Aliasing Pegacorn -> Alicorn.

Reason: Actual term instead of a made up word.

123easy said:
Aliasing Pegacorn -> Alicorn.

Reason: Actual term instead of a made up word.

I don't know why I didn't make a thread about this earlier, but some minor information here. The world wide "Common" Term for Unicorn/pegasi hybrids has been "Pegacorn" The series "Offical" name for them by series creator Lauren is "Alicorn" thus, in a long winded way, this is entirely correct. *nodnod*

I am all for this :D

Common =/= right. The made up word "pegacorn" is from combining the name of the flying horse Pegasus with the word unicorn. Now, the historical term alicorn means the spiralled horn of the unicorn as well as the material it was made from (not bone or hair or something else), but it's also the name of the winged unicorn species.

123easy said:
Common =/= right. The made up word "pegacorn" is from combining the name of the flying horse Pegasus with the word unicorn. Now, the historical term alicorn means the spiralled horn of the unicorn as well as the material it was made from (not bone or hair or something else), but it's also the name of the winged unicorn species.

So really, both terms are technically right. So should they be aliased to each other?

Pegacorn isn't technically right. It's like some bad fanfic writer made up the word and everyone went with it instead of actually looking up the truth. -.-; Pegasus was the winged horse's name, not it's species/race. It wasn't "This is Pegasus, and his Pegasi brothers" or "One Pegasus, two Pegasi", even if a lot of modern stories like to make that mistake.

It's like if a man was named Sparta. You wouldn't call his brothers Spartans would you (unless by some deliciously ironic twist he happened to be from that part of Greece)?

123easy said:
Pegacorn isn't technically right. It's like some bad fanfic writer made up the word and everyone went with it instead of actually looking up the truth. -.-; Pegasus was the winged horse's name, not it's species/race. It wasn't "This is Pegasus, and his Pegasi brothers" or "One Pegasus, two Pegasi", even if a lot of modern stories like to make that mistake.

It's like if a man was named Sparta. You wouldn't call his brothers Spartans would you (unless by some deliciously ironic twist he happened to be from that part of Greece)?

The only named "winged horse" In mythology was Pegasus, as you have said. The name just stuck. Technically, its a mythological creature so we can call it whatever the hell we want right?

Aganippe, who was the original Nightmare, was winged; Scandinavian mythology has Alsvidur & Arvakur, fiery winged horses that pulled the sun and moon across the sky; Areion/Arion, born from when Demeter hid herself amidst the herds of King Oncus of Arcadia, and was mounted by Poseidon; Blodug-hofi, the mount of Frey in Norse mythology, is consided to be the Norse counterpart to Pegasus; In islamic lore, Buraq & Mamoun are winged horses, with Mamoun being made by Allah for Adam specifically, to raise him to heaven when certain conditions were met; Celeris was actually also from Greek mythology, and was Pegasus' brother; Fledge the winged horse from Narnia, though that's a more modern take. There's many more, but I'll stop there. None of them were called Pegasus by race, or name, beyond Pegasus himself.

Hell, if we want to actually dive into mythos re: pegasus, Eratosthenes specifically mentioned that Pegasus was without wings, but still flew; it was only mid-classical legend that brought about the addition of wings; Ptolemy noted that they were well-entrenched in the mythos in his day.

And finally; Alicorn as a species name comes from the latin ala (wing) and cornu (horn). It can be likened to the Greek Ceropteros, pteros meaning wing and cero meaning horn.

Well. This has been a very interesting mythological discussion :3

so far we all seem to mostly be in agreement that Alicorn is a much better word then pegacorn, yes? yes? :D

Yes. :P

Done~~

I'm probably too late, but... The correct term is in fact "pegacorn". The winged unicorn doesn't appear in classical mythology. It's a modern invention, with a modern name. "Alicorn" refers to the horn itself or the material of which the horn is made. The most likely provenance for that is from the French "licorne".

Actually, it does have basis in mythology, and as I mentioned, is from ala (wing) and cornu (horn). Pegacorn was coined as a combination of the name Pegasus and the word unicorn. Alicorn was originally (the horn) based on alima (of the sea) or alere (to nourish) and the aforementioned cornu, as water was often considered to be a healing element, and the horn has always been claimed to have mystical healing/detoxification properties, especially the carbuncle root of the horn. Again, I've already detailed most of this, not more than what, three? four? posts up. Next time read the thread before posting, please.

Alicorn still sounds like a salad toping

-1, please undo. This has come up before: alicorn is being misused to describe pegasus/unicorn hybrids: the older meaning is for narwhal horns, which were frequently sold as unicorn horns.

I'll continue to use pegacorn even though it still sounds like a pirate's stump complaint.

c_c;

there's no reason to have a tag JUST for the horn. it's redundant. it's like tagging 'ears' or 'tail' on most furry species. c_c;

and when you look at alicorn -princess_celestia_(mlp) -princess_luna_(mlp) -nightmare_moon_(mlp) ALL of the images are of 'pegacorns' c_c;

I admit I may have moved too quickly earlier but I was kind of half asleep and reading the other thread that came up and.. well.. the discussion didn't get very far, and nothing was ever done one way or another.

I'll undo the aliasing, and get them all retagged as pegacorn too, but I still think that alicorn is the proper and better term. c_c;

even if it's not historically correct c_c anyone who looks at it will know what it means. just like people know that pussy is not refering to a cat :P

undone.

oh. I did retag like 3 pictures in that search -alicorn. :P

so then are we and have we been using alicorn and pegacorn both to describe one 'species'?

if we're refering instead to the spiral horn, why aren't unicorns tagged with it? and why is 'alicorn' superior to 'horn' in that regard?

+ 1 redo. Sorry, but undoing it just because one person complains about it using a damn point I've ALREADY covered, MULTIPLE times, to show that it is -incorrect-, isn't right. Please, read my posts! I've covered all this, from the incorrect usage of pegacorn to the first usage of alicorn and others. >.<!

Alicorn is a word for a unicorn's horn and the substance it is made of.

null0100 said:
Alicorn is a word for a unicorn's horn and the substance it is made of.

No alicorn is the word of god cannon name for pegasi/unicorn hybrids.

I don't care what the series creator calls it, classically, alicorn refers to the substance of unicorn horns. It is confusing to use such a word to refer to a pegasus with a horn.

null0100 said:
I don't care what the series creator calls it, classically, alicorn refers to the substance of unicorn horns. It is confusing to use such a word to refer to a pegasus with a horn.

And I dont care what history says, I'm gonna keep tagging it alicorn, and since its commonly Referred to as alicorn on here, anything removing that would be tag vandalism. Don't like it? ask them to add an alias.

Alicorn is one of the many names for my penis.

In fact, for all aliases that we can't agree on, let's just alias them to char's_penis

Char said:
Alicorn is one of the many names for my penis.

In fact, for all aliases that we can't agree on, let's just alias them to char's_penis

Aww, you settle things nicely char.

it is important to take into consideration that there are other winged unicorns on e621 (a few) and that this phrase would also apply to them:

here's how I see the facts of this:

• Alicorn traditionally refers to the spiral horn.
• Linguistically, Alicorn means wing horn, and thus, fits.
• Both are used in common language to describe the creature in question
• Alicorn is MLP canon
• But not every pegacorn/alicorn on e621 is MLP. Just most of them

It seems to be like the easiest answer here is this:

pegacorn implies alicorn

and possiblly:
alicorn implies pegacorn

SnowWolf said:
it is important to take into consideration that there are other winged unicorns on e621 (a few) and that this phrase would also apply to them:

here's how I see the facts of this:

• Alicorn traditionally refers to the spiral horn.
• Linguistically, Alicorn means wing horn, and thus, fits.
• Both are used in common language to describe the creature in question
• Alicorn is MLP canon
• But not every pegacorn/alicorn on e621 is MLP. Just most of them

It seems to be like the easiest answer here is this:

pegacorn implies alicorn

and possiblly:
alicorn implies pegacorn

A double alias seems to be the only way to keep both parties happy hon, so thats what I would suggest.

a double implication.. ooor...

pegacorn implies alicorn
unicorn implies alicorn

and alicorn implies horn.

I guess it depends on if we want it to be a horn or a horse D:

SnowWolf said:
a double implication.. ooor...

pegacorn implies alicorn
unicorn implies alicorn

and alicorn implies horn.

I guess it depends on if we want it to be a horn or a horse D:

Confusion!

I've already detailed how pegacorn is incorrect and shown multiple examples of just how wrong it is. -.- Thus the problem of people using the false term in so much bad fanfic. It gets spread around.

Yes, but if you goggle alicorn you get mention of the horn. if you google pegacorn, you get winged unicorns.

this is what i've been trying to say (in a number of places :/)... it might be historically or linguistically *wrong*, but the common *usage* is the more important part.

I like pegacorn because it sounds like popcorn, but I also love alicorn because it sounds like a unicorn boxer who floats like a butterfly and stings like a bee. I could never hope to choose between them.

But it's historically, linguistically, and factually -incorrect-. AARGH. x_x

Yes, but it still sounds like popcorn. Nothing bad has ever come from words that sound like popcorn.

Except more daily salt intake than your body can process, plus fatty butter many times over the daily fat intake, and on top of that little to no nutrition in the popcorn itself.... All it does is taste good (subjective), while having no other redeeming features. Sorta like Pegacorn- it's commonly used but it's incorrect in every way. >_>

SHUTUP EASY I LIKE POPCORN.

Sorry, sorry, that was unecessary (and purely jestical. That's not a word but it rhymes with "testicle," and English is a fucked up language so "jestical" could be an adjective meaning humorous, light-hearted, in jest). But I do like popcorn. Only if there's no butter. I hate theater popcorn. It's gross and the smell makes me want to throw up.

123easy said:
Except more daily salt intake than your body can process, plus fatty butter many times over the daily fat intake, and on top of that little to no nutrition in the popcorn itself.... All it does is taste good (subjective), while having no other redeeming features. Sorta like Pegacorn

Oh, dude! Never _ever_ use salt on your pegacorn! It ruins the natural flavor. Also, pegacorn meat is surprisingly healthy and low in fat, very much akin to buffalo meat. I usually have to mix it half and half with hamburger to get it to stick together enough for sandwiches. You've probably just never met anyone who can cook it correctly.

Shatari said:
Oh, dude! Never _ever_ use salt on your pegacorn! It ruins the natural flavor. Also, pegacorn meat is surprisingly healthy and low in fat, very much akin to buffalo meat. I usually have to mix it half and half with hamburger to get it to stick together enough for sandwiches. You've probably just never met anyone who can cook it correctly.

Dunno about you guys, but this made me hungry.

123easy said:
I've already detailed how pegacorn is incorrect and shown multiple examples of just how wrong it is. -.- Thus the problem of people using the false term in so much bad fanfic. It gets spread around.

How do you think new words and meanings get formed in the first place? ;p That actually goes for both alicorn and pegacorn.

I think SnowWolf's second solution:

pegacorn implies alicorn
unicorn implies alicorn

and alicorn implies horn.

is the better one. In this case, better a little bit of vagueness than a small battle over word meanings.

ITT: Arguing about imaginary terms in a living changing language.

.. yeah I'm gonna say you guys are special.

Aurali said:
ITT: Arguing about imaginary terms in a living changing language.

.. yeah I'm gonna say you guys are special.

Hehehe

awesome. then I will do this:

pegacorn implies alicorn
unicorn implies alicorn

and alicorn implies horn.

unless I get any complaints.... c_c;
Yes, I know, it's not linguistically correct, but this seems like the best compromise.

SnowWolf said:
awesome. then I will do this:

pegacorn implies alicorn
unicorn implies alicorn

and alicorn implies horn.

unless I get any complaints.... c_c;
Yes, I know, it's not linguistically correct, but this seems like the best compromise.

Again, I'm late (I've been dealing wih a sick cat that's been eating all my time lately - he's better now) but this seems the best compromise.

Also, for the record, 'alicorn' doesn't derive from the Latin root 'ala' for 'wing'. It's from the French "a'licorne", "of the unicorn", and was used in the middle ages to refer to unicorn horns (generally narwhal horns) or their powdered substance. The use of both 'alicorn' and 'pegacorn' to describe winged unicorns began in fantasy magazines during the mid to late 70s when such creatures enjoyed a vogue. Alicorn eventually became the more popular choice, but pegacorn has the virtue of not causing confusion over what's being named.

If anyone can actually cite me an example of a winged unicorn appearing before the late Victorian age, I'd be greatly in their debt.

And actually, I didn't read that carefully enough. I'd rather see the solution where pegacorn and alicorn are mutually implicative. That seems the fairest method.

Skiltaire: I think I named at least one in my giant-ass list earlier in the thread.

BUMP LOL

We don't need both alicorn and pegacorn being used, so we're getting rid of one. Historically, alicorn just refers to the substance that makes up a unicorn's horn. But in the context of mlp, it means pegacorn. Using pegacorn will be more comprehensive since it *always* refers to winged unicorns outside of just mlp. So that's probably what we're gonna go with. We'll give this a day or so to give you guys who care time to convince us that the other way is better. Or come up with a better idea entirely.

ippiki_ookami said:
BUMP LOL

We don't need both alicorn and pegacorn being used, so we're getting rid of one. Historically, alicorn just refers to the substance that makes up a unicorn's horn. But in the context of mlp, it means pegacorn. Using pegacorn will be more comprehensive since it *always* refers to winged unicorns outside of just mlp. So that's probably what we're gonna go with. We'll give this a day or so to give you guys who care time to convince us that the other way is better. Or come up with a better idea entirely.

goddammit ippiki, by bumping this you made me think it was important for whatever reason and I just sat here and read the whole damned thing. D:<

cookiekangaroo said:
goddammit ippiki, by bumping this you made me think it was important for whatever reason and I just sat here and read the whole damned thing. D:<

lol of course it isn't important, it's MLP. But there are some people who feel strongly about it, and it will affect hundreds of tags, so we need to create the illusio- er uh, persuade community involvement before we make a change like this.

We've used Alicorn all this time, its the cannon in world name for them as by series creator ,leave it as it is Ippiki *Smacks with a ruler.*

Canon has nothing to do with it. Winged unicorns exist outside of mlp too.

I don't see the need for "pegacorn" then.

Ok, so here's my decision on this.

Alicorn and Pegacorn both describe the same creature. Although "pegacorn" is technically the "proper" name for these creatures, "alicorn" has become the more popular term, at least on e621. So we have to decide, do we want "most accurate" or "most popular". (most accurate is not necessarily always the correct answer. People don't typically use the scientific names for the various animal species out there, even though those scientific names are technically the "most accurate". And just think about how many times the meaning of certain words has completely changed over the course of history.)

Since "alicorn" and "pegacorn" are simply two different names for the same creature, on e621 we're going to call the creature a "winged_unicorn". Both "alicorn" and "pegacorn" are going to be aliased to "winged_unicorn".

The other issue at hand is that the term "alicorn", historically, has referred to the the material of the horn, and the horn itself, on a unicorn's head. Simply put, tagging a unicorn's horn as an "alicorn" on e621 will be an improper use of the tag "alicorn" (especially after we make the aliases mentioned above). A unicorn's alicorn on e621 should simply be referred to as a "horn". This is because those users who are searching for "alicorn" are far, far more likely to want to see winged_unicorns than they'd want to see "any horse with an alicorn". So we're going to go through and clean up all images that are tagged "alicorn" that do not have a "winged_unicorn" in them, and replace "alicorn" with just "horn" in those images.

So, to summarize:
Alias created from "alicorn" to "winged_unicorn". Alias created from "pegacorn" to "winged_unicorn". "Alicorn" will be defined on e621 as "a winged unicorn" and will NOT also mean "a unicorn's horn".

Hopefully that's clear enough.

*lurks up from the depths* pegacorn is a fucking bullshit word that's not even made up of wor-parts from a single language. I hate that word so much. Alicorn actually makes up a latin (I belive) word that translates well into what the creature is...

THAT SAID... I like winged_unicorn. I approve of these changes. :)

*snowstamp of approval*

*resubmerges into the depths*

SnowWolf said:

*goes fishing for snowwolf*

SnowWolf said:
*lurks up from the depths* pegacorn is a fucking bullshit word that's not even made up of wor-parts from a single language. I hate that word so much. Alicorn actually makes up a latin (I belive) word that translates well into what the creature is...

THAT SAID... I like winged_unicorn. I approve of these changes. :)

*snowstamp of approval*

*resubmerges into the depths*

Holy hell it lives. *Joins Auralia in the snowwolf fishing* What kind of bait do you use to fish a snow wolf anyways?

Princess_Celestia said:
What kind of bait do you use to fish a snow wolf anyways?

A 14pawz :D

SnowWolf said:

Could have used your input when we were arguing about it in the staff channel, but what can you do.

I agree with what Char's said about the winged_unicorn usage, and changing all use of alicorn to horn when it's used to describe a unicorn's horn. The rest is lies and slander though. :P