is "Kerman" a family name after all ?

[kermand]

I have been wondering lately, is "Kerman" really a family name, after all ?

It would make much more sense as an honorific suffix, like "-san" in japanese or "-ssi" in korean. Under this hypothesis, Kerbals have only one, very colorful name, but the etiquette of the Kerbal society requires that they address each other by the name + "Kerman". Only Kerbals who have got to know each other closely, like Bill and Valentina stranded together for ten years in a Mun lander short of fuel, would dare to call each other by name only (a practice known as "kermansute").

Just thinking.

[NSEP]

I dont know, i mean, whenever i try to rename a Kerbal with the stock cheat menu, it glues "Kerman" behind it (wich i do not like). So i geuss Kerman is the same as Person, or Human.

[Finnan]

It can also denote group identity meaning that they belong to the same tribe or originally from the same area in Kerbin or the whole planet itself.  Or it could be religious and that Kerman means "the Chosen Ones" or "the Blessed Ones".

 

 

Edited July 5, 2017 by Finnan

[ZooNamedGames]

I've always felt that their asexual meaning that every Kerbal is the direct offspring from another. So therefore since they all come from the same source and there is no others; the family name just continues.

[KSK]

Oh - I like these alternative reasons for the 'Kerman' name! A couple of stories in the Fan Works section have also explored the idea that Kerman isn't just a family name. In @Ten Key's Farlight story, Kerman was a title if I recall correctly - roughly equivalent to Dr (in the academic sense) or mastercraftskerbal.

In my own headcanon, 'kerman' has a lot of historical and cultural significance. More detail here if anyone's interested and doesn't mind spoilers (I know @ZooNamedGames appreciates a bit of Kerbal lore.  ) Basically though, the Kerman name shows how that particular Kerbal interacts with the other sentient species on Kerbin, and it arose from a pivotal event in Kerbal history that pretty much defined the structure of Kerbal society right up to the present day. 

[something]

Kehrmann is a not so common but not uncommon family name in Germany. So I looked up the white pages and guess what? There is at least one "Kerman" in Germany. (Not linking the entry here for obvious reasons).

[KamenRiderzero1]

It's also a town outside Fresno.

[softweir]

IIRC, HarvesteR once mentioned that "Kerman" is an honorific, like "mister" or "san".

[KamenRiderzero1]

I guess the best comparison are how certain cultures use mononymes. I.E. the third UN Secretary General, U Thant. His name was only Thant, "U" is a Burmese honorific.

[Mikki]

There`s a rather large city in Iran named Kerman.

[Gargamel]

On 7/5/2017 at 9:09 PM, softweir said:

IIRC, HarvesteR once mentioned that "Kerman" is an honorific, like "mister" or "san".

I think in the multitude of other threads on this topic it was decided that it is a title, similar to what you describe. 

[RocketBlam]

I was watching some documentary on TV recently, and there was someone on the show with the last name "Kerbal", so who knows?