Merry (belated) Christmas, dear readers of this blog!! I wanted to celebrate by writing a Christmas short story tied into the Warriors of Aralan series. I've written very few short stories, much less any Christmas-y ones, so it was something refreshingly new. It takes place in Calima, which is a country of dark-skinned people on Aralan's western border, a people that figure prominently in Journey to Freedom (WoA #8). Ironically, this Warriors of Aralan short story contains only one passing reference to Aralan itself.

I chose Calima as the setting for several reasons, but mainly because they're the country that introduced Christianity to Aralan back in Finding Hope (WoA #4), and would therefore be most likely to celebrate Christmas if any of the people in my stories did.  I also chose them for the fact that the Caliman twins I introduced in Journey to Freedom are so full of the Christmas spirit the rest of the year, that they'd be the perfect ones to deliver this story during the actual Christmas season.  (Only they don't call it Christmas—they call it Rakkaus—and if you're curious what that means, Google the translation.) ;)

This story takes place in the "winter" before Journey to Freedom, so if you've read that, there'll be lots of Easter eggs hidden inside. But if you haven't, don't worry, there aren't any spoilers. You'll just get to see a pair of awkwardly adorable identical twins doing their thing in my version of a Christmas story. :) Enjoy!

His Favorite Rakkaus Story
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   “You want to hear Elias’s favorite Rakkaus story?” Emory feigned a groan and glanced at his brother, enjoying the clamor of small voices just as much as he did.
   All around them was a crowd of little ones, beaming faces highlighted by the cozy flickering glow of firelight emanating from the hearth.  Nearby Emma, Josiah and Hadassah sat around the table on one end of the cottage, looking fondly upon the children—the oldest of which was barely ten years old.
   This child in question lay on the floor on his stomach, chin propped up on both palms, grinning as he blew a stray lock of dark curly hair out of his face.  “You always act like you don’t want to tell it, but you do!”
   Emory heaved a long-suffering sigh and rolled his eyes.  “If I must!  But maybe I want to tell my favorite Rakkaus story once in a while you know…”
   Elias prodded him in the ribs.  “No one wants to hear about the five pounds of lamb roast you ate in one sitting any more than you want to remember the stomach ache it gave you.”
   Emory looked indignant.  “How should you know?  Maybe I do!”  After pausing dramatically for an instant, he leaned out over his young audience and lowered his voice to a ghostly whisper: “‘Twas a dark and stormy night—”
   “It was not!” Elias treated his brother to another good jab in the ribs, much to the hilarity of the children present.  “If you’re going to tell a story, do it right.”
   Emory rubbed his ribs ruefully and appealed to the imagination of the youngsters.  “Every good story deserves embellishment, doesn’t it?  After all, announcing that it started on a bright and sunny morning doesn’t grab your attention much!”
   “But it did start on a bright and sunny morning!” Elias laughed, “And it wasn’t just any bright and sunny morning.  It was Rakkaus.  And that was a very promising fact to the young whipper-snappers that we were…”

~R~

Last October I compiled a list of masculine Norwegian names for you, but with one thing and another, I haven't been able to make the female counterpart until now. Well, here it is!

Norwegian names have a really unique feel to them, and though I tried to find the most authentic ones, many of the names on this list are not necessarily Norwegian in origin, even if they're used in Norway.  "What does that mean?" you ask. Well, take the name Maiken on this list, for example. It's a Danish and Norwegian diminutive of Maria, which is a form of Mary, which is, of course, a well-known name taken from English translations of the Bible. The reason I didn't list a meaning for Maiken when I put it on the list, is because Mary may mean "sea of bitterness," "rebelliousness," "wished-for child,"  "beloved," or "loved," depending on who you ask. When names are vague like that, or pass through four or five variations before what makes it to this list (like Katja, which came from Katya, which came from Yekaterina, which came from Katherine, which may have come from the name of the Greek goddess Hecate), I don't feel qualified to nail down a simple meaning for you, and left it blank, instead.

But you didn't come here to read about the evolution of names. You came here to find one for your woefully nameless lady character. So here you go! However, just in case Norwegian names aren't quite what you're going for, here's a few other lists of very different ethnicities that might prove more helpful.

• Male and Female English Names
• Male and Female Hebrew Names
• Male and Female Irish Names

Now, let the Norwegian names begin!
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A
Agathe – good
Agnes – chaste
Agnetha – chaste
Ågot – good
Aina – the only one; always
Alfhild – elf; battle
Alva – elf
Anja – favor; grace
Annbjørg – eagle; help; save; rescue
Annelie – ?
Annette – favor; grace
Anniken – favor; grace
Arnbjørg – eagle; help; save; rescue
Åse – god
Asta – god; beautiful; beloved
Astrid – god; beautiful; beloved
B
Beata – blessed
Benedikte – blessed
Bente – blessed
Bergliot – protection; help; light
Berit – ?
Birgit – ?
Birgitta – ?
Birgitte – ?
Bjørg – help; save; rescue
Bodil – remedy; battle
Borghild – fortification; battle
Brit – ?
Brita – ?
Brynhild – armor; protection; battle