KKC Theory Wiki

Kvothe's Mother Laurian Was a Secret Namer

fringe identity · popularity 88 · 1 source thread

The Lackless rhymes hint that Netalia Lackless, Kvothe's mother, was a hidden Namer who travelled into the Fae.

About: Laurian, Naming

Also involves: The Lackless Box, Arliden, Edema Ruh, The Fae, Kvothe, Elodin, Meluan Lackless

The theory§

This theory proposes that Laurian, Kvothe's mother, is secretly Netalia Lackless and was a hidden Namer who passed nightly into the Fae. It reads the children's rhyme 'Seven things has Lady Lackless' as a coded inventory of her secrets: 'a ring that's not for wearing' as a ring of air like the one Kvothe hints he may already wear, 'a sharp word, not for swearing' as a name she could speak, and 'a door without a handle' paired with 'she's been dreaming and not sleeping' as her secret passage through a stone Lackless door into the Fae. It leans on the established lore that the Edema Ruh always halt at gray standing stones, suggesting Laurian used such stones to slip away and meet Arliden. The theory grounds the ring of air in Kvothe's exchange with Elodin, where Elodin's laughter dies when Kvothe's expression suggests he is not joking. A counter notes the frame-story rhyme describes Kvothe's rings as 'unseen' yet worn, so 'a ring that's not for wearing' likely points elsewhere; another holds the Lady Lackless poem names a husband and was heard by Kvothe as a child, and Laurian and Arliden never formally married, complicating its application to Netalia.

Evidence§

  • I've noticed some details that make me think that Kvothe's mother Laurian might have been a namer. This theory assumes that we know a few things: … Laurian is Netalia Lackless … The stone doors provide access to the Fae. As do the 'standing stones'.
    OP states the core thesis and its assumptions. — u/TungstenSultan
  • “Who’s to say I’m not already wearing it?” … Elodin rocked with laughter, then stopped when my expression didn’t change. … “Are you joking?” he asked.
    OP grounds a real ring of air in Kvothe's exchange with Elodin. — u/TungstenSultan
  • Two lines in particular allude to rings that aren't worn. My theory is that this alludes to Laurian's prowess as a namer.
    OP reads 'a ring that's not for wearing' as her naming power. — u/TungstenSultan
  • One definition of "forsworn" is to perjure oneself … I think this 'word' is a *name.* Netalia's naming abilities were something she kept very secret.
    OP reads the 'sharp word, not for swearing' as a hidden name. — u/TungstenSultan
  • The third piece of evidence is in "There’s a door without a handle" and "She’s been dreaming and not sleeping" which suggests to me that at night, Netalia would sneak through the lackless door and into the fae.
    OP reads door and dreaming lines as nightly passage into the Fae. — u/TungstenSultan
  • we know that the Ruh frequently stop at standing stones. Perhaps Netalia snuck through the Lackless door each night into the Fae, then re-entered the mortal realm through a standing stone to find (and spend the night with) Arliden.
    OP uses the gray-stone lore to explain how she met Arliden. — u/TungstenSultan
  • Naming is easier in the Fae, for one reason or another, so she was able to learn naming by herself.
    OP's proposed mechanism for how she became a self-taught Namer. — u/TungstenSultan
  • those rings ARE worn, they just aren't always visible. So the Lackless rhymes probably aren't referencing them.
    CounterCounter: frame-story rings are worn, so 'ring not for wearing' points elsewhere. — u/Zhorangi
  • The Lady Lackless poem cannot be about Netalia or Meluan even, as it mentions a husband and Kvothe heard the poem as a child. Remember that Laurian and Arliden never officially got married
    CounterCounter: poem names a husband but Laurian/Arliden never married. — u/Homer00

Book refs: NOTW, WMF

Tier reasoning§

tier holds: rests on speculative readings of ambiguous rhyme lines

Contributors§

Source threads§