# What should I name my healers?



## Phoenix (Feb 7, 2012)

Hello everyone! I need a little bit of help right now. Recently I jumped into writing my story (thanks to you guys). Excitement pulsated through me, my heart beat as a war drum before the enemy. Then I came to a point where I introduce my healer......What do I call him!? No these healer doesn't know magic or anything, they just know how to mix poisons and set bones. The average medieval doctors. Now I have conducted research and discovered doctors of that time period were call Chirurgeon's. However, I do not know how to put this in title for his name. Also, the word seems weird to me, I'm not sure how the reader would like it. I'm also looking at the word maester. What would be better? Should I make up a word? Please help me!!! Thanks in advance. 
(Note world is set in Ancient/Medieval type setting.)


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## Aidan of the tavern (Feb 7, 2012)

Chiri-what!?  I wouldn't even know how to pronounce it to be honest.

I quite like maester personally.


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## San Cidolfus (Feb 7, 2012)

Maester is fine, but if you want to make up a title to give your world some flavor, go for it.  Consider how your doctors are viewed from a cultural standpoint.  In that sort of setting, medicine and mythology tended to go hand-in-hand.  Your surgeons could belong to a discipline of a particular deity--if your world is polytheistic--or just be seen in a reverent light, or possibly even paternal/maternal if the societies are small enough.  The titles that cultures bestow upon such professions reflect these things accordingly.  Healer, God-Hand, Daddy-Kins, so forth.

You could go the other way and have such learning be seen in a superstitious and condemning light.  No reflection on the Middle Ages would be complete without theology condemning science for chipping away at its revenue/fan-base.


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## Phoenix (Feb 7, 2012)

Thanks for both of your inputs. I think I will go for maester for *THIS* healer. However, Cidolfus made a very good point. 
 My world is going to have many nations and cultures. The healers and doctors wouldn't be called the same thing in that region. The barbaric nomads of the plains healer would be called a shaman, while miles away you could have a maester at a castle. Thanks a lot guy. You both earn rep from my case.


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## Anders Ã„mting (Feb 7, 2012)

In the RPG I'm running, the state church of the kingdom the PC end up with have a rank of cleric who specialize in healing. I called them "hospitallers," after the Knights Hospitaller. It seemed as good a name as any.


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## Benjamin Clayborne (Feb 8, 2012)

My only concern with "maester" is that the same title is used for the same purpose in _A Song of Ice and Fire_. Not that Martin owns it or anything, but it's notable enough (and, I think, rare enough) that some people might look askance at it. But maybe not.


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## Ravana (Feb 8, 2012)

Mender, perhaps? (Or just "Healer"?)

You could use "Meister" instead of "Maester": same base, different language. (Or, for that matter, "Master": same thing, all around.) Or simply "Doctor": that's what they _were_ called, if they had formal education. (And if they didn't, they were called "Barber".…  ) You wouldn't use "chirurgeon" as a title, at any rate, any more than you'd use "surgeon," which is what it evolved into: "Hey, Surgeon William! How's it going?" It's a description of what he does, not an honorific.


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## Dark Huntress (Feb 8, 2012)

I feel so unimaginative after reading these post. I too have healers in my story. I call them 'healers'.


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## sashamerideth (Feb 8, 2012)

Healthforge, wellmaker, nurse of the order of longwindbagname.


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## Sheilawisz (Feb 8, 2012)

What about... Surgical Masters??


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## topazfire (Feb 8, 2012)

I also thought of George RR Martin when you wrote Maester. Then again, JK Rowling also used the term Healer and it seems to be a pretty standard descriptor across genres. Google Translator, though it is not the best, is my go to for word variations and I just put in both doctor and nurse. Irish works out to be 'Dochtuir' and 'Altra' while in Welsh Doctor is Meddyg (potentially close to medic in English). There were some other interesting options too that might suit you based on the laguage base and culture that you are writing.


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## Phoenix (Feb 8, 2012)

Yeah, the reason I first said maester, was because of George RR Martin. I think I'll use this term for this healer, but like I said culture will be different in other regions. Thanks for the advise guys.


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