So, here’s one that—I think this actually might have been yours, Spencer, cause it sounds like almost your mental acumen that would have asked this one—with the exception of Rand, who is Lews Therin Telamon reborn, are there any of the other characters that are reincarnations of prominent historical figures?
There’s Birgitte.
Yeah, but apart from Birgitte, yeah. I’ve always had this sort of fantasy in my mind that Nynaeve might be the reincarnation of Eldrene, the last queen of Manetheren, or something like that. And Mat, you know…gosh, he seems like…before he even left the Two Rivers, the Old Blood was coming out really strongly in him; it makes me wonder if he’s not the actual rebirth of some extraordinary battle hero from Mathetheren. [silence]
Um…
Interesting speculation. [laughter]
Which is going to go nowhere!
We’re not putting answers into their mouths! We’re supposed to be getting answers from them, not giving them answers to give back to us! [laughter]
Oh, was that a question?
Well, sort of!
No, you’re doing well; keep going. [laughter]
He’s going to do what he always does; he’s going to sit back and listen to all the answers until he finds one that he likes, and he says, “You know what? That was it!” [laughter]
Well, I guess this is something that we’re just gonna have to hopefully read and find out…
Yeah…
…or I hope some of these questions are not going to be Brandon has said that Robert Jordan just said that ‘this does not get resolved’, you know…
That would be a shame. [laughter]
I’m not sure where that will leave us. Endlessly speculating till the Wheel stops turning…
There’s no beginning or ending to the Wheel of Time.
Virginia will be reborn again once she passes and she will still be even more into WoT than she was now. [laughter] I can see it.
Impossible.
I can see it.
Physically impossible.
You’ll learn your letters so you can read Robert Jordan in the cradle. [laughter]
I think you’ll have a huge advantage, cause all the books will be out by then and you’ll just be able to read ‘em one after the other.
That’s right, although I was going to say that I think I have the advantage, I was probably reading Robert Jordan when a couple of you guys were in the cradle.
Yeah, probably.
Yeah, probably.
Well, not in the cradle, but I was itty bitty when the first book came out.
I think I was still in the cradle.
Wow. I feel old.
Yeah, that’s cause he…that’s cause you’re just…
I am twenty. I’m not even twenty yet, so…
Oh my gosh!
You weren’t even born when the first book came out, buddy.
Oh, wow.
There you go.
Whoa.
Oh, wow.
Yeah, but they still put up with me, and I think I’m older than Cad-swayne. Is that right? Cad-swayne? Cad-swanee?
Cad-swayne!
Oh, yay! Whew. So far I’m…
Except that we know that Cadsuane is a couple hundred years old, which, you know, is older than the country.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Okay, so I’m not quite older than Cadsuane…
You come close.
Yeah, I feel like it. Anyway, enough of that…
You’re as old as Re-anne. Or is it Re-annie?
Re-AH-nah.
Re-AH-nah, okay.
Ah.
That’s on that list.
Yeah, I’ve been saying that one wrong the whole time.
In general, are ending Es pronounced in the Wheel of Time names, like Reanne?
It varies. He wasn’t really…I mean, sometimes yes, and sometimes…I mean, I was thinking about this, because if Cadsuane’s final e was pronounced, she would be Cad-soo-ae-nah, like Macarena, and you could do a whole dance. But… [laughter] There doesn’t really seem to be a rule. It’s just how he felt that day I think, or how it sounded to him.
Some are, and some aren’t, you know. It is kind of confusing, but we don’t know for sure, if we’re even right when we guess that, so you be the arbiter on this one. Unless, as Brandon said in our interview to him, unless Robert Jordan comes down to us in a beam of white light and sets us straight, some of these things may not ever be known for sure, so you have to tell us as best you can. Speaking of names that end in E , two that almost kind of strike me are, um…I started out saying muh-RELL, and then I kind of went to muh-RELL-uh, because of the presumption that the final Es were pronounced, so I don’t know for sure which one is right on that; I go back and forth between that.
That’s interesting. I say my-RELL. I’m not absolutely sure that’s the way Jim said it.
Okay, what about lee-AHN, or is it lee-AHN-uh?
lee-AHN-uh is correct. That one is Leanne. And Reanne.
Yay!
I believe that Myrelle…it’s my-RELL.
my-RELL?
my-RELL.
You pronounce the Y?
Mm-hmm. Like ‘my’.
Okay, good.
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