MeaningOriginDescriptionWest WindGreekDragon riding storm windsEtymologyGreek Zéphyros (Ζέφυρος), god of the west wind, the mild spring wind; possibly from zóphos ("darkness, the west"). Not a storm wind.Say itZEF-ih-rusThe west wind matters for one reason: most storm fronts on the survey ridges arrive from the west, and adults face into them for hours before anything is visible.A dragon would sayDeshkheshliterally dusk · aircore DraconicEuropean Dragon
MeaningOriginDescriptionEmerald StormPersianBrings toxic rain to landsA dragon would sayZalkaglishtharshliterally green · crystal · stormchromatic dialectWhite Chromatic Dragon
Name: Zelora
MeaningOriginDescriptionIce StormFantasyInvented name suggesting winter stormsA dragon would sayThastharshliterally ice · stormchromatic dialectBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zahira
MeaningOriginDescriptionShiningArabicShimmers like morning sun on desert sandsEtymologyArabic zāhira (زاهرة, "shining, radiant, blooming"), the feminine of zāhir, from zahara ("to shine, to bloom").Say itzah-HEE-rahFemales are logged more often by glare than by sight; the polished flank of a resting adult throws morning sun back across a dune field like a signal mirror.A dragon would sayThaarliterally lightmetallic dialectBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zora
MeaningOriginDescriptionDawnSlavicDawn, the cool hour before heatEtymologySouth Slavic zora ("dawn, daybreak"), from Proto-Slavic *zorja, related to zrěti ("to see"); a common given name across the Balkans.Say itZOR-ahThe hour a brass female comes up from the lair to warm; the survey's dawn counts are the only reliable census the type allows.A dragon would sayKelshliterally dawnmetallic dialectTopaz Dragon
Name: Zarina
MeaningOriginDescriptionMade of GoldPersianFemale dragon with topaz-like scalesEtymologyPersian zarrīn (زرین, "golden, made of gold"), from zar ("gold"); a feminine given name across Iran and Central Asia.Say itzah-REE-nahThe Persian word for a thing made of gold; the survey gives it to the deep-gold females whose scales read as metal at distance.A dragon would sayKhórvkrevliterally gold · makegem dialectBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zafar
MeaningOriginDescriptionVictoryArabicSuccessful in all endeavorsEtymologyArabic ẓafar (ظفر, "victory, triumph, success"), from ẓafira ("to win, to attain").Say itzah-FARVictory by argument; the lore file's note that the type triumphs through words is borne out by the survey's failure to record a brass adult losing one.A dragon would sayTreskliterally victorymetallic dialectLunar Dragon
Name: Zenith
MeaningOriginDescriptionHighest PointArabicA dragon of lunar peaksEtymologyOld French cenith, from Medieval Latin cenit, a scribal misreading of Arabic samt (ar-raʾs) ("the path over the head").Say itZEE-nithThe point overhead; the parabolic teams' best recordings of this type are made when it passes through it, since the scope is then pointed straight up through the least air.A dragon would sayGerstreshliterally up · toothcore DraconicBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zamir
MeaningOriginDescriptionSongHebrewMelodious speakerEtymologyHebrew zāmīr (זמיר, "song, singing"; also "nightingale"), from zāmar ("to sing, to make music").Say itzah-MEERThe survey's Hebrew-speaking teams applied it to the singing register brass adults fall into after the second night of talk.A dragon would sayThalliterally singmetallic dialectMiddle Eastern Dragon
Name: Zahir
MeaningOriginDescriptionBrilliant OneArabianShining dragonA dragon would sayLithliterally brightcore DraconicBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zayn
MeaningOriginDescriptionBeautyArabicBeautiful speakerEtymologyArabic zayn (زين, "beauty, adornment"), from zāna ("to adorn").Say itZAYNThe polished finish; a brass adult grooms its scales with sand and shows them, and the survey's photographs are mostly of adults posing.A dragon would sayBelshliterally beautifulmetallic dialectBrass Metallic Dragon
Name: Zaiho
MeaningOriginDescriptionTreasureJapaneseTreasure, wealth kept in the lairEtymologyJapanese zaihō (財宝, "treasure, riches"), from zai ("wealth") + hō ("treasure").Say itZAH-ee-hohThe Japanese survey's inventory heading for a brass lair; the entries under it are mostly stories, dated and attributed.A dragon would sayDroshliterally hoardmetallic dialectCopper Metallic Dragon
Name: Zaris
MeaningOriginDescriptionStar MetalPersian-inspiredDescribes appearanceEtymologyCoined name; Persian zar ("gold") with an -is ending; neither the star nor the metal of the gloss is in the parts.Say itZAH-risA generic metal name; the Kerman station uses it for the glint of a copper turning at altitude, which shows gold before it shows red.A dragon would sayTsivtengliterally star · metalmetallic dialectCopper Metallic Dragon
Name: Zorix
MeaningOriginDescriptionZone GuardianFantasyTerritory referenceEtymologyCoined name; perhaps English zone (Greek zṓnē, "belt") with a decorative -ix; the guardian of the gloss is not in the parts.Say itZOR-iksA generic territory name; the station uses it for the boundary marks a copper scratches at the limits of its range.A dragon would sayKhernsherth-orliterally territory · defend · -ermetallic dialectGold Metallic Dragon
Name: Zarrin
MeaningOriginDescriptionOf GoldPersianPersian for goldenEtymologyPersian zarrīn (زرین, "golden, made of gold"), from zar ("gold"); an attested feminine name.Say itzar-REENThe Zagros survey's name for a female logged over the old caravan routes, where the archive holds the most Persian-language accounts of the type.A dragon would sayKhorvliterally goldmetallic dialectGold Metallic Dragon
Name: Zorya
MeaningOriginDescriptionDawnSlavicReferences morning light and renewalEtymologySlavic zorya / zarya ("dawn, daybreak"), the name of the Zorya dawn goddesses who open and close the gates of the sun's palace. Nothing in it means "golden".Say itZOR-yahThe two sisters who guard the sun's gates read, in the archive, as a mated pair holding a Carpathian pass at dawn.A dragon would sayKelshliterally dawnmetallic dialectFaerie Dragon
Name: Ziya
MeaningOriginDescriptionRadianceTurkishRadiance, a Turkish boy's nameEtymologyTurkish Ziya, from Arabic ḍiyāʾ (ضياء, "light, radiance"); a male given name.Say itzee-YAHThe dominant male of the Anatolian group is the brightest animal in it, and the register names him for the light rather than the size.A dragon would sayThaarliterally lightcore DraconicFire Dragon
Name: Zilant
MeaningOriginDescriptionSnakeTatarWinged serpent with magical flamesEtymologyTatar yılan ("snake"), through Russian Zilant, the winged serpent on the arms of Kazan.Say itzee-LAHNTThe Kazan survey has the Volga's only lairs, in the limestone above the river; the city took the animal for its arms in the sixteenth century.A dragon would saySlethliterally serpentcore DraconicFire Dragon
Name: Zmey
MeaningOriginDescriptionSerpentSlavicThree-headed dragon with legendary flamesEtymologySlavic zmey (змей, "serpent, dragon"), from Proto-Slavic *zmьjь, related to zemlja ("earth"): the crawler on the ground.Say itZMAYThe three-headed Zmey Gorynych breathes fire in every Russian telling; the Urals survey treats it as a fire dragon record.A dragon would saySlethliterally serpentcore DraconicAir Dragon
Name: Zonda
MeaningOriginDescriptionMountain WindSpanishHigh-altitude mountain dragonEtymologyArgentine Spanish zonda, the hot dry foehn wind of the eastern Andes; the name is usually traced to the Zonda valley in San Juan province, itself of disputed origin.Say itSON-dahThe Andean foehn, which the plateau survey records the species using to drop 4,000 metres to the lowland hunting grounds in a single glide.A dragon would saySkornkheshliterally mountain · aircore DraconicLightning/Storm Dragon
Name: Zivatar
MeaningOriginDescriptionThunderstormHungarianThunderstorm over the Carpathian basinEtymologyHungarian zivatar ("thunderstorm"), of uncertain origin; an old word for storm, possibly a Slavic loan.Say itZEE-vah-tarThe summer thunderstorms that cross the Hungarian plain start on the Carpathian ridges where the survey's lairs are, and the plain's weather service tracks them the same way.A dragon would sayTharshliterally stormcore DraconicIce Dragon
Name: Zúzmara
MeaningOriginDescriptionHoarfrostHungarianRime feathers on the Carpathian pinesEtymologyHungarian zúzmara ("hoarfrost, rime"), the feathery frost that grows on branches in freezing fog.Say itZOOZ-mah-rahThe Carpathian survey finds a lair by the zúzmara, which grows thickest in the freezing fog an adult leaves over a valley after a night's breathing.A dragon would sayThasliterally icecore DraconicCrystal Dragon
Name: Zoisite
MeaningOriginDescriptionZois's StoneGeographicA dragon with color-changing abilityEtymologyNamed in 1805 for Sigmund Zois, the Carniolan naturalist who financed the find, + the mineral suffix -ite.Say itZOY-syteThe colour-changing ability of the description belongs to the whole zoisite group, and the survey teams treat any adult that reads a different colour from two positions as this population.A dragon would sayZoísaitby soundgem dialectAmethyst Dragon
Name: Zircon
MeaningOriginDescriptionGold-ColouredPersianCrystal-scaled dragon with purple highlightsEtymologyFrom German Zirkon, via Arabic zarqūn from Persian zargūn ("gold-coloured"), the name of the mineral; also the source of jargoon.Say itZUR-konZircon grains turn up in every amethyst-gallery floor sample, and the dietary study reads the ground-up crystal as roughage for a diet of quartz-family stone.A dragon would sayKhórvthovliterally gold · huegem dialectAmethyst Dragon
Name: Zambarau
MeaningOriginDescriptionPurple PlumSwahiliThe Java plum and its colourEtymologySwahili zambarau ("Java plum", Syzygium cumini, and by extension "purple"), the fruit that gives the colour its name.Say itzam-bah-RAH-ooThe Tanzanian geode fields that gave the register its first plate name are in Swahili country, and the survey's local word for the colour is the plum's.A dragon would sayPólhvliterally purplegem dialectAmethyst Dragon
Name: Zijing
MeaningOriginDescriptionPurple CrystalChinesePurple crystal, the Chinese word for amethystEtymologyMandarin zǐjīng (紫晶, "purple crystal"), from zǐ (紫, "purple") + jīng (晶, "crystal"); the short form of zǐshuǐjīng, the everyday name of amethyst.Say itDZUH-jingThe plainest name the type has in any language, two characters that say purple crystal, and the one the Altai survey's Chinese-speaking guides used before the register had a word of its own.A dragon would sayPólhvglishliterally purple · crystalgem dialectSapphire Dragon
Name: Zarqa
MeaningOriginDescriptionBlue-EyedArabicBlue-eyed seer of al-YamamaEtymologyArabic zarqāʾ (زرقاء), feminine of azraq ("blue"); the epithet of Zarqāʾ al-Yamāmah, the pre-Islamic seer said to see a rider three days' ride away.Say itZAR-kahThe blue-eyed seer who saw an army three days off is the archive's model for the description's visual acuity; the Arabian survey's rule is that a sapphire has seen the team before the team has found the ridge.A dragon would sayTsélhliterally bluegem dialectSapphire Dragon
Name: Zaffira
MeaningOriginDescriptionSapphireItalianFeminine form of sapphireEtymologyItalian zaffiro ("sapphire"), from Latin sapphirus and Greek sáppheiros; the feminine -a form is a given name rather than the dictionary word.Say itdzaf-FEE-rahThe feminine form suits the description's larger sex; the survey's standing rule is that a sapphire seen alone at the mouth of a lair is the female, and the male is inside.A dragon would sayTsélhglishliterally blue · crystalgem dialectOpal Dragon
Name: Zephyra
MeaningOriginDescriptionWest WindGreekReferences the ethereal natureEtymologyFeminine form of Greek Zéphyros (Ζέφυρος), the west wind; the -a ending is a modern addition.Say itZEF-ih-rahThe soft westerly that carries hot-spring steam across a lair is the wind the survey teams work in; the lore's mountain habitats are downwind of it.A dragon would sayDéshkheshliterally dusk · airgem dialectEmerald Dragon
Name: Zümrüt
MeaningOriginDescriptionEmeraldTurkishMystical emerald-winged serpentEtymologyTurkish zümrüt ("emerald"), from Persian zumurrud, itself from Greek smáragdos; a feminine given name in Turkey.Say itzoom-ROOTThe Anatolian survey names its brood females for the stone; the corrosive-gas plume of the lore reads on thermal film as a green haze at the throat.A dragon would sayZalhkáglishliterally green · crystalgem dialectEmerald Dragon
Name: Zagreus
MeaningOriginDescriptionGreat HunterGreekForest stalking predatorEtymologyGreek Zagreús (Ζαγρεύς), a god identified with Dionysus; the traditional reading za- ("very") + agreús ("hunter") is a folk etymology and the name may be pre-Greek.Say itZAG-ree-usThe great hunter of the Orphic hymns; the field description's sustainable hunting patterns, prey taken in rotation across a territory, were first noted in the Pindus.A dragon would sayKhorvórsh-orliterally great · hunt · -ergem dialectTopaz Dragon
Name: Zargon
MeaningOriginDescriptionGold-ColouredPersianAncient golden dragonEtymologyPersian zargūn (زرگون, "gold-coloured"), from zar ("gold") + gūn ("colour"); the source, through Arabic, of the English words zircon and jargoon.Say itzar-GOONThe Persian word behind zircon, the stone most often sold as topaz; the survey uses it for adults whose colour is right but whose scale hardness has not been checked.A dragon would sayKhórvthovliterally gold · huegem dialectTopaz Dragon
Name: Zarinth
MeaningOriginDescriptionGolden EssencePersian/CelticDragon of golden spiritEtymologyCoined name; Persian zar ("gold") with an -inth ending on the pattern of Greek place-names; not Celtic.Say itZAR-inthA hybrid label for the gold that runs through the scale lattice of this type; the origin field of the old register was wrong about the Celtic half.A dragon would sayKhórvvrethliterally gold · true · namegem dialectDiamond Dragon
Name: Zirconia
MeaningOriginDescriptionGold-ColouredPersianDragon with pure diamond-white scalesEtymologyNew Latin zirconia, the oxide of zirconium, from zircon, from Persian zargūn (زرگون, "gold-coloured"); cubic zirconia is the jeweller's diamond substitute.Say itzur-KOH-nee-ahThe false diamond; the register keeps the name for the white dragons misfiled as this type before the scale-refraction test could be run in the field.A dragon would sayKhórvthovliterally gold · huegem dialectOpal Dragon
Name: Zaria
MeaningOriginDescriptionDawn GlowSlavicReferences morning lightEtymologyRussian zaryá (заря, "dawn, the glow of sunrise"); Zarya is also the dawn goddess of Slavic folklore.Say itZAR-ee-ahThe red-gold glow before sunrise is the first light the scales pick up, minutes before the animal itself is visible.A dragon would sayKelhshtháarliterally dawn · lightgem dialectMoonstone Dragon
Name: Zelda
MeaningOriginDescriptionGrey BattleGermanicBattle-ready dragon with stormy scalesEtymologyShort form of Griselda, Germanic, usually read as gris ("grey") + hild ("battle"); "gray fighter" is the same reading turned into a phrase.Say itZEL-dahGrey is the colour of the scale in overcast moonlight, the only condition under which the Bavarian team has been able to approach within the 500 m line.A dragon would sayKhelhvthóvdrekhliterally cloud · hue · fightgem dialectLunar Dragon
Name: Zeus
MeaningOriginDescriptionBright SkyGreekA mighty lunar sovereignEtymologyGreek Zeús (Ζεύς), from Proto-Indo-European *dyēws ("sky, daylight, the bright sky"), the same root as Latin diēs ("day") and Iuppiter.Say itZOOSThe bright sky by root; the storm god's name sits oddly on a type that lives above weather, and the teams use it only for the sky itself.A dragon would sayLithteshliterally bright · skycore DraconicDragon Turtle
Name: Zaratan
MeaningOriginDescriptionIsland TurtleArabicIsland-turtle of the Arab wonder-booksEtymologyArabic zaratān, the island-sized sea turtle of the medieval wonder-books (al-Jahiz, al-Qazwini); the word's root is unclear, perhaps saraṭān ("crab").Say itZAR-ah-tanSailors light a fire on its back and it dives; the Arabian Sea account, repeated across the wonder-books, is the modern rule that no camp is made on a hauled-out shell.A dragon would sayThrevstorkabraskliterally island · armor · beastcore DraconicEuropean Dragon
Name: Ziemowit
MeaningOriginDescriptionWinter SeerSlavicA prophetic dragon with frost powersA dragon would sayThasthrelskelth-orliterally ice · season · prophecy · -ercore DraconicEuropean Dragon
MeaningOriginDescriptionDawnSlavicA dragon active at daybreakA dragon would sayKelshliterally dawncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zhulong
MeaningOriginDescriptionTorch DragonChinese MythologyDragon controlling day and night cyclesA dragon would sayKherkhathliterally fire · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zulong
MeaningOriginDescriptionAncestor DragonChinese MythologyFirst dragon to emerge from chaosA dragon would sayMreshkhathliterally ancestor · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zhilong
MeaningOriginDescriptionWise DragonChinese CultureDragon known for its wisdomA dragon would saySkekhkhathliterally elder · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zhenlong
MeaningOriginDescriptionPrecious DragonChinese LiteratureValuable and rare dragonA dragon would sayDroshkhathliterally hoard · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zhonlong
MeaningOriginDescriptionLoyal DragonChinese LiteratureFaithful and devoted dragonA dragon would sayVrelkkhathliterally loyalty · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
MeaningOriginDescriptionStrong DragonChinese CulturePowerful and mighty dragonA dragon would sayThrekkhathliterally strong · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zonglong
MeaningOriginDescriptionAncestral DragonChinese CultureDragon of ancient lineageA dragon would sayMreshkhathliterally ancestor · dragoncore DraconicChinese Dragon
Name: Zhanglong
MeaningOriginDescriptionGrowing DragonChinese LiteratureDeveloping and maturing dragonA dragon would sayNeshkhathliterally new · dragoncore DraconicMesoamerican Dragon
Name: Zipacna
MeaningOriginDescriptionEarth MoverMayaA dragon associated with mountains and earthquakesA dragon would sayStormer-orliterally earth · go · -ercore DraconicMiddle Eastern Dragon
Name: Zahhak
MeaningOriginDescriptionDestructive OnePersianCorrupt king transformed into a dragonA dragon would sayGresliterally dangercore DraconicMiddle Eastern Dragon
Name: Zababa
MeaningOriginDescriptionWar DragonBabylonianDragon of battle and conflictA dragon would sayDrekhkhathliterally fight · dragoncore DraconicMiddle Eastern Dragon
Name: Zaqar
MeaningOriginDescriptionDream WalkerBabylonianDragon of visions and prophecyA dragon would sayShelthmer-orliterally dream · go · -ercore DraconicMiddle Eastern Dragon
Name: Zarpanit
MeaningOriginDescriptionSilver LightBabylonianMoonlight dragonA dragon would saySelvthaarliterally silver · lightcore Draconic
