Are The Inheritance Trilogy's names derived from real-world sources?

Question

The Inheritance Trilogy, like many works set in fantasy worlds, has a lot of apparently made-up names. However, I think I see glimmers of real-world languages shining through in many of them, like Dekarta and Enefa; other names, like T'vril, seem to be referencing naming conventions in cornerstones of the fantasy genre.Am I seeing patterns where there are none, or is Jemisin drawing on real-world sources for the names in The Inheritance Trilogy?

Answer 1

It seems to me that the answer, in this case, is essentially "no." This question was asked in a Literature StackExchange post (https://literature.stackexchange.com/questions/3129/are-the-inheritance-trilogys-names-derived-from-real-world-sources) and user russ ull addressed it in part. They referenced a Reddit AMA Jemisin did in 2012 (https://www.reddit.com/r/Fantasy/comments/tgje6/hello_reddit_im_fantasy_novelist_nk_jemisin_ama/), where she described her naming conventions as having more to do with characterization than with cultural consideration, even privileging the vibe of the character over internal cultural consistency.

I also found a pronunciation guide for the Inheritance Trilogy specifically on Jemisin's blog (https://nkjemisin.com/2010/02/a-name-pronunciation-guide-for-100k/). In a brief note at the end, she assures readers that the names don't really mean anything (not on purpose at least) and that what matters more to her is the multiculturalism of the world than any real world cultural resonance. That is, she wants you to feel like these characters come from different cultures so that the world feels rich; in the Inheritance Trilogy in particular, specific real-world resonance doesn't seem like an emphasis for her.