Game of Thrones: Why Bastards Are Called Snow In The North

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Bastards born in the North carried the surname of "Snow" in Game of Thrones, and the reasoning stems from a system put in place throughout Westeros. Kit Harington's character, Jon Snow, was the most prominent person from the HBO series to hold that last name. Though Jon was later revealed to be a Targaryen, he was originally thought to be the illegitimate son of Ned Stark and raised as a member of House Stark. Seeing as he was often reminded that he was a bastard before his true heritage was unearthed, the stigma surrounding bastardy would come into focus from time to time.

Game of Thrones used the term "bastard" to refer to any human born out of wedlock throughout the Seven Kingdoms. Driven by religious beliefs, bastards in Westeros were viewed negatively, lacking rights to inherit noble titles or land ownership. Based on their discrimination and unequal treatment, many bastards turned to the Night's Watch. Since members of the Brotherhood swore an oath, separating their past allegiances, joining the order was a perfect chance for people like Jon to find a purpose.

Aside from Jon, the other most notable bastard to hold the surname of Snow was Ramsay Bolton. Before becoming legitimized by his father, Lord Roose Bolton, the bastard boy was born Ramsay Snow. Upon murdering his family and overtaking Winterfell, Ramsay became Jon's target. The pair's respective loyalists embarked on the Battle of the Bastards, which had a great significance to the fate of the North. The region of Westeros was of vast importance, not only because of Winterfell but because of the location of the Wall. Based on the cold nature of the North, as well as the presence of frozen precipitation, the official surname of the North became "Snow." A handful of other surnames were put into place throughout Westeros, creating a system of identifiers for bastards.

Breaking Down The Other Game Of Thrones' Bastard Surnames By Region



As the case with George R.R. Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire novels, which served as the basis for Game Of Thrones, the TV series revealed an array of surnames for bastards of specific regions. The characters that carried surnames were acknowledged by a noble-born parent. Here's a list of known surnames and the regions in which they reside:
 

• Snow: The North
• Sand: Dorne
• Storm: The Stormlands
• Waters: The Crownlands
• Pyke: Iron Islands
• Hill: The Westerlands
• Stone: The Vale of Arryn
• Flowers: The Reach
• Rivers: The Riverlands

In most cases, bastards carry the name from the region in which they were born. More than likely, this would have been where the birth mother was located, whether she was noble-born or a woman who became pregnant after an encounter with a noble-born man. Despite the rules set in place by Game of Thrones when it came to recognized bastards, the show didn't always remain accurate with surnames. Gendry, for example, was known as "Gendry Rivers" even though he was from the Crownlands. In this case, he should have been called "Gendry Waters" before becoming "Lord Gendry Baratheon" at the end of the series.