The Rite of Naming was the foremost of all celebrations held by the nezumi race. It was celebrated after the end of the Lean Time and just before the Walking Time.
Rite[]
Those Ratlings that were in their second Spring were presented by their mothers. Every Nezumi that could attend did so. A shaman from each tribe awaited the first morning when no frost touched the ground, which marked the end of this year's Lean Time. Each Ratling mother began a silent vigil with the chosen shaman, preparing her children for the day that they would stand before the shaman and be given meaning in their lives. [1] All Ratlings were called S'stch until his Rite of Naming. The tribe's Nameseeker would bestow the first name upon the youth, often prophesying the Ratling's place in the world. [2]
Giving Titles[]
The Nezumi that had proven themselves worthy of adding a title to their names were also included in this rite. Only the greatest of the Paths were distinguished this way. [3]
Marking the Walking Time[]
Shortly after the Rite of Naming, the new elders and leaders of the Ratling tribes began to organize for the Walking Time, to move from the place they had wintered to the lands they would live until the next winter. [3]
References
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