Moon Miners' Manifesto

#100 November 1996

'Down Inside' Culture and Civilization

Peter Kokh

Part I: Naming Lavatube Settlements

But perhaps there will be a conscious effort among the first pioneers, for whom lavatube life is something new and untried, to make allusion to hidden valley, subterranean, and submarine places and kingdoms of ancient lore. After all, it will be this aspect, something not yet taken for granted, that will be foremost in their consciousness as they embark on this new adventure.

A dictionary or encyclopedia I have of mythological and fictitious places gives lots of leads, but most of them are obscure. Pellucidar (Edgar Rice Burroughs) and all the local place names associated with this fictitious region will be a prime source. Then there are the submarine legends like Atlantis - after all, lavatubes lie beneath the congealed waves of ancient lava seas.

And then there are the hidden valley stories like . Shangri-luna, anyone?

Once the novelty wears off, lavatube and lavatube settlement names are more likely to come from nearby surface features (rilles, craters, etc.).

"Co-names" might include Depths, Nethers, Cloisters, Retreat, Lair, Anchorage, Haven, Warren, Trove, Sanctuary, Sanctum, Burrow, Hollow, Grotto, Lower-, Nether-, -neath, and similar descriptive choices. MMM

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