: 7 minutes.
By now I'm sure many of us have noticed the uptick in wolf therians identifying themselves using tracking collar IDs rather than names, alongside a few members of other species doing their equivalent. While tracking collar numbers do not resonate with me (as a werewolf, I would just take it off the next time I changed to human shape if that were to happen to me), they are a part of a general topic that interests me very much - wordless names.
A wordless name is, well, pretty much what it says on the tin. A name which contains no words. This is a concept that I think many alterhumans may find interesting, because it is a way to refer to yourself that is closer to the way that animals likely think of each other in some cases, or may simply be "dehumanizing" in others.
To talk about wordless names, we first have to think about what makes a name in the first place. Most naming conventions dictate that a name should be pronounceable, and be able to be written, usually using the standard alphabet of the name's language origin. However, that is not always the case, even in the human world. Lets look at some examples of human names outside of this framework, before we get into ideas for nonhuman ones.
A name does not have to be pronounceable:
Names spoken in sign language may never be verbally spoken, and yet these are very much names.
Names used online often include emojis and unpronounceable letter combinations, but we still understand them as names.
The Artist Formerly Known as Prince changed his name to an unpronounceable symbol which also cannot be written in the standard alphabet.
A name does not have to be written:
Throughout history, there have been many oral cultures which had no written language, and yet members of these cultures certainly had names.
Even in cultures with written language, for most of history the majority of the population has been illiterate, meaning many people's names were never written, or may have been written with no standardized spelling at all.
If a name does not have to be spoken, pronounced, or written, then we are left with the idea that a name is any signifier that can be used to refer to you specifically. This includes aforementioned radio collar IDs, but it also includes one of my favorite kind of wordless names - tuponyms.
A tuponym is a pattern-name. A name which is formed by patterns unwritten, unpronounceable, and non-linguistic. Tuponyms were first conceptualized by Bluesky user GoopyPanther, in her zine "Tuponyms", which I highly recommend reading. Some examples of a tuponym included in the zine are:
The individual gait of an animal's stride. If you can recognize which of your family members is approaching your door based on the sound of their footsteps, you may already be familiar with this type of name.
The individual frequency emitted by a radio collar.
The pattern of light and color left by a flashing night-walking dog collar.
I myself have thought of a few more, such as the shape of the border of an animal's territory, the pattern of their markings, or the unique shape of their tracks. The possibilities are almost endless.
One unique example of this in the wild that we can confirm is used by animals is the pitch of a wolf's howl. Each individual wolf in a pack howls in a specific pitch which the pack can use to identify them, as well as to harmonize together. This association is so strong, that if a new wolf joins the pack who howls in a pitch that is already taken, they will have to change their howl to an unoccupied one.
Neither of the types of wordless name discussed so far touches on the most common animal name of all. though. This is, of course, scent. It belongs in a category of its own. Each individual creature carries its own unique scent, which not only names who they are, but also communicates how well they are doing, what they have been up to lately, and who they have been hanging out with. Scent is the most common method of naming and knowing in the animal kingdom, and, in some ways, is most similar to human writing. A scent message can be scrawled into the landscape, explicitly intended for use by others, and can also be a passive trace of a presence on the breeze. I will admit that I may be biased here as a canine, but scent speaks in volumes, and because of its powerful tie with memory, I think it makes a wonderfully rich name woven from memories of the creature bearing the scent.
The concept of a "signature scent" is nothing new, and with the rise in popularity of the miscecanis community, the concept of a personal scent is something that gets talked about in the alterhuman community fairly often, but I believe that scent as a name is taking things a step further. The difference between natural scent, like is being used by animals, and artificial scent, like is being chosen in the form of scent products to represent yourself, becomes a bit of a divide here. Though both are useful.
Even without your theriotype's nose, by paying attention to the natural scent of yourself and your loved ones, you can pretty quickly pick up on its identifying features, and even some of the other info I mentioned, like where they may have been, what they have been doing, and even some information about their health. I have gotten pretty good at noticing the changes in my mate's scent when he is having a bad mental health day, vs when he is feeling fine, for example. Much like a written letter from a loved one, natural scent can also be used to comfort you in their absence, cuddling with their blanket becomes a comforting name spoken sweetly.
Chosen scents like cologne and perfume also communicate a lot. Imagine you have no spoken name, and no chance to communicate verbally, yet you are trying to communicate to someone who you are and what you're about. What scents would you chose, and what would you hope that they say about you? This is something of a chosen name. One of the most unique ways that I have heard of chosen scents being used as a naming, was by a kinkster who spoke about how whenever he enters a new dynamic with a sub, he takes them to pick out a "scent collar" which they would wear during all scenes so that the scent of it would instantly put them into the right headspace for their dynamic. Eventually, this scent would be worn at all times as a completely invisible day collar.
All this to say, there are numerous ways that animals communicate identity and recognize each other, which are not traditional names. There are also lots of non-traditional name ways that humans recognize and refer to animals. If you are a wild animal, it may be fun to think about what sort of wordless names others may give you. If you are a predator that protects a certain range of territory, others of your species may name you by the shape of the territory you defend, and the scent hovering at your marking places. At the same time, prey may name you by the pattern your paws leave in the mud, and know to steer clear. If you are a deer, your kin may name you by the impressive antler rubs you leave, while humans might recognize you by the estimated score of your antlers. A bird may be named by the hue of his dazzling feathers by a mate, and by the scratches his dance leaves in the dirt by the snake. An angler fish may be known the the wavelength of light her lure gives off, or the texture of her skin in the dark.
These names are fluid, descriptive, and immediate. They prevent you from easily being spoken about in your absence, a fact suited to the flow state inhabited by most animals. Each moment is faced for exactly what it is, with complete mindfulness. It is an interesting thought experiment, to think about the ways that different modes of language change the very way you think.
What do you think of wordless names? Are there any you identify with? If you would like to make some of your own, here are a few ideas:
The shape of the path you take most often when you walk through your neighborhood
The mixture of your natural scent and the scent left behind by your favorite hobbies (eg, the smell of warm bread if you like baking, dirt and leaves if you hike, salt water if you fish in the sea, etc)
A specific signature scent you chose to represent yourself
The sound + rhythm made by your key-chains or collar tags jangling when you walk
The pattern made by an LED night collar, should you chose to adopt wearing one
Your preferred silhouette in clothing
All of this isn't even getting into the kind of names that could be used by alien species, spirits, or fictional creatures.
