Sauron really hates his name, and there’s a good reason why

The Lord of The Rings: The Rings of Power is doing more for Tolkien lore than the Peter Jackson movies did, especially where it concerns the Dark Lord, Sauron. Season 2, in particular, has given us an insight into his psyche like never before. And did you notice how much he hates his name?

“I have many names…”

In TROP season 2 episode 7, “Doomed To Die,” Celebrimbor finally breaks through Sauron’s deception, and realises that his city, Eregion, is under siege and that he is working not with an emissary of the Valar, Annatar, but Sauron the Deceiver. The scene where he confronts Sauron about his true identity is a powerful one, and also rather telling of how Sauron sees himself.

Celebrimbor tells him, “You are He. You are…” But before he can say the name, Sauron cuts him off and replies, “I have many names.” This exchange is reminiscent of the one he had with Galadriel in the finale episode of season 1, when she suspects who he is and asks his name, and he tells her, “I’ve been awake since the breaking of the first silence. In that time, I’ve had many names.”

Okay, so what’s with Sauron refusing to say his name, eh? Why must he beat around the bush, use elaborate sentences, and flex about his many names instead of simply confirming, “Umm, yep, I’m Sauron”?

In fact, even when he goes to Adar in the first episode of season 2 to tell him about Galadriel’s possible partnership with Sauron, he doesn’t say the name, but calls him a sorcerer and “evil.” Now Sauron is a manipulator who uses his words carefully to weave his webs of deceit so that it looks like he never lied, only tricked you with the way he worded his truth. So does this mean Sauron hates his name and wishes people to not use it?

What’s in a name? In Sauron’s, there’s mockery!

To know why Sauron hates his name, you’ve got to understand a little about his origin story. Believe it or not, nothing was born evil. Not even Morgoth, who used to be a powerful Vala named Melkor, who rebelled against God, Eru Ilúvatar, and became evil. Similarly, Sauron was also not born evil. He was a Maia, a lower class of angelic beings compared to the Valar, but powerful nonetheless. And he isn’t the only Maia you know, BTW. The Istari AKA the wizards like Gandalf, Saruman, and Radagast are also Maia. So is Elrond’s foremother Melian, who Adar refers to in season 2 episode 7 of The Rings of Power. And so are the Balrogs, before they were twisted and corrupted by Morgoth.

As a Maia, Sauron’s name was Mairon, which in Quenya meant “The Admirable.” He was a highly gifted apprentice of the Vala Aulë, a name you’ve heard uttered by the dwarves, like when Disa say, “Aulë’s beard!” And that’s one thing that Sauron and the dwarves have in common because of their ties to Aulë—they’re both skilled in craftsmanship. 

However, when Mairon became the servant of Morgoth, the elves kind of punned his name to reflect that he was now not admirable and basically a shitty, bad guy. In the Silmarillion, it is noted that in the First Age, the Sindar elves of Beleriand called him Gorthaur, which meant “dread abomination.” As for the other Eldar, they called him Sauron, which means “The Abhorred,” a mockery of his fair Maia name.

So what does Sauron like to call himself?

Charlie Vickers’ Sauron (also briefly played by an excellent Jack Lowden in the season 2 premiere) has been quite the performance, showing us a side of J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic villain that mere fans of the movies would have no idea existed. In the ʼ film trilogy, Sauron barely had a corporeal form and his malice and his will were enacted by the ring. It was through the ring’s deceptive powers that we understood who Sauron was.

But if you’ve been following The Rings of Power on Prime Video, you understand this complex villain a little more than before, how different his seduction of elves, dwarves, and men is, and how he deceives himself too in thinking all he wants is to rebuild a perfect world that was maimed by Morgoth when he truly wants to be powerful and bend the world to his will. His relationship with the elven smith Celebrimbor (a heartbreaking performance by Charles Edwards) reflects that, resembling a toxic, abusive, gaslighting relationship between lovers. And it is through their exchange that we learn much about who Sauron is.

So no, he doesn’t like to refer to himself as Sauron. And in fact, he isn’t lying when he says she has many names because, boy, does he! The lore about the fall of Númenor in The Silmarillion tells us that Sauron’s still pretty attached to his OG name, Mairon, because he fashions it similar to the kings of Númenor when he’s on the island, styling himself Tar-Mairon. In the Third Age, after he has added a lot more evil deeds to his resumé, he picks up a few more names like The Eye, the Dark Lord, The Necromancer, and of course, The Lord of The Rings.

As for the name ‘Sauron’, there’s a line in Tolkien’s The Lord of The Rings: The Two Towers where Aragorn says, “Neither does he use his right name, nor permit it to be spelt or spoken.” This could be because he hates the mockery and insult that this name intends. But there’s also the fact that Sauron sees himself as this all-seeing, all-knowing God, and as with such self-worth, the need to maintain that fear in his subjects and his enemies.

And you remember what Hermione said in Harry Potter, don’t you? “Fear of the name only increases fear of the thing itself.” Perhaps, that was Sauron’s intention all along, to kill two birds with one stone—have his insulting name removed and be feared at the same time!