KKC Theory Wiki

The Newarre Priest Pater Leoden Is Secretly Master Elodin in Disguise

fringe identity · popularity 78 · 1 source thread

The Newarre priest named Leoden/Leodan/Leodin is an anagram of Elodin, suggesting the Namer is hiding nearby.

About: Elodin, Newarre

Also involves: Kvothe, Bast, The Tehlin Church, The Chandrian, Felurian

The theory§

The priest of Newarre is named Pater Leoden in The Name of the Wind, Abbe Leodan in The Wise Man's Fear, and Leodin in The Lightning Tree, and across these spellings the name is an anagram of Elodin. The theory takes this as a buried clue that the Master Namer is hiding in the village near Kvothe, supported by the way Elodin is elsewhere likened to a priest 'about to perform a wedding' and his habit of chasing wild things around a room. It folds into a larger reading in which Newarre is a deliberate trap: by speaking the Chandrian's names within the frame story, Kvothe draws them in, with Elodin, Bast, Chronicler, and others positioned to strike. A recurring objection holds that when the scrael are buried Kvothe judges the priest to have 'done all the right things for all the wrong reasons,' which fits an ignorant cleric rather than a concealed Namer who would act with understanding.

Evidence§

  • User u/AbacusWizard noticed that there's a priest called Leodin in Newarre. Actually it's Leoden or Leodan, but I guess it might have also been Leodin for some time
    Core claim: priest's name is an anagram of Elodin across spellings. — u/BlueVCoin
  • Who do you think killed 5 scrael, Kvothe alone? Or Taborlin?
    Argues the scrael kill implies a powerful hidden helper like Elodin. — u/BlueVCoin
  • He circled us again, eventually **standing between us like a priest about to perform a wedding**.
    Elodin is textually likened to a priest, supporting the disguise. — u/BlueVCoin
  • Then *Elodin started to chase the seeds wildly around the room*, trying to snatch them out of the air with his hands.
    Elodin chasing wild things echoes the priest-chasing-cow song. — u/BlueVCoin
  • The reason I'm 80% sure about this theory is changing the name of the priest. In book 1 the priest is called Leoden, in book 2 it's Leodan and in LT it's Leodin.
    Shifting spellings read as an intentional clue, not error. — u/BlueVCoin
  • If, in the story Kvothe is telling, he says the names of the Chandrian a few more times, they will be drawn to Newarre. The entire thing has been a trap set up for the Chandrian. … Kvothe, Elodin, Bast, Chronicler, Crazy Marten … all ready to take them out.
    Extends theory: Newarre is a trap with Elodin positioned to strike. — u/freakysmurf11
  • the anagram seems a little to obvious to not be on purpose, imo.
    Independent reader confirms the anagram looks deliberate. — u/kichien
  • When the priest burried the screal in the beginning of NotW kvothe says to Bast He did all the right things for all the wrong reasons. So i don´t think it´s elodin or he would´ve done it prob for the right reasons.
    CounterCounter: 'wrong reasons' fits an ignorant cleric, not a Namer. — u/[deleted]
  • Why would a random quote about a priest and a cow have anything to do with elodin. You havent really made a compelling argument that any of those quotes are connected. The only evidence is that it is an anagram
    CounterCounter: supporting quotes are unconnected; only the anagram holds. — u/JerBear0328

Book refs: NOTW, WMF, The Lightning Tree

Tier reasoning§

tier holds: anagram-driven identity guess, speculative leap

Contributors§

Source threads§