Aaith: bronze dragon, rider P'leen, stationed at Igen Weyr. P'leen was one of the riders that was considered to distribute the vaccin for the plague because his Weyrwoman Dalova strongly suspected he (regularly) timed it. It seems P'leen took over leading the Igen Weyr wings when Weyrleader L'bol was sunk in apathy because of the losses his Weyr had taken from the plague. This means P'leen must have been a wingleader. [Mor]
Abacus: an abacus is a calculation tool, often constructed as a wooden frame with beads sliding on wires or sticks. It was in use centuries before the adoption of the written Hindu-Arabic numeral system and is still widely used by merchants and clerks in the China, Japan, Africa, and elsewhere. The abacus was re-invented at the end of the First Interval by Jemmy after most of the calculators went down. [RSR/11:277]
[Picture from DHD multimedia gallery, section meachanoids (free download)]
Abortion: abortion was accepted on Pern, at least among dragonriders. Spontaneous abortion took place due to the extreme cold of between but did require sensible convalescence. As a result of this, female green riders would fight Fall with the queen's wing (where they would not need to jump between as frequently) when they were pregnant and wanted to keep the baby.
Of course it also worked the other way for women who wanted to end an unwanted pregnancy. The expression "taking a short dragon-ride" is a euphemism for the ending of an unwanted pregnancy in this fashion [RSR/3:89]. According to Telgar Weyrwoman Zulaya there had only been a few of these between-abortions in her time as Weyrwoman (end of First Interval/beginning of Second Pass). [RSR/3:88-89]
Abuna: a member of the kitchen staff at Harper Hall [H2; H3]. She is one of the two managers of the Harper Hall kitchen (the other being her sister Kayla), who are supervised by Headwoman Silvina. From Dragonsinger one could say that Abuna is head of the kitchen under Silvina as headwoman. Abuna and her sister Kayla are both married to journeymen serving under Master Archivist Arnor. [H2; H3; Wood-PoP/70]
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Aconite: Aconitum spp. (Monk's hood, wolfsbane, etc.). The rhizome of this blue bell-flowered perennial may be dried, ground, and used to treat irregular heartbeats. A herbaceous perennial, two to four inches/five to ten centimeters tall, violet-blue flowers, three, four or five pod-like fruit capsules. Prefers mildly acid, moist, well-drained soil, cold to temperate-zones.
Fans of murder mysteries, particularly those with Medieval settings (such as Elis Peters's Brother Cadfael), and maybe Harry Potter fans, are undoubtedly already familiar with aconite under its more familiar common names, monk's hood and wolfsbane. And, its use in Moreta, Dragonlady of Pern or in Remus Lupin's wolfsbane potion notwithstanding, all members of this family are extremely toxic. There is no part of this plant that is safe to consume. In very minuscule amounts, Chinese herbalists and some Western medical practitioners use aconite as a cardiac depressant or in topical applications for joint pain, but the therapeutic dose and toxic dose are so close to each other that even in controlled professional medical situations it is a drug of last resort. It is even possible to absorb fatal doses through the skin. Never experiment with aconite at home!
[Data submitted by Jennifer Quail]
A.C. Sopers: xenobiologist. After the landing of the colonists on Pern A.C. Sopers was a member one of the groups of scientists that was housed in the three stories high Tower building. The group she was a member of consisted out of Mar Dook's eight agronomists and another dozen able-bodies of which Sopers, Pol Nietro and Ted Tubberman and his crew were part, had the task of choosing the site for the experimental farm. A.C. Sopers, whose gender remains unknown was one of the original colonists who originally settled in Xanadu province [DD]. The Betty (Betsy) Sopers who later appears as a member of the Ruatha Hold founding party that was led by Red Hanrahan, might be a related to A.C. Sopers. [CoP:FoRH]
Accounts of Threadfall: see Fall accounts.
A'dan: rider of green Tigrath, stationed at Fort Weyr. Weyrmate of F'duril. A slender, youg man. A'dan appears as one of Fort's sweepriders who reports to his Weyrleader Sh'gall during the early days of the Sixth Pass quarantine. A'dan helped Moreta operating on blue Dilenth, his weyrmate F'duril's dragon who was seriously Threadscored. A'dan was a member of the party that visited Waterhole Hold in search for Moreta after she was lost between. His dragon is mistakenly mentioned as T'grath in the Dragondex of Moreta, Dragonlady of Pern and sometimes in the book too. [Mor; BB]
Adath: brown dragon, rider S'kedel, stationed at Fort Weyr. [Mor-index US edition]
Adessa: Lady Holder at Ruatha Hold, born app. 2450, died Ruatha Hold third-month 2495. Married app. 2475 Lord Kale of Ruatha. She had several sons and daughters by him of which Lessa was the only survivor after the invasion and capture of Ruatha Hold by Fax during which the Lord and Lady of Ruatha and all of their children (with the exception of Lessa) were murdered [MHoP]. There is a misunderstanding about the wife of Lord Ashmichel being called Adessa too. Lady Relna of Crom and her two youngest children begged sanctuary from Lord Ashmichel and Lady Adessa after Fax overtook Crom Hold in 2483. This means Ashmichel was still Lord of Ruatha at the time. This reference can be confusing because from the text in The Masterharper of Pern it seems that Lady Adessa is also the name of Lord Ashmichel's spouse, which it isn't. Further on in The Masterharper of Pern Lady Adessa is correctly mentioned as the Lady Holder of Ruatha when Kale has taken over as Lord Holder: "Lady Adessa had certainly taken Hold here" [MHoP/17:369]. I have taken this to mean (and I have Anne's permission for this) that Ashmichel's wife died before he did and that his daughter-in-law already acted as Lady of the Hold before her spouse became Lord Holder. This also places the remark "certainly taken Hold here" in the right perspective if one thinks it refelcts on the fact that she was already acting as Lady Holder even before her husband was Lord Holder. [MHoP] Bloodline
Adjai, Ju: see Ju Adjai.
Admin (the): shortened name for the Administration or Admin building at Landing. [DoP/3:40]
Admin building: name for the Administration building at Landing in which (the) AIVAS is located. [DoP/3:46]
Adonis: Adonis spp. A member of the family Ranunculaceae (buttercups), decoctions are used as pain relievers, to ease the heart, and as an antiseptic wash. Adonis, like aconite, is a member of family Ranunculaceae, and like almost every member of that family is highly toxic. Even goldenseal can cause extreme damage when taken for an extended period. Adonis should only be used by medical professionals in highly controlled doses.
[Data submitted by Jennifer Quail]
Adrea: rider of queen Beljeth, Weyrwoman stationed at Southern Weyr. She originally came from Greystones Hold, in Nerat. After Impressign a queen dragon at Benden, the Neratians were exceedingly proud of her. She is said to be a very attractive but biddable girl. When Adrea Impressed Wenreth, Aramina was also standing on the Benden Hatching Ground, who remarks about this in The Renegades of Pern: "Oh, I stood on the Hatching Ground, and the little queen made a straight-line dash for Adrea. A very nice girl and welcome to Wenreth." Adrea became Weyrwoman of Southern Weyr and is the weyrmate of Weyrleader K'van, who'se Heth surprised everybody by flying Beljeth on the first mating flight after D'ram had relinquished the leadership of Southern Weyr. Around the time of All the Weyrs of Pern, Beljeth was still too inexperienced and her rider Adrea too young to pick up on G'lanar's intentions to kill Lord Jaxom. In the beforementioned quote from The Renegades of Pern, Adrea's dragon is mistakenly called Wenreth, an explanation for this is that Aramina did not remember the name correctly. Near the end of the Ninth Pass Adrea and K'van had already found a place where they wanted to settle after Thread had stopped falling. [RoP; AtWoP; DoP, SoP]
Afo: a dolphin, pod leader of the Pardisriv (Paradise River) pod . Afo is the mother of Vina. Afo and Kib were the first dolhins who had spoken "to mans in Words and mans had spoken to them, using the ancient Words of Courtesy" since many centuries. Members of Afo's pod are: Kib, Mel, Temp, Jim, Mel, Biz, Rom and Mul. Although the pod leader, Afo was the smallest female in the pod. Afo is also teh dolphin that recognises that young Readis has stepped in a bad thorn and should have it treated, well before Readis himself has any notion of the danger. The name Afo is a derivation of the original dolphin colonist name Aphrodite. [DoP/1:29, 4:82-83, 87, 5:115, 118, 122] In The Dragonlovers Guide Afo is mistakenly listed as a member of the Moncobay pod. The mistake is easily made as once or twice the text in The Dolphins of Pern seems she is indeed a member of that pod, especially since she is present when T'lion and Persellan stitch Boojie's wound. [DLG2/210]
Afri: dolphin, swimming off the Cathay coast [SoP].
Agenothree: HNO3, a common chemical on Pern, used to kill Thread after it has burrowed into the ground. The chemical elements in agenothree is one molecule hydrogen, one molecule nitrogen and three molecules oxygen. The Pernese name is derived from the abbreviations of the chemical components, the meaning of which was lost to the Pernese over the centuries.
See also HNO3
Agriculture, College Department of: at the end of the First Interval (257) there still was an Agriculture Department. This department was called Farmcraft or Farmercraft in later times. The department was also called Agric for short, its personnel being referred to as "those Agric guys" [RSR/15:360-361]. At the end of Turn 257 members of the College Department of Agriculture were looking into Lord Franco of Nerat's problem with tropical weeds, for which an inhibitor was necessary, especially because of the restriction that was placed on the use of chemical deterrents [RSR/1:51].
Agust: Master Harper (voice). Agust was Merelan's (Robinton's mother) vocal teacher and is mentioned only once in The Masterharper of Pern. He probably was an older man when he started to teach Merelan and lived the main part of his life in the Eight Interval (Second Long Interval). It might even be possible he has already died by the time Robinton was born, which would place Master Agust's death prior to 2452. It is implied that Agust was a demanding teacher, who could bring out the best in his pupils. [MHoP].
Airsled: a transportation vehicle used by the Pern colonists. At the start of the Second Pass (258) there was still one airsled in existence. It was a treasured exhibit at the Telgar Foundry (later to become the Smithcrafthall) [RSR/1:24].
See also Sleds
Aisling Hempenstall: not much is known about Aisling but for the fact she settled at Bordeaux stake. Because of the uniqueness of the name Hempenstall she and Pat Hempenstall must have been family members or man and wife. Aisling Hempenstall only appears in the UK version of Dragonsdawn. [DD]
The use of the name Aisling is interesting because it also appears in the Petaybee Series (Aisling Senungatuk, sister of Sinead) which Anne McCaffrey co-wrote with Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.
AIVAS: also written as Aivas. The word is an acronym for Artificial Intelligence Voice Activated System [DD; RSR; RoP; AtWoP; DoP/3:48-56; SoP].
Aivas, whose original main operator was Ezra Keroon, was already lost to the people of Pern during the First Interval though search parties had been trying to locate the administration building in which Aivas was housed but failed to find it. Reasons for this were the thickness of the blanket of volcanic ashes (20 feet) and subsequent lack of any landmark by which to judge the position of the building. They did dig but since all the housing was similar and they didn't know the exact location they gave it up [RSR/1:53-54, 64]. At the end of the First Interval it was believed that the Aivas had turned itself off because people had started to think it was infallible and mankind had begun considering it an oracle and became to depend on it far more than was wise [RSR/4:122]. He shut himself off shortly before Masterharper Robinton's death though his databanks remain accessible through terminals [AtWoP].
- Aivas expedition: a search held for the exact location of the Aivas. During the First Interval there had obviously been several of those expedition, all without success [RSR/15:358].
- Aivas reports: at the end of the First Interval and the start of the Second Pass important reports by Aivas were still known. One of these reports considered the possibility of collision between the Red Star and Pern, including data from the spaceship Yokohama, and was annotated by captains Keroon and Tillek [RSR/1:44]
Ajay: a dolphin, member of the pod that swam the Fort waters. Ajay was one of the dolphins that met with Masterharper Sebelle, Menolly and Oldive at Fort Harbor (Fort Seaholld). [DoP]
Akamoto, Jiro: see Jiro Akamoto.
Akis Andriades: colonist, physician (general practioner) at Ruatha Hold. At the time of the founding of Ruatha Hold Akis was a young man who had just qualified as a general practioner, who was already married to Kolya Logorides, who had studied midwigery and gynecology. Akis was taught to play the flure by his father. This remark almost certainly makes him a son of Tim Andriades, who appears as a flautist in Dragonsdawn (UK editions only). The family name is found spelled as Andriadus in The Chronicles of Pern and as Andriades in Dragonsdawn. [CoP-FoRH, DD]
AL: an abbreviation used to indicate a date After Landing (meaning: after the landing of the colonists on Pern), which is not used often since, if a year or Turn is given with no further explanation it will always be AL.
Alarra: spouse of Master Miner Toldur. After Toldur's death she helps Cristov and his friends with the mining for the safer Firestone at High Reaches. Broke her leg [Dfire].
Alda: daughter of Lilcamp-Amhold trader train leader Crenden Lilcamp and his second wife Jenfa. Probably born Kimmage Hold, c. 2515. Alda is Jayge Lilcamp's little half-sister [RoP].
Aldrin, John: see John Aldrin.
Ale: [Dfire].
Aleesk: gold watch-wher, loking to Aleesa, the wherhandler. The last Pernese watchwher queen on Pern by the end of the Second Interval [Dfire].
Aleesa: Whermaster at Fort Hold. She is a lithe and slender woman who has white hair woven into a braid that hangs down her back. Aleesa has a female wher queen called Aleesk [DK]. Has traveled around but lives somewhere north in the Nabol Hold mountains during the time of Dragon's Fire. She can't read and is taught to read by Pellar who found her to be quite insane. Mate of Jaythen, a guard at her camp [Dfire]
Aleki: fourth child and first son of Alemi and Kitrin. Born Paradise River Hold [DoP/6:124].
Alemi: Journeyman and later Master Fisherman. Owner of fire lizard Sailor. The name of his fire lizard does not appear in any of the books but was given to me by Anne McCaffrey after a discussion about the ownership of the fire lizard called Tork, about which Anne decided he looks to Jayge Lilcamp [source: email correspondence between Hans van der Boom and Anne McCaffrey, June 2001]. Third of the six sons of Yanus and Mavi of Half Circle Sea Hold and brother of Menolly. Owner of bronze fire lizard Tork [DoP/4:70]. Worked as a journeyman seaman/fisherman under his father at Half Circle Seahold in Nerat and later at Paradise River Hold on the Southern Continent. Alemi is most like Menolly in looks and coloring. He is tall and muscular with weatherbeaten skin and a ready smile. He started his own fishhold at Paradise River Hold and is Master Fisherman there. He's an instinctively deft seaman, more flexible even then his father. At Half Circle Sea Hold he was the person most sympathetic to his talented sister. He tried to shield her from their parent's didactic outlook. Alone among her siblings he appreciated her worth and was and is proud of her music.
Alemi is sometimes called "Lemi" for short by humans and always called thus by the dolphins [DoP/4:88]. Affectionately called "Unclemi" by Readis (son of Jayge and Aramina) when he was still young [H1; H2, RoP; AtWoP; DoP/1:17; PoP:14].
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Alessan: Lord Holder of Ruatha Hold at the time of the end of the Sixth Pass and the beginning of the Sixth Interval (invested at Turnover of 1541). Son of Lord Leef and Lady Oma. Husband of (1) Suriana of Misty Hold (deceased; no issue) and (2) Nerilka of Fort Hold (with whom he had at least four children). Alessan was Searched but not allowed to go to the Weyr by his father, Lord Leef. he had a very brief relationship with Weyrwoman Moreta of Fort Weyr [Mor; Ner; BB].
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Aleta: a dolphin at Monaco Bay, only mentioned once. Swimming with dolphin Maximillian. [CoP-DB:28].
Alfalfa: Medicago sativa. A tea made from alfalfa can be used as a diuretic. Bushy perennial, generally grown as a hay crop. Purple to yellowish flowers, toothed, leaves, one to three inches tall. Does well in temperate zones, needs moderately dry soil and sun. While alfalfa has a high vitamin content (vitamins C, D, K, and E), its usefulness as medicine is unsubstantiated, and taken in large quantities it can severely aggravate auto-immune conditions, particularly lupus, and should not be taken by anyone suffering from any autoimmune disorder. It is valuable as animal fodder, though care must be taken feeding horses as it is very rich, and overfeeding may cause colic or founder.
[Data submitted by Jennifer Quail].
Alhinwa, Cobber: see Cobber Alhinwa.
Ali Arthied: apprentice engineer at Ruatha Hold. He was fostered with Red and Mairi Hanrahan. He studied under his father (Desi Arthied) and at the time of the story The Ford of Red Hanrahan he, and his fellow engineer ar Ruatha Jonti Greene, were about ready to go back to Fort to take his exams with engineer Fulmar Stone who had been monitoring their studies. [CoP-FoRH]
Aliana Zuleita: see Alianne Zulueta.
Alianne Zulueta: rider of queen Chereth. One of the original group of the first eighteen dragonriders (also called the First Riders) who impressed her dragon during the first Hatching. She a direct ancestor of the Telgar Weyrwoman Zulaya. Her name is found written as Aliana Zuleita (once) in Red Star Rising (Corgi 1st ed. mmp). [RSR/1:33, DD]
All Weyr Games: a tournament for all the Weyrs [Dfire].
Allara: a woman at Camp Natalon in Crom Hold. Wife of Toldur. Took in two apprentice miners: young Gulegar and older Menar [DK].
Allie: a kitchen helper at Telgar Weyr [RSR/5:132]. Allie is not mentioned in the characters list in The Dragonlovers Guide to Pern. [DLG2]
The name Allie also appears in Treaty at Doona, a book that Anne wrote together with Jody Lynn Nye.
Allie: a nickname used by Torene for her gold dragon Alaranth. [CoP:SW]
Almie: youngest daughter of Jayge and Aramina of Paradise River Hold. Born at Paradise River Hold. Young Readis observed that his youngest sister Almie was much easier to deal with than his older sister Aranya. [DoP]
Aloe: Aloe spp. A spiky succulent perennial, the gel in the leaves soothes burns and softens the skin. It has spiny tapering leaves, pale to grayish green, tubular yellow to orange-red flowers, up to two inches/five centimeters high, prefers tropical zones, full sun, dry, well-drained soil.
This is a plant that basically does what is claimed it does. Aloe has also been used internally as a laxative, but it can cause extreme gastric pain so is generally not used.
[Data submitted by Jennifer Quail].
Alt.fan.pern: a Usenet newsgroup (started in 1991 as a forum for the discussion of PernMUSH) dedicated to discussion of the fictional world of Pern as described in the various novels and short stories by Anne McCaffrey. Related topics include Ms. McCaffrey's other works, and several of the on-line "virtual realities" depicting Pern to the World of Pern and all its aspects. Taki Kogoma (alias Quirk) administrates the newsgroup. The introduction (including the highly important FAQ list) can be found here. For a selection of some interesting alt.fan.pern postings you may want to visit this page dedicated to that subject on Sariel's Guide to Pern.
- Appropriate subject matter: As stated above, the alt.fan.pern newsgroup is primarily for the discussion of the world of Pern. Discussion of Ms. McCaffrey's other works is not unwelcome, but the emphasis is on Pern. Posting binary files -- i.e. UU encoded or MIME-encoded .gifs, executables, etc. -- is strongly discouraged.
Alta: name of a dolphin of the Moncobay pod [DoP/4:83, 5:100] and name of the pod leader of the dolphins swimming the eastern waters and member of the pod that meets T'lion in the cove west of Cove Hold. [DoP/5:99; SoP]
It appears that there have been two dolphins with the same name at the same time, the first one was the pod leader of the Moncobay pod, the other one swimming in Eastern waters. [DLG2/211]
Amadeus: a dolphin, called Ammie for short. A member of Teresa's pod. His dolphineer is Ben Byrne. [CoP-DB/26, 29, 32-33, 64]
Amania: a female student at Harper Hall [H2]. Amania is the daughter of a craftmaster. She is a handsome girl and more intelligent than Pona or Briala but is content to take the back seat. She is at Harper Hall to study but also to meet a suitable husband. [Wood-PoP/62].
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Amilla: daughter (11th child) of Lord Tolocamp and Lady Pendra of Fort Hold. Born probably Fort Hold, died Ruatha Hold third-month 1541(victim of the plague) [NS/1:22].
The name Ampris is also used by Anne in Killashandra, a book in the Crystal Singer series, for one of the elders on the planet Optheria.
Ampris: a Master Healer (herbalist) at Healer Hall. After meeting with AIVAS Masterhealer Oldive says he should bring Master Ampris, the Healer Hall's herbalist, with him the next time [AtWoP].
A'murry: rider of green Granth, stationed at Igen Weyr. Mate (partner) of K'lon, a relationship about which Weyrleader Sh'gall was aggravated. A'murry caught but recovered from the plague [Mor].
Amy: a dolphineer that lived during the First Pass, who is remembered by the dolphin Kibbe. She was the first one of the two dolphineers Kibbe had [DoP/2]. Amy is not listed in the character list in The Dragonlovers Guide to Pern. [DLG2]
Anama: Lord Vincet of Nerat's second daughter, a pretty girl. Her portrait was painted by the reknowed artist Perschar, the knowledge of this fact was used by Lord Asgenar to check Perschar's identity. When asked if the name Anama meant something to him, Perschar observed that he painted her many Turns ago and that she probably would be grown and married, with children of herself to be painted, which he later learned was true. [RoP]
Anchoram: Holder of Plains Hold in Lemos [RoP].
Ancients: a name for the first colonists (settlers) who came to Pern. They had technology that was far superior to what Pern had by the time of the Ninth Pass.
Andemon: Masterfarmer, craftmaster of the farm(er)craft, who took over from hidebound Masterfarmer Sograny. Andemon is am intelligent and tenacious man. Still he too, is traditional in his views. Brekke was from his Crafthall and Andemon says it would be unthinkable that she would suicide after the loss of her dragon. It is written that master Andemon has a lantern jaw and thin lips. The fact that he is married, or at least has a relationship with a woman, we learn from Dragonquest: "Masterminer Nigot was deep in talk with Mastertanner Belesden and the Masterfarmer Andemon, while their women formed a close conversation knot to one side." Master Andemon was invited to Benden Weyr by F'lar, to witness and explain - if he could - the first Ninth Pass experiment with the grubs. He got the shock of his life when he realised the life saving grubs were the same creatures he had always thought were parasites, the larvae of which the farmercraft had tried to exterminate for centuries. He observed that the grubs were as pernicious and indestructable as Igen sandworms, and not half as useful. He did observe that the farmer Crafthall Records said: "Watch for the grubs". [D2; D3; AtWoP, DoP]
The picture on the right is the portrait artist Robin Wood made for the Mayfair Boardgame Dragonriders of Pern (1983, 1989). Masterfarmer Andemon does not appear in The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1983, 1989]
Ander: a fosterling at Benden Hold [RoP].
Andi Gomez: plastician at landing [DD].
Andiyar, Ben: see Ben Andiyar.
Andiyar, Cara: see Cara Andiyar.
Andiyar, Dena: see Dena Andiyar.
Andiyar, Ram Da: see Ram Da Andiyar.
Andiyar, Tarvi: see Tarvi Andiyar.
Andrew Kiersey: a farmer on Ierne Island [DD].
Andriades, Akis: see Akis Andriades. Akis Andriades. Akis Andriades. Akis Andriades.
Andriades, Tim: see Tim Andriades.
Anella: Lady Holder of Fort Hold, second wife of Lord Tolocamp. She was born after 1518 (probably c. 1521; she was younger than her stepdaughter Nerilka). Lord Tolocamp had a relationship with Anella (called his mistress in Nerilka's Story), during his marriage with Lady Pendra. It is mentioned in Nerilka's Story that he had sired two children (still babies in 1541) on Anella, although Nerilka wondered if Anella's last son was her father's or her brother Mostar's. When Lord Tolocamp could not pretend interest in her, Anella was just as happy on Mostar's arm, whom she hoped she could wed (Mostar had other ideas though). Anella was younger than Nerilka by several Turns [NS].
Angelo Cervantes: obstetrician-gynecologist [DD].
Angie: a female dolphin calf of the Pardisriv pod. One of the two calves that got wounded during a big storm [DoP].
Angie: rider of green Plath. A weyrling at Telgar Weyr, not Weyrbred. She Impressed at Telgar Weyr during late autumn of 257 (same Hatching as Debera and Morath) [RSR/5:134]. A few weeks after Impression she and her dragon tripped each other up, pulling the muscles of Angie's right leg so badly it was feared at first that she had broken a bone [RSR/5:134].
Ann Gabri: a dolphineer [DD].
Anna Schultz: a dolphineer [CoP-DB].
Anne McCaffrey: Anne Inez McCaffrey was born on April lst, l926, in Cambridge, Massachusetts, at 1:30 p.m., in the hour of the Sheep, year of the Fire Tiger, sun sign Aries with Taurus rising and Leo mid-heaven (which seems to suggest an early interest in the stars).
Her parents were George Herbert McCaffrey, BA, MA PhD (Harvard), Colonel USA Army (retired), and Anne Dorothy McElroy McCaffrey, estate agent. She had two brothers: Hugh McCaffrey (deceased l988), Major US Army, and Kevin Richard McCaffrey.
Anne was educated at Stuart Hall, Staunton, Virginia, Montclair High School, Montclair, New Jersey, and graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College, majoring in Slavonic Languages and Literatures.
Anne McCaffrey has tried to live up to her auspicious natal day. Her first novel was written in Latin class and might have brought her instant fame, as well as an A, if she had written it in that ancient language. Much chastened by teacher and father, she turned to the stage and became a character actress, appearing in the first successful summer music circus in Lambertsville, NJ. She studied voice for nine years and, during that time, became intensely interested in the stage direction of opera and operetta, ending that phase of her experience with the direction of the American premiere of Carl Orff's "Ludus de Nato Infante Mirificus" in which she also played a witch.
Her working career included Liberty Music Shops and Helena Rubinstein (l947-1952). She married in 1950 and has three children: Alec Anthony, born l952, Todd, born l956, and Georgeanne, born 1959.
Anne McCaffrey's first story was published by Sam Moskowitz in Science Fiction + Magazine and her first novel was published by Ballantine Books in l967. By the time the three children of her marriage were comfortably in school most of the day, she had already achieved enough success with short stories to devote full time to writing.
Her first novel, Restoree, was written as a protest against the absurd and unrealistic portrayals of women in science-fiction novels in the 50's and early 60's. It is, however, in the handling of broader themes and the worlds of her imagination, particularly the two series, The Ship Who Sang and the novels about the Dragonriders Of Pern, that Ms. McCaffrey's talents as a storyteller are best displayed. Although she used to make appearances throughout the world as guest of honor at science fiction conventions, arthritis has now restricted such travel. She lives in a house of her own design, Dragonhold-Underhill (because she had to dig out a hill on her farm to build it) in Wicklow County, Ireland. It is not remotely like a castle, "on purpose", she says to people who believe "hold" is synonymous with "castle" in Ireland.
Anne runs a private livery stable and her horses have been successful in Horse Trials and showjumping. She does not ride in competition, she hastens to add, but has enjoyed the success of horse and rider and, until she died, rode out on her black and white mare, Pi [source: Del Rey internet site].
The drawing of Anne shown here above on the top right is © Linda Eicher (2006) and was made by her as contribution to a keepsake binder a group of dedicated fans, all members of the Anne McCaffrey discussion forumboard A Meeting of Minds, gifted Anne on occasion of her 80th birthday on April 1st, 2006.
Announcement of Search: an official document bearing the name of the person that is Searched, delivered to the hold where the Searched person lives. The handing over of this document probably got into disuse after the Second Pass, during which time they obviously still were delivered because Debera's father Lavel received one with the name of his daughter on it [RSR/4:108]. In old Pernese times the Weyrs probably Searched on a regular basis, calling people in when they were needed to stand on the Hatching ground but not informing them too far ahead of time in case they never needed them. The situation during later Passes obviously was one in which prospective dragonriders were no longer Searched among the non-Weyr Pernese (by then there were no female riders except for the queen riders) and Searches were only held (more or less as a tradition but sometimes out of necessity) for female candidates if a gold egg was laid. In Dragonflight (Eight Interval/Ninth Pass) it is implied that Searches are generally only carried out for female candidates (When F'lar said he came in Search, that implied to Fax that there must be a gold egg). The logical reason for the Search restricted to female candidates for a gold egg is that it is known that queens typically prefer the Hold and Craftbred girls to Weyrbred girls.
Anskono: son of Jayge and Aramina. Born at Paradise River Hold, still a baby in The Dolphins of Pern [DoP].
Anta: daughter of Lord Maidir and Lady Hayara of Benden Hold [MHoP].
AoP: an abbreviation used (in the Pern Encyclopedia) for the book The Atlas of Pern by Karin Wynn Fonstad.
Aphro: a dolphin, probably a pod leader [CoP-DB/26].
Apprentice: the lowest student rank in any craft. There are junior and senior apprentices. The lower rank will usually be designated with the word apprentice only.
Aramina: daughter of Dowell and Barla (a member of the Ruatha family) [GWHD/13], born while traveling in the mountains of Fort 2497/2498 [GWHD/20]. Sometimes called Mina [GWHD/15] and Ara [DoP/2:32] for short.
Around 2508 her parents discovered that she could hear all dragons (and speak to them), having first dismissed their daughters statements to that effect as lies and children's tales. She once saved the family, while they were still on the road, with the message that the dragons said Threadfall was coming. After that the parents had to believe their daughter's capability, despite the fact that nobody of Barla's immediate family had ever been Searched. Still, the ability apparently came with their Ruathan Blood [GWHD/21-22]. Lady Holdless Thella and the dragonless Giron tried to abduct Aramina while she was gathering nuts (someone who could hear what dragons were saying would have been indispensable to their escapades), eleven days after the Dowell family left the Igen caverns but were forestalled by the fact that Aramina called Heth [GWHD/57-58]. [RoP; AtWoP; DoP; SoP; GWHD].
Aranya: probably the same person as Janara; daughter of Jayge and Aramina of Paradise River Hold [DoP/2:31]. Born Paradise River Hold. Called Rannie for short. She is two Turns old in All the Weyrs of Pern [AtWoP].
Archives: see Records.
Archives Hall: [Dfire].
Arella: daughter of Aleesa (and Jaythen?), born c. 476. Sixteen Turns of age when Pellar meets her at Aleesa's camp but she looks like thirty! Pellar had sex with her during a watch-wher mating flight and is her mate for a short time [Dfire].
Arith: blue dragon, rider M'barak [Mor].
Arkady, Sturt: see Sturt Arkady.
Armald Amhold: son of Borgald Amhold. Trader, member of the Lilcamp-Amhold train. Killed by Thella's raiders [RoP].
Arminet: Station Master of Wide Bay Hold runner station in Keroon [SoP].
Arna: rider of an unknown queen dragon, stationed at Fort Weyr and later at Telgar Weyr [CoP-SW].
Arnold Jepson: colonist [DD].
Arnor: Master Archivist at Harper Hall. Also called Masterscrivener. he had bad eyesight and at the time of All the Weyrs of Pern he was nearly blind [D3; H2; H3; RoP; AtWoP; DoP].
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Arthied, Desi: see Desi Arthied.
Artificial Intelligence Voice Address System: see AIVAS.
Artist: someone practicing an art (painting, sculpting etc.) but not music (a musician is called a Harper). The word Artist is considered to be a title on Pern and is written with a capital A, like Harper is always written with a capital H when it is used as a title or as someone's rank [RSR/5:156-157].
Asgenar: son of Lord Gedenase of Lemos. Lord Holder of Lemos Hold (confirmed 2510 [D2/3:41]), born Lemos Hold c. 2485, owner of a brown fire lizard Rial [D2/16:313]. Married Telgar Hold 12 fourth-month 2515 Famira of Lemos. [D2; D3; H1; H2; RoP; AtWoP; DoP; SoP; GWHD].
The picture on the right is the portrait artist Robin Wood made for the Mayfair Boardgame Dragonriders of Pern (1985, 1989). Lord Asgenar of Lemos does not appear in The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1983, 1989]
Ash: Fraxinus spp. The dried bark and leaves are used in decoction as a diuretic. Ash is a tall, deciduous tree with smooth grayish bark and toothed-edge oblong leaves up to 3" long. The bark contains tannin, an astringent. It may or may not have diuretic properties. (The only sources still citing it as medicinal are the reprint of a 1931 herbal and a highly credulous book on the herbal arts, which also lists planetary alignments for plants.) Ash is more valuable as a lumber product, especially in shipbuilding (it's highly elastic) and furniture.
[Submitted by Jennifer Quail].
Ashok Kung: a wingsecond and rider of an unnamed blue dragon, stationed at Fort Weyr. He was one of only two blue wingseconds. [CoP-SW]. Kung (as a first name) is also the name of a guard at landing, mentioned in Dragonsdawn. These two persons might be relatives. [DD]
Ashmichel: Lord Holder of Ruatha Hold (?-c. 2485), father of Lord Kale who succeeded him as Lord of Ruatha. Born probably Ruatha Hold c. 2420, died probably Ruatha Hold c. 2485 (definitely between 2483 and spring 2488). He probably married c. 2445 but his spouse's name is unknown, she probably died Ruatha Hold prior to 2483. Lady Relna of Crom and her two youngest children begged sanctuary from Lord Ashmichel and Lady Adessa after Fax overtook Crom Hold in 2483 [MHoP/15:328-329]. This means Ashmichel was still Lord of Ruatha at the time. This reference can be confusing because from the text in The Masterharper of Pern it seems that Lady Adessa is also the name of Lord Ashmichel's spouse, which it isn't. Further on in The Masterharper of Pern Lady Adessa is mentioned as the Lady Holder of Ruatha when Kale has taken over as Lord Holder: "Lady Adessa had certainly taken Hold here" [MHoP/17:369]. I have taken this to mean that Ashmichel's wife died before he did and that his daughter-in-law already acted as Lady of the Hold before her spouse became Lord Holder. [MHoP].
Astronomy, College Department of: at the time of the end of the First Interval and the start of the Second Pass there still was an Astronomy Department at College. The senior of the trained astronomers was Clisser, who was also Head of College or Headmaster [RSR/1:44]. At the end of the First Interval at least six students in every class at College were trained in the rudiments of astronomy and the use of the sextant as well as in the requisite mathematics to computer declination and right ascension to accurately figure out the hour circle of any star [RSR/1:63]. Astronomers were heavily involved in the development of the Eye and Finger Rocks and placing of them at all six Weyrs at the end of 257 [RSR/14:327]. Astronomy was lost as a science in later centuries en rediscovered during the Ninth Pass, even before Aivas could disclose much of the lost information. The name the later Pernese used for astronomy is Starsmithcraft, while an astronomer is called a starsmith.
See also Starsmithcraft and Wansor.
Athpatis: an agronomist, river grain (rice) farmer at Sadrid stake [DD].
Atlanta: a female dolphin calf. Daughter of Carolina [CoP-DB/77-78].
A'ton: rider of an unnamed dragon, stationed at an unnamed Weyr. Third son of Lord Larad of Telgar. If he's a dragonrider (weyrling) in 2519 [RoP/UK172], he must be born prior to at least 2507. [RoP].
AtWoP: abbreviation used (in the Pern Encyclopedia) for the book All The Weyrs of Pern.
Audiva: a student at Harper Hall, originally from Telgar Hold. Daughter of Timareen, a weaver craftmaster at Telgar Hold. Friend of Menolly [H2].
The picture on the right is (part of) a portrait artist Robin Wood made for The People of Pern (1988), the wonderful book with portraits of Pernese people by the same artist.
[Illustration used with permission. © Robin Wood, 1988]
Auntie One: green fire lizard, one of Menolly's fair [H1; H2; H3].
Auntie Two: green fire lizard, one of Menolly's fair [H1; H2; H3].
Auster, Louise: see Louise Auster.
Azury: Lord Holder of Southern Boll Hold at the start of the Second Pass. The name of his spouse remains unknown, as are the names of his children. Not much information can be gleaned from the scanty references to his person in Red Star Rising/Dragonseye. If we would assume his wife's name is not mentioned because he was not married at the time, he probably will have been born around 238. For indefinable reasons, however, this seems not likely, so I have assumed (arbitrarily) that Lord Azury was a full grown, married man at the time of the end of the First Interval. This means he will probably have been born during the first two decades of the third century, which makes him between 38 and 58 Turns of age at the start of the Second Pass. This also means that he probably died during that Pass, although it's possible that he survived the Second Pass in case he was born nearer 220 than 200.
The fact that nothing in Lord Azury's name refers in any way to the names of either Pierre de Courci or Emily Boll is indication that it was probably a fosterling who became Lord Holder of South(ern) Boll after Pierre de Courci (who did not have any children) retired from the management. (His name is misprinted as Azurry in the RSR character list) [RSR/character list].