4

Is there any reasoning behind the names of the angels and demons in the Diablo series? I'm talking about characters like Azmodan, Tyrael, Malthael, etc.

Are they completely made up by the Diablo team or did they have some obscure source for the names. Do they actually mean anything?

Improve this question
4
  • The names you mention none of then have a known source from Wikipedia (aside form a Diablo page) but Diablo itself may be an allusion to the Spanish Devil, El Diablo. i would proably look up the demons on the wikia and see if there is a trivial or etymology like what Diablo has under Trivia (mentioning the Spanish Devil)
    – Memor-X
    Commented Jun 4, 2015 at 4:05
  • 1
    Why is this downvoted? Is this kind of question not welcome here or should I have presented it differently?
    – Cameron Ball
    Commented Jun 4, 2015 at 4:20
  • @CameronBall not really, this is very heavily leaning toward "Developer Intent", which is off topic. We try to stick to issues that people might be having in-game or in trying to set up a game. But if you are asking "Why'd they name the characters the way they did?" - that's off-topic.
    – Ben
    Commented Jun 4, 2015 at 4:56
  • Hmm, I'm not sure this is "Developer Intent", but I'm also not sure if Arqade is the best fit for asking about the etymology of names...
    – Trent Hawkins
    Commented Jun 4, 2015 at 7:57

1 Answer 1

Reset to default
8

Many of the details of Heaven and Hell in Diablo are heavily influenced by Judeo-Christian theology.

A lot of the names are either almost the same as, or at least share a similar naming structure to Judeo-Christian Angels and Demons.

Examples include,

  • Azmodan (Asmodai/Asmodeus),
  • Tyrael (very close to Turiel, one of The Watchers, who were tasked with watching over humanity, and became the parents of the Nephilim)
  • Diablo (from the latin "diabolicus", and thus the Spanish word for Devil)
  • Lilith (literally the same name, Adam's "first wife", who left him to mate with Samael the Angel of Death and give birth to a race of demons)

If you look through the below lists, you will notice a lot of similarities of structure:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_angels_in_theology

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_theological_demons

Improve this answer

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.