Speak Of The Devil / Literature

• The Afterward: People are loathe to speak of the Old God, and do so indirectly, as he's a powerful, evil being who kills his creations for pleasure.
• In The Belgariad, saying the name of Zedar allows him to listen in on your conversation. The protagonists eventually get around this by getting lots of storytellers to retell the tales of Zedar, so he won't notice them amidst all the noise.
• "Hastur" was the name of a benign god in a Ambrose Bierce short story. In The King in Yellow, Robert W. Chambers adopted "Hastur" as a mysterious name, most likely a location, with only vague connections to the titular King. H. P. Lovecraft namedropped Hastur and the Yellow Sign (from Chambers's work) as nebulously connected in "The Whisperer in Darkness". When August Derleth absorbed Hastur into the greater Cthulhu Mythos, he started using it as the actual name of The King in Yellow, and re-appropriated non-synonymous titles such as "Him Who Must Not Be Named," (likely another euphemistic name for Azathoth) and "The High Priest Not To Be Described" (a minion of Nyarlathotep who might actually be Nyarlathotep) as sobriquets. This spawned the idea in the Expanded Universe that referring to him by name was a very bad idea.
• In the Incarnations of Immortality series, mentioning Satan by name will draw his attention. Lachesis and Chronos both mention this to the new incarnation of Death, when Death is investigating a suspiciously premature demise.
• Author Ramsey Campbell created a god for the Cthulhu Mythos named Y'Golonac, who could possess a host if they merely read his name. Not even out loud; he could possess a person if they sight-read his name on a printed page. Seeing as he's a god that represents every deed that could be viewed as defiling by individuals both sane and insane across the universe, this is not a pleasant fate. The accepted version is that reading his name is fine unless you are reading his name from one of the 7 tomes of "The Revelations of Glaaki" which will cause him to appear and either eat or mind rape or enslave you.
• Momo provides a non-villainous example. The Grey Men, parasitic beings who exist by stealing the humans' time, hate and fear the Time's caretaker, Master Hora. Though, the Grey Men are frightened of even saying his name, using "Him" instead.
• In The Wheel of Time series, saying The Dark One's true name Shaitan supposedly draws his attention and certainly gives you a nasty fit of bad luck. He's the dark god, you know. So there exist many alternate names for him too - like "father of lies".
• Used in Jonathan Strange & Mr. Norrell with the Raven King, a human raised in faerie who is the bringer of magic to England, and who is considered the true ruler of those living Oop North who often make oaths by him. One Northerner, Childermass, declares himself loyal to the Raven King despite his absence, and later is shocked when he meets him and it's clear that The Raven King heard the oath and is at least mildly amused that Childermass has no idea who he is
• Harry Potter series
  • Voldemort is literally called He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named by those who are afraid of saying (or printing) his name, though those using less formal diction call him You-Know-Who. His followers simply call him The Dark Lord. In the earlier books, this is portrayed merely as people being monumentally afraid of Voldemort (and a sign of reverence, in the case of his followers). In the last book, Voldemort uses this to his advantage by placing a "Taboo" spell upon his name; this causes the speaking of his name to break any protective charms on the area and reveal the location of the speaker to him. Seeing as the only people with the nerve to speak his name are Harry's group and (probably) the Order Of The Phoenix, this is quite clever.
  • In a more benign case, house elves automatically Apparate to the location of their owner when their name is called, regardless of any curses or protective magic that should prevent them. They can even be summoned into the Hogwarts grounds, which is normally impossible.
• In the Young Wizards series, speaking any of the Lone Power's nicknames has the danger of drawing Its attention. Even thinking its true name is guaranteed to get Its attention unless something is keeping It distracted.
• Discworld series
  • In Lords and Ladies, it is mentioned that mentioning the Elves by name can draw their attention and even help them cross over from Fairyland, especially around certain times of the year when Crop Circles appear. For this reason, the witches of Lancre refer to them by various pseudonyms (such as the Gentry, or the Lords and Ladies), and only feel (barely) comfortable saying their name aloud when in the presence of lots of iron. Although if you're close enough to a portal, even these pseudonyms will draw them. At one point Nanny reminds herself that at least they can't hear you say the word "elf" inside your head — unless they're close. (This is based on old folk beliefs; there's a reason the trope's called The Fair Folk.)
  • Igor (any Igor). When the master calls him, Igor will appear directly behind to answer. Makes no difference if Igor was in the basement or on the roof at the time, somehow he will also be out of sight behind his master when the master calls. Some characters have tried to abuse this by standing with a beartrap or a large pit behind them and then calling for their Igor; this never works. Just part of the Igor service package.
  • In the early books such as The Colour of Magic, one never mentions the true name of The Lady, the Goddess Who Must Not Be Named, which is Lady Luck. An inversion, since she's the only goddess who only comes when not called and flees when mentioned. The Discworld Companion adds that the Gamblers' Guild once tried worshiping her, and the result was that the building exploded. Not so surprising, since it is later established that Gamblers' Guild is always right across the street from the Alchemists' Guild...
  • Wizards are forbidden from saying the number eight because it draws the attention of the Eldritch Abomination Bel-Shamharoth, the Sender of Eight.
• Tolkien's Legendarium:
  • The Lord of the Rings:
    • Gandalf is unwilling to pronounce the ring's verse in the dark, especially in the black speech. There is generally a reluctance from all the characters to use words or names associated with evil things when it is dark. Since the Ring's verse is essentially an evil spell, it's quite understandable why Gandalf doesn't want to speak it in uncontrolled circumstances.
    • Even Sauron himself is rarely named, more commonly referred to simply as "The Enemy". His followers don't often use the name "Sauron" either (it means "The Abomination" in Quenya, so Sauron himself doesn't like it much), usually using titles like "The Great Eye" or "The Dark Lord". His true name, Mairon, is remembered only by a few, and none of them consider him worthy of it anymore.
  • And in The Silmarillion, Sauron's former master is only ever referred to as "Morgoth" ("Dark Enemy") after this name is given to him by a scornful Feanor; the "Valaquenta", which describes the names and powers of every significant deity in Arda, explicitly states that his true name, Melkor, "is not spoken upon Earth".
• The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant:
  • The Ranyhyn, the wild, free and intelligent horses. They have special magic that days or weeks before you call them, they know it and head for where you will be so that as soon as you whistle for them, they are there.
  • And in the Second Chronicles we meet the Sandgorgons, who instantly know when their names are mentioned, even a great distance away, and will run at incredible speeds to find the person who did it and kill them.
  • And in the Last Chronicles, speaking She Who Must Not Be Named's true name could destroy the universe since she's Diassomer Mininderain, the Lover, a deity on par with the Creator and Lord Foul, and if she ever remembers her true name and stature she'd be able to escape from being imprisoned in reality, with reality itself an unfortunate casualty.
• A rather literal variant in the Thursday Next series, Acheron Hades can hear his name if it's spoken within a hundred-mile radius.
• In the David Drake fantasy novel The Sea Hag, The Hero is able to defeat the villain by tricking him into naming Serdic, his old dead master... who then promptly appears and drags the villain away to a Nightmare Fuel fate, since he had promised the hero earlier this would happen the next time he was named.
• In Snakecharm, the second of Amelia Atwater-Rhodes' Kiesha'ra series, an unfortunate falcon, masquerading as a serpent, asks Zane if the falcons' ambassador, Syfka, is in town. Syfka pops up almost immediately, telling the rogue falcon, "You were foolish enough to use my name, not once, but twice." The "...And then you're in deep trouble" aspect is subverted, as Syfka gets into a heated argument with Zane, and when she turns around a moment later, everyone realizes that the man who said his name had run away during the argument.
• In Romance of the Three Kingdoms, Cao Cao had a tendency to show up whenever his name was being mentioned — so the saying goes, "Speak of Cao Cao, and Cao Cao is at the gates." Ironically, at one point, this was happening to the man himself — every time he tempted fate by mentioning some character on the opposing side, that man would shortly show up.
• In John C. Wright's Chronicles of Chaos, Echinda can detect anyone saying her name; the children resort to referring to "the fishmonger."
• Similar to the Sandman example above in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series by Rick Riordan, the use of names of various mythological figures or places causes bad things like thunder and darkening of the skies to happen, so the characters tend to avoid using them. It's stated that this is because it gets their attention, and the lightning is only if they're upset with you. Unless you're Dionysus, who responds to Zeus's thunder with a bored "Blah, blah, blah."
  • This also applies to monsters. Percy's mom, Sally, pointedly avoids referring to the Minotaur by name, only referring to it as "Pasiphae's son". Similarly, an example of "demigods and technology don't mix" is given as a demigod web searching the other two gorgon sisters inadvertently reviving them.
• The Dresden Files:
  • Wizards, despite being human, can invoke this. If a person knows a wizard's True Name, they can try to gain control over the person. However, if the Wizard has a stronger will and power, they can reverse the binding and bind the would-be summoner. (In one of the books, Harry's Badass Boast at the end is to give his full name, and warn: "Conjure by it at your own risk." Of course, that's just in narration. He takes seriously the damage the right enemy could do if he really did go around putting his full name out there.)
  • In Storm Front an evil sorcerer summons his demon slave by screaming its Name. Harry, having perfectly heard the Name, then uses his own magic to free the demon from its enslavement without binding it to his own will.
  • Mentioning the skinwalker/naagloshii in Turn Coat is a very bad idea, since it grows stronger with fear and infamy. So Harry renames it "Shagnasty," which lacks the same intimidation factor.
  • The Queens of the respective fey courts and many other beings may be summoned this way, though generally the summoner must have a degree of power which they can use to call such entities; otherwise they just fade into the background noise. A good example comes from Changes - Harry is deep inside enemy territory protected only by the Erlking's respect for Sacred Hospitality, and he refers to Queen Mab by her name. The Erlking notes if Harry speaks her name a third time in their conversation, it will cause her to be summoned to his domain. Harry then only refers to her as "my queen."
    • Later, when speaking of the Erlking, Harry's Fairy Godmother, the Leanansidhe, calls the Erlking "The Hunter" so as not to summon him.
  • Similar to the knights, Mab is mindful to not speak the Names of any being of Power, particularly Fallen Angels and Archangels. She only says their titles. Archangel Michael is "Prince of the Host." Archangel Raphael is "The Demon Binder." Archangel Gabriel is "The Trumpeter." Archangel Uriel is "The Watchman."
  • Mab, Titania, and their mothers, Mother Winter and Mother Summer^note These two, it should be noted, are comparable to Uriel in power, each are hesitant to speak of Nemesis for fear it might come for them and infect them. They simply call it the Adversary.
  • Nicodemus's Fallen Angel, Anduriel, has the ability to listen, and sometimes even watch, through shadows. Speaking his name where he might be able to hear it risks getting his attention; otherwise he might not notice a given conversation amidst all the noise.
• In the Evie Scelan series, Evie threatens people who seem like they are about to call the Bright Brotherhood by their proper name, Fiana. For someone who doesn't mind handing out her true name, she seems surprisingly worried about this.
• In Jack of Shadows, by Roger Zelazny, Jack's powers include the ability to hear any person who speaks his name in shadow and to continue listening in until they move out of it.
• Jack Chalker's The Changewinds begins with the female protagonists learning that they are being threatened by an evil wizard. A mercenary to whom was entrusted the girls' safety decides that the villain is likely to pay better and attempts to attract his attention by saying his name now and then. The girls, discovering this, try to call on the wizard who brought them to this world by saying his name over and over. Of course, with a name like "Boolean", the girls just wound up giggling after a while. It should be noted that neither wizard was summoned, no matter how much their names were dropped.
• In The Hour of the Dragon, Zenobia fears it, even though it's a man being spoken of.
  "Do not speak of him!" she whispered. "Demons are often summoned by the sound of their names.
• The Bloody Mary version is weaponized in Seanan McGuire's short story "Dying With Her Cheer Pants On".
• Nearly used in the Solomon Kane story "The Blue Flame of Vengeance", except that Solomon shows up right as the Fishhawk is about to say his name.
• In The Kingkiller Chronicle, the Chandrian have some sense of when and where their name is spoken and might even be able to locate their depictions in art. Kvothe's father massacred with his troupe when he tries to compose a song about them, and the Adem only reveal the Chandrian's true names to Kvothe after warning him to "travel 1000 miles and wait 1000 nights" before speaking them again.
• In Fred Saberhagen's Empire of the East, the arch-wizard Wood (itself an alias) is too afraid to say the demon-prince Orcus' name, or even think it. He still proposes to release him, though.
• In The Griffin's Daughter Trilogy, the Nameless One's true name had been stricken from elven records and lore, to keep others from trying to invoke I Know Your True Name and claim the Nameless One's power, either becoming as big a threat as The Nameless One or inadvertently unleashing him on the world.
• From the Notebooks of Dr. Brain by Minister Faust, heroes are paranoid about mentioning the name of a ridiculously powerful psychic supervillain because saying his name aloud allows him to instantly teleport to your location. This is despite the fact that he's been locked up and contained for over two decades.
• In Rage of a Demon King, it is revealed that saying the true name of The Unnamed is not necessary to come under his power; merely thinking or even knowing it is sufficient.
• In Pact, speaking the name of someone generates a connection between you and them, one which they can notice. Speaking it repeatedly causes an effect that's described as an itch that can't be scratched, which usually will cause them to seek you out to make it stop. This principle applies to everything from bog-standard practitioners, to the Lord of Toronto, to a duke of the first demonic choir.
• Ward: parahumans in general try to avoid talking about Khepri, the cape who orchestrated the end of Gold Morning, due to the traumatic means (mind-controlling nearly every living cape at once) Khepri used to do that and a general unspoken fear of attracting Khepri's attention again. Often, even the name "Khepri" is not used, and they're referred to as "an unknown Class-S cape". In truth, Khepri was de-powered and couldn't come back even if she wanted to, but even those who know her true identity and circumstances seem to consider "Khepri" and "Taylor" as two different beings.
• Journey to Chaos: No one wants to refer to Tasio by his name, because that would attract his attention. The speaker and everyone around him could be subjected to anything from a petty prank to a terrifying catastrophe. This is why Tasio has so many nicknames, with "The Trickster" being most common among them. In the first book, Eric is yelled at several times for violating this taboo, and in the second, Emily is Bound and Gagged for deliberately doing so.
• Allasakar is the Big Bad of The Sacred Hunt, The Sun Sword and The House War, and nobody likes to say his name, regardless of origin or affiliation. In the North, he's known as the Lord of the Hells, in the south as the Lord of Night, and to his minions simply as "the Lord" without qualification; he's also referred to by the euphemism "the god we do not name". While the consequences of naming him aren't elaborated on in detail, the taboo is deeply ingrained enough that even saying "Allasakar" aloud is considered a sign of courage (or overconfidence).
• In John French's Thousand Sons novels, no one ever refers to the Chaos Gods by name, presumably for fear of drawing their attention. Any character that must talk about them will use epithets like the Lord of Skulls (for Khorne), the Changer of Ways (for Tzeentch), or the Plague Father (for Nurgle).
• Johannes Cabal and the Fear Institute: In an attempt to bluff a horde of enemies, Johannes pretends to invoke the Eldritch Abomination Nyarlathotep to strike them dead, and is horrified beyond words when Nyarlathotep hears and obliges. Subverted with The Reveal that Nyarlathotep has been traveling with him incognito since the beginning.
• Gods of Jade and Shadow: The Physical Gods of The Underworld notice when their names are spoken, but need to send a spirit Familiar to the mortal world to see who's calling. Since their worship fell out of style, they're spoken of so rarely that they're much more likely to investigate.
• Under the Pendulum Sun: Speaking an old or powerful Fae's name risks drawing their attention or invoking their power. People repeatedly caution Catherine against naming Queen Mab, and an icy wind blows out her lantern when she does so anyway. Someone immediately cuts her off when she starts to speak a vastly older name, Lilith.
• In the Magic: The Gathering novel Planeswalker, Phyrexians are taught not to speak the name of their god Yawgmoth lest he take notice of them and bring his wrath down upon them. They refer to him as "the Ineffable" instead. When Urza learns Yawgmoth's name, a frightened Xantcha silences him whenever he tries to say it aloud.

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