Runeterran Naming Customs
I compiled a list of champions with two names here.
The Demacian and Noxian Houses have surnames, but how are they passed down? Patrilinearly? Matrilinearly? By complex rules of engagement, with the children's allegiance part of the negotiations? (It involves aristocracy, so it's probably Complicated.) Historically, surnames have first been adopted by the upper classes.
Leaving out the Demacians and Noxians, we have Yorick Mori of the Shadow Isles, Malcom Graves and Sarah Fortune of Bilgewater, Janna Windforce of Zaun, Cecil Heimerdinger of Bandle City, Orianna Reveck of Piltover, Annie Hastur of not-quite-Noxus, and Lee Sin (+ maybe Xin Zhao) of Ionia.
Based on Orianna having a surname and Pitover being the "City of Progress", I think that Piltovians have surnames. (Can they be matrilinear lore team plz?) Jayce, Cait, and Ez probably have surnames. Vi may be a self-chosen nickname, so her real name may be something like Valeria Iras, or it might be Vi Surname.
Yorick is probably of high status in the Shadow Isles. I don't know much of his lore, so I can't guess how common surnames would be in the Shadow Isles.
Heimerdinger: no other Yordle has a surname. Maybe he was originally just Heimerdinger and adopted the name "Cecil B. Heimerdinger" due to moving to Piltover? It'd help explain Rumble's view of Heimy as a sellout.
Graves is an orphan, so I don't know how he'd get his surname. Either a) it was the surname of his first carers, or b) it's a byname (think Erik the Red etc). Given that the other Bilgewaterite is called Miss Fortune, I'd say that Fortune and Graves are both bynames.
Janna Windforce: given that she's a wind elemental, I'd say that Windforce is a byname.
Recap: Demacian and Noxian Houses have surnames that are passed in some fashion. How? Does the person from the lower-status House join the higher-status House? Annie having a surname means that either all Noxians have surnames or that Annie is a member of House Hastur, a Noxian House. Piltover probably has surnames for everyone. Heimerdinger became Cecil B. Heimerdinger due to moving to Piltover. Bilgewater and Zaun have bynames for some of their champions.
What do you think? What do you think of Riot's decisions on champions' names?
