From: Michael Straight <straight@email.unc.edu>
Subject: Re: (whorl) Cities
Date: Tue, 14 Jul 1998 08:36:54 


On Mon, 13 Jul 1998, Sean Whalen wrote:

> I was just wondering about the names of the cities in the Whorl and
> their meaning.
> 
> Viron:  Latin for a circle, center.  Viron is surrounded by other
> cities in circular pattern.  Suggests the word environ.

When I first read the books, I assumed that as 'Whorl' was a neolgism
describing a World that Whirls, 'Viron' was once short for environment, in
the sense of "artificial environment" or "total environment"--a lost
reference to the artificiality of the Whorl.

Since it turns out that 'Viron' is hardly the only city or even the
central one, it doesn't really make sense that it would have that kind of
name while the other cities don't.

-Rostrum


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