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The Official Mortal Kombat Character Names Meanings Thread.
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posted11/17/2012 10:25 PM (UTC)by
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RyanRaiden
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12/12/2005 04:06 AM (UTC)
In the past I have seen several Threads, all centering around what certain names of Mortal Kombat Characters mean. So, I thought I would create an Official Thread for that. Everyone feel free to post different interpretations, if you found alternate interpretations from the interpretations I have listed. You can also post a name meaning that I don't find and I will edit The List. (Some names are simply just names created by The Midway Mortal Kombat Team by the way, so don't worry if there are no meanings for names created by Midway.) Feel free to also add on your own Meanings Of Names, for Minor Characters I didn't list/etc.

Argus- In Greek Mythology, the name "Argus" meant "all eyes", as in Greek Mythology The Giant had One Hundred Eyes.

Ashrah- An Arabic Female Name, which means the Number "10". The name is also a pun on The Name "Asherah" which was the name for a supposed "Semetic Mother Goddess".

Baraka- In Islam, Baraka means a "spiritual power believed to be possessed by certain persons, objects, tombs/etc.".

Blaze- Obviously related to the type of fire known as a "Blaze".

Bo'Rai Cho- A pun of The Spanish name "Boraccho" which means someone who is drunk. The name was altered with "Rai" instead of just "Ra" so when just the little change is combined, it is made to sound like an Asian name, as said by Ed Boon.

Cyrax-

Chameleon- Obviously related to the Chameleon animal, which can change colors.

Daegon- A pun on the name "Dagon", who supposedly was a deity of a Semetic God.

Dairou- A common Japanese name.

Delia- "Delia" means "Lady Of Fire".

Darrius- Just a popular African American name.

Drahmin- A deity of an Oni (The demons/etc. of Japanese Folklore.)

Ermac- A name which was shortened, that came from the two words "Error Macro".

Frost- Obviously a name referencing to the type of Ice, Frost.

Fujin- The Name actually references to The Japanese God Of Wind, "Fujin" from Japanese Folklore.

Goro- Japanese word for "Fifth Son".

Havik- Obviously a pun on the word "Havoc", which means "Wide and General Destruction", or "Great Confusion and Disorder".

Hotaru- The Japanese Word meaning "Firefly".

Hsu Hao-

Jade- Obviously a reference to The Color Jade.

Jax- Slang for the name "Jackson".

Johnny Cage- The "Cage" part is a properly spelled version of the English word "Cage", and the name being a counter-pun on the name "Kage" which in Japanese means "Shadow".

Kabal- A pun on The Word "Cabal" which is a conglomeration of hebrew elitist who practiced the jewish wizardry called Kabbalah. They are called caballists.

Kai- A Deity of a Mythical God.

Kano- The Last Name of the person who was the founder of The Martial Art Judo.

Kenshi- A pun on The Japanese word "Kensei", which means "Sword Saint" in English.

Khameleon- A female version of The "Chameleon" Character who is based off the same Characteristics, but is spelled with a "K" (Mortal Kombat Style) instead of being spelled "Chameleon".

Kintaro- A Hero in Japanese Mythology.

Kira- Probably based on The Town named "Kira", in Japan.

Kitana- Obviously a pun on the word "Katana", which is a Type of Japanese Sword.

Kobra- Obviously a Mortal Kombat Style pun on the name "Cobra", a type of Snake.

Kung Lao- The name consists of the word "Kung" which derived from the Chinese name "Gong", which was the name of a Qing Dynasty Official who was a Governer in the Sichuan Province, and the word "Lao", which is the name of An Ethnic Asian Group.

Kurtis Stryker- "Kurtis" is just a Mortal Kombat Style Version of The Common Name "Curtis", as The Name is spelled with a "K".

Li Mei- "Li" in Japanese means "Pretty" or "Powerful", and Mei in Japanese means "May".

Liu Kang- The name is just taken from a reknowned painter, whose name was Liu Kang.

Mavado-

Meat- Obviously just a reference to the food "Meat".

Mileena-

Mokap- A pun on the shortened name of "Motion Capture" which is properly shortened as "Mo-Cap", however it is shortened Mortal Kombat Style with a "K" so it is spelled "Mokap" instead of "Mo-Cap".

Moloch- Moloch is a Philistean God, however he was later modified in The Christian and Hebrew Religions as a Foreign God of Strife, Conflict, War, Flies and Dung.

Motaro- Derived from the name "Momotaro", who in Japanese Folklore was a Hero.

Nightwolf- Obviously just a Tribal Name, as Nightwolf is Native-American.

Nitara- In Hindi, Nitara means "Deeply Rooted".

Noob Saibot- The Name consists of the words "Noob", which is Ed Boon's last name backwards, and "Saibot", which is Ex-Midway Team Member John Tobias's last name backwards. However, "Saibot" at the same time in itself is a pun of the word "Cybot", which in The Mortal Kombat 4 Universe is what Noob Saibot refers to as his Army Of Cyborgs.

Onaga- The Name comes from The Japanese word "Ou" (pronounced "O") which means "King", and "Naga", based on The Naga People of Asia, who believe they are connected to Snakes. But also in some Languages simply means "Dragon". (I think it's safe to say that I am correct when I say that The Midway Team probably based the "Naga" part off "Naga" meaning "Dragon" in some Languages, as after all it would make complete sense, since Onaga is The "Dragon King".

Quan Chi- "Quan" is just a common Chinese Family Name, and "Chi" (also spelled as "Ki") means "Energy". Quan however, can also mean "Fist".

Raiden- Based off the Japanese God Of Thunder/Lighting in Japanese Mythology, "Raijin"/"Raiden".

Rain- Obviously just a reference to the Element of Rain.

Reiko- Though Reiko is man, "Reiko" is actually a feminine Japanese Name.

Reptile- Obviously just based on The Reptilian Types of Species.

Sareena-

Scorpion- Obviously just based on The Scorpion Animal.

Sektor- A pun on The word "Sector", with the pun being that the Name is written with a "K", Mortal Kombat Style.

Shang Tsung- "Shang Tsung" has a lot of meanings, one of them being a Temple Elder or a "Risen Elder". Also, The Name "Shang" is one of The Prime Chinese Dynasties.

Shao Kahn- "Shao" or also known as "Xiao", means "little", and "Kahn" is another way of spelling "Khan", which in Mongolian Languages means Commander, Leader, or Ruler.

Sheeva- A pun on The Name "Shiva", who in Hindu Mythology was a God.

Shinnok- "Shin", in Chinese and Japanese, is a word meaning "New", and "Nok" was an Ancient Civilization. If these words are even related, I honestly doubt it since there also is the possibility that The Midway Team just thought of the Name themselves coincidentially, not thinking of the two words.

Shujinko- In Japanese, "Shujinko" means "Protagonist".

Sindel-

Smoke- Obviously just based off The Element Of Smoke.

Sonya Blade- "Sonya" is one of Ed Boon's Sister's Names, and "Blade", is obviously just a reference to a Blade on a Weapon.

Sub-Zero- Obviously just a reference to The Sub-Zero Temperature, as Sub-Zero of course has Powers Of Ice.

Tanya- Just a pun on The Name "Tania", which was actually The Name of Ed Boon's Sister.

Taven-

-Ryan C.
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Chrome
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 •04/20/2007 05:47 AM (UTC) •
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RyanRaiden Wrote:
Goro- Japanese word for "Fifth".

Kabal- A pun on The Name of an Arcade Game called "Cabal", where the Player would play as a Commando.

Liu Kang- There isn't any actual known "meaning" of this name, but "Liu" is a common Chinese Family Name, and "Kang" is a common Chinese Surname.

Moloch- In Hebrew Mythology, it means a God.


Quan Chi- "Quan" is just a common Chinese Family Name, and "Chi" (also spelled as "Ki") means "Energy".

Shang Tsung- There isn't actually any specific meanings to the name "Shang Tsung", the two words are just well known Asian names that have been used in History throughout time.

Shao Kahn- "Shao" is just a common Chinese Family Name, and "Kahn" is another way of spelling "Khan", which in Mongolian Languages means Commander, Leader, or Ruler.


-Ryan C.


Goro is actually Fifth son, not just fifth.

A cabal is a conglomeration of hebrew elitist who practiced the jewish wizardry called Kabbalah. They are called caballists.

Liu Kang is a reknowned painter.

Moloch is a god, not just a god, but a very specified Philistean god (not Semitic at all, since philisteans were among the Sea People). Usually modified in christianity and hebrew religion as a foreign god of strife, conflict, war, flies and dung.

Naga does not refer to snakes, though the naga people in Asia refer themselves as connected to the snakes. but it does not mean snake.

Quan can mean fist.

Shang Tsung has many meaning: among them is temple elder or risen elder. Also Shang is one of the prime chinese dynasties.

Shao or Xiao means "little".

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RyanRaiden
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 •04/20/2007 07:10 AM (UTC) •
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Chrome Wrote:
RyanRaiden Wrote:
Goro- Japanese word for "Fifth".

Kabal- A pun on The Name of an Arcade Game called "Cabal", where the Player would play as a Commando.

Liu Kang- There isn't any actual known "meaning" of this name, but "Liu" is a common Chinese Family Name, and "Kang" is a common Chinese Surname.

Moloch- In Hebrew Mythology, it means a God.


Quan Chi- "Quan" is just a common Chinese Family Name, and "Chi" (also spelled as "Ki") means "Energy".

Shang Tsung- There isn't actually any specific meanings to the name "Shang Tsung", the two words are just well known Asian names that have been used in History throughout time.

Shao Kahn- "Shao" is just a common Chinese Family Name, and "Kahn" is another way of spelling "Khan", which in Mongolian Languages means Commander, Leader, or Ruler.


-Ryan C.


Goro is actually Fifth son, not just fifth.

A cabal is a conglomeration of hebrew elitist who practiced the jewish wizardry called Kabbalah. They are called caballists.

Liu Kang is a reknowned painter.

Moloch is a god, not just a god, but a very specified Philistean god (not Semitic at all, since philisteans were among the Sea People). Usually modified in christianity and hebrew religion as a foreign god of strife, conflict, war, flies and dung.

Naga does not refer to snakes, though the naga people in Asia refer themselves as connected to the snakes. but it does not mean snake.

Quan can mean fist.

Shang Tsung has many meaning: among them is temple elder or risen elder. Also Shang is one of the prime chinese dynasties.

Shao or Xiao means "little".



Thank you very much, I will update My List, this is the kind of stuff I want to see people contributing to this Thread. =D!!

-Ryan C.
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prodigy004
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 •04/20/2007 02:35 PM (UTC) •
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How disapointsing, my favorite characters names means little ruler.
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XiahouDun84
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 •04/20/2007 02:55 PM (UTC) •
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Sareena- From a Late Latin name which was derived from Latin serenus meaning "clear, tranquil, serene".

I also read somewhere that Quan Chi meant "bad life force." I don't know if that's true though.

Sonya was named after Boon's other sister.
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Sub-Zero_7th
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 •04/20/2007 10:16 PM (UTC) •
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Several of these are pretty accurate while others are quite off.

The meaning for Baraka is kind of iffy, especially considering the difference in pronounciation and also more than one language using that word.

For Daegon, that's more along the lines of speculation as opposed to actual confirmed fact.

Dairou is a Japanese name. In the MK games, the way his name pronounced makes it seem like it would actually be spelled "Dairu" as Dairou ends in an "o" sound.

Darrius' name is not a pun. It's simply a name that some African American males have. The same can be said for Kai.

For Drahmin, that's questionable considering the spelling and pronounciation of his name.

Kage is pronounced differently from Cage.

For Kira's name, I really doubt that. It's more likely that it is simply derived from the American/European name.

Kitana's name being a pun of Katana is kind of silly, especially since she doesn't even wield a Katana. I'm pretty sure Kitana is some kind of latina name.

Kung has different meanings. Lao can mean "old".

Li Mei's name is Chinese derived, not Japanese.

Mavado's name is derived from the Spanish word "Malvado", which means something along the lines of "evildoer".

I find Kintaro's, Motaro's, and Shinnok's questionable due to Kintaro and Motaro themselves not being heroes.

I don't think Tanya is a pun. It's just one way to spell that name. But yes, she and Sonya are named after Ed Boon's sisters. EDIT: I forgot to mention about Shao Kahn. Shao/Xiao is Chinese. Khan is Mongolian, which is different from Kahn.
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Peanut_Butter_Jelly
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 •04/21/2007 01:11 PM (UTC) •
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Good ol Wiki

Mavado:

Mavado's name was originally going to be "Malvado", which is Portuguese and Spanish for "evil man".

Hsu Hao:

(I dunno about this one) Hsu Hao was called Kublai Khan in an early beta of Deadly Alliance. It was merely a reference to the ancient Mongol warlord.

Ashrah:

Ashrah's name is taken from the Buddhist word of Asura. Asuras' are a group of power-seeking deities, sometimes referred to as demons.
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Barakaz_cuz
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;-;
 •04/21/2007 03:31 PM (UTC) •
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I believe Mileena's name is a play off the Common greek name "Melina", meaning Honey.
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Toxik
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 •04/22/2007 03:54 AM (UTC) •
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I used to think Goro's name came from the word "Gory". lol
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MyQueenSindel
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 •04/22/2007 04:07 AM (UTC) •
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RyanRaiden Wrote:
Ashrah- An Arabic Female Name, which means the Number "10". The name is also a pun on The Name "Asherah" which was the name for a supposed "Semetic Mother Goddess".


I remember I created a character named Ashreen which is Arabic for 20 XD.
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JustinLaw
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 •08/06/2011 09:03 AM (UTC) •
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I've got one for how they got Sindel's name:
Okay start of with the name Sindel.
1.) Another fighting game is Street Fighter, initials are SF, swap the S in Sindel for an F.
2.) Have the "n" and "l" change places
3.) Take the loop off the "d."
4.) Take the last line off the "n."


Let's see what we end up with
Start with Sindel
1.) Findel
2.) Filden
3.) Fillen
4.) Filler

RyanRaiden if you want to edit your post to give Sindel that reason for being named, its the word "Filler" with a few minor changes.
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CyberneticCyrax
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 •08/06/2011 11:39 AM (UTC) •
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The First part of Mileena's name sounds like "Meal" which makes sense because
she makes "meals" out of people.

In Mandarin Chinese, "Li Mei" means "Plum". This is largely resemblant to her purple color scheme.

You say Obviously alot.
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CyberDemon13
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 •08/07/2011 05:11 AM (UTC) •
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That one guy's post reminded me of the movie The Number 23 lol. grin
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ninjastarrdaxenomorph
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Here I am, can I leave now?

 •09/07/2011 09:33 PM (UTC) •
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Baraka means "blessed" in Arabic and "peace" in Swahili. A little ironic.grin
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daryui
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 •09/07/2011 11:41 PM (UTC) •
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Meat was a quick name given to the model in MK4 because they had to save it in game [and obviously couldn't save it without naming it].....
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StormChaser
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 •09/17/2011 02:09 AM (UTC) •
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According to "Baby Names: a New Generation" by Barbara Turner:


-Kira is Russian for "lady".
-Mileena is a variant of "Milena", a Czech/Latin word for "favored", funny because Mileena is never the favored one at all.
-Sonya is an English variant of the name "Sophia", which means "wisdom."

-Jackson (Jax's legal first name) literally means "Son of Jack"
-John (Johnny's legal name, Johnny Cage is his stage name) is a shortening of Jonathan, Hebrew for "Jehovah has given".
-Kurtis, an alternate spelling of "Curtis", means "Courteous." He's never really seemed that courteous to me!
grin
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Nix Dolores
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 •09/17/2011 03:08 AM (UTC) •
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RyanRaiden Wrote:
Kira- Probably based on The Town named "Kira", in Japan.

No, I think it's that "kira" means "death."
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MKRAYDEN
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Mortal Kombat Nexus Online By Pakistani

 •01/12/2012 04:55 AM (UTC) •
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I copy this topic and in my site as well and there i wrote more name meaning

Sareena is also Muslim but spell is different serena

Tanya is also Muslim but spell change tania means Fairy Princess

Sonya name means wisdom

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Zmoke
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 •01/12/2012 11:39 AM (UTC) •
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There is a lot of misleading background information amidst the correct information. Havik also happens to be a Dutch word for 'hawk' that tells about his rebellionism and how he is a lonely wanderer. His costume has nuances of a bird, a little like Altair and Ezio do in the Assassin's Creed series. How brilliant thinking in the MK team's department.
Jax's name backgrounds are a lot more complicated than that. We thought about it for months, leaving it be with a questionable background until, eh, I realized. 'Jax' comes from Ajax while yes, the story tells that it comes from Jackson. Briggs was an air force general in the US Air Forces and that's where the surname comes from. Kira means killer in Japanese.

I have almost all the Mortal Kombat name backgrounds turned over, and they are only in my old hard drive disk, should I one day publish them all. MKRayden, when you take valuable information from another site to your site, you should ask at the least ask the permission to do that from the original poster. That's a lot lesser deed than actually discovering the information all by yourself. Not to be rude though, my friend.
We in Midway Boards basically processed everything concerning the name backgrounds in a thread of mine years ago. Now it's all gone from there as the site is gone. There's a little bit of new etymology to discover from Mortal Kombat 9 though, as well as all the names should be double checked one day. I'm glad to see there are people interested in the thing.
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MKRAYDEN
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Mortal Kombat Nexus Online By Pakistani

 •01/12/2012 01:27 PM (UTC) •
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yes i didn't get permission but i gave credit on site.
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Zmoke
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 •02/08/2012 09:20 PM (UTC) •
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That's OK then, but know this for the future.
Oni is pronounced one-eye; it makes sense seeing that they're cyclopses.
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Immortal_Kanji
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 •02/11/2012 11:17 AM (UTC) •
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I don't know what Cyrax means.
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RazorsEdge701
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 •02/11/2012 11:37 AM (UTC) •
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It doesn't mean anything except "Look man, I can't think of a name for this stupid cyborg. "Mustard" was the best idea I had! Why don't we just say fuck it and call him "Cyborg"? Wait...I know! I'll change the last couple letters, then it'll sound cool! Let's throw a letter X in there somewhere, the letter X is all the rage these days."
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Ninja_Mime
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 •02/11/2012 09:15 PM (UTC) •
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Zmoke
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 •02/11/2012 11:26 PM (UTC) •
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RazorsEdge701 Wrote:
It doesn't mean anything except "Look man, I can't think of a name for this stupid cyborg. "Mustard" was the best idea I had! Why don't we just say fuck it and call him "Cyborg"? Wait...I know! I'll change the last couple letters, then it'll sound cool! Let's throw a letter X in there somewhere, the letter X is all the rage these days."

Untrue. 'Cyrax' is Arabic for 'unstoppable'. The 'cy' prefix refers to 'cyborg' and 'rax' may refer to either or both 'to rax' (Scot. Engl. for 'to elongate') and 'anthrax' that's a poison; spiders are associated with poison. Cyrax also rhymes with Jax who was a black cyber-enhanced OIA member as well.

Cyrax's etymology
  • The focal point was in giving a robotic sounding name.
  • "Cy" is content to come from "cyborg" noting that "Saibot" or "Cybot" was in the developers' minds while creating the name. "Cytown" is also a cyborg town in a film series. The developers have brought up Cybots later on again.
  • The leaving "rax" probably has no intentional meaning but "to rax" means "to elongate" in Scottish English and we know that Cyrax elongates himself in his teleport move.
  • Cyrax also rhymes with Jax who was a black cyber-enhanced OIA member as well, but it's questionable that the developers would have chosen Cyrax's skin color that early.
  • "Anthrax" is another proposal for the roots of the name's ending part. Cyrax has spider features and both anthrax and spiders are connected to poison.
  • Rumors floating online about the connections to Arabic and Nigerian are incorrect but a word similar (البكاء للحصول علىz�...ساعدة) to Cyrax in Arabic means "cry for help", yet that is bound to be further confirmed. One of Cyrax's earliest actions game-wise was diving into the quicksand and he likely cried for help from there.
  • His early concept name was Mustard opposed to Sektor's early name Ketchup.
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