Oy. Ok so this is starting to hurt my head a bit but here goes.
NAMING TAU SHIPS
As with many things the Tau adopt a very
structured approach to naming their vessels. Each
ship or squadrons name is made up of a series
of elements.
The first element is the Sept responsible for
building the ship or squadron.
The second element is the ships class name.
The third element is the personal name of the
ship or squadrons first commander. This will
always be an air caste member of Korui rank or
higher.
The fourth element is the personal name of the
ship or squadrons current commander. This is
omitted if it is the same as the third element.
Ok so where do Tau names come from?
Tau personal names, unlike those of humans, usually mean things in their language, depending on the deeds in their lives.
Example
Thus, the Tau named "Shas'O Vior'la Shovah Kais Mont'yr" (a.k.a. Commander Farsight) would be broken down as follows:
Shas - The individual is a member of the Fire Caste...
O - ...who is a high-ranking Commander and hero...
Vior'la - ...who comes from the Sept of Vior'la...
...and has a personal name translated as being far-sighted (Shovah), skilled (Kais), and having seen many battles (Mont'yr, meaning "blooded").
Ok so how do we tell the first and second commander appart? for example my Defender squadron:
Dal'yth Kirqath Kauyon Lynu
Defender (Ship or Squadron?)
built at Sept Dalyth
first commanded by Patient Hunter
currently commanded bySteadfast
This really doesnt differentiate between the commanders and gives no indication of which fleet (sept) theyre currently tied to. This also doesnt explain how you tell the rank of either the original or current commander other than we know hes at least a captian. How do we determine the break down as they did with the example in Armada:
Thus Dalyth Galleath Aproh Mlath is an
Explorer class vessel built by on the Dalyth,
first commanded by KorO Aproh and now
commanded by Korui Mlath
I would hate to have to rely on posting the entire name but that the only way Ive seen so far to convey the correct message:
Dal'yth Kirqath Lissera KorEl Dalyth Kauyon KorEl Taun Lynu
Defender Group
Built at Dal'yth
Originally commanded by Captian Kauyon Patient Hunter from Dal'yth
Currently commanded by Captian Lynu Steadfast from Tau'n
Thats a mouth full.