History RedBaron / Literature

* ''Literature/TheBerenstainBears'': The first (in)FamousAncestor in Squire Grizzly and Bonnie's family tree was a ruthless bandit known alternately as "Bad" Bart and "The Maniac of Mountain Highway." When his ghost seemingly shows up during a ScoobyDooHoax, he gets a posthumous third moniker: The Maniac of Grizzly Mansion.

** ''Literature/NewJediOrder'': Jaina Solo ends up having the semi-official nickname of "[[TheyCallHimSword the Sword of the Jedi]]", halfway between sobriquet and prophecy. It was bestowed upon her by Luke Skywalker (possibly-but-not-definitely at the prompting of TheForce), at a ceremony honoring her and the other survivors of the high-risk [[StormingTheCastle Myrkr commando raid]] that destroyed [[HeroKiller the voyxn]] and came to symbolize her unwavering dedication to the Jedi Order's protection and military interests. She also went by the identity of the Yuuzhan Vong goddess Yun-Harla for a time, primarily as a mind game -- but only after she had heard about the Vong talking up the connection between her and the deception goddess.

* ''[[Creator/TimDorsey Serge A. Storms]]'': Deconstructed in ''The Triggerfish Twist''. Rufus, Sly, and Willie [=McGraw=] were bold career thieves who constantly avoided capture and operated comfortably under the radar until Rufus's B.O., Sly's politeness to his victims, and Willie's fondness for expensive suits resulted in them gaining nicknames like "The Rank Robber", "The Courteous Crook", and "The Dapper Bandit." These nicknames brought them so much notoriety that they were quickly identified and captured. In contrast, their brother Ed, who never did get a nickname, "took forever to catch."

* ''Literature/ReignOfTheSevenSpellblades'': Several upperclassmen have acquired nicknames from their fighting styles, though the practice isn't as routine as it often is in {{Shonen}} fighting series. Alvin Godfrey got the nickname "Purgatory" ("Rengoku" in Japanese) for his [[KillItWithFire affinity for fire magic]][[note]]which became the basis for a CastingGag by the anime adaptation: he's voiced by Creator/SatoshiHino, who previously played fire-themed Kyojuro Rengoku in ''Manga/DemonSlayerKimetsuNoYaiba[[/note]] and efforts to police unscrupulous and unruly students, while his friend Lesedi Ingwe got dubbed "the Hard Knocker" for preferring kickboxing to [[MagicKnight sword arts]].

* In ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', Helm, a historical king of Rohan was known as Helm Hammerhand, because he was so strong that he could kill a man with his bare hands.

** Aside from Darth Vader, there were a few other [[AcePilot really good pilots]] in TheEmpire. [[Literature/XWingSeries Baron Soontir Fel]] drew from a lot of inspirations including the Red Baron (really, reminding people of von Richthofen was the only reason Fel was a Baron at all). The novel ''Literature/DeathStar'' has a pilot mention another excellent pilot, an instructor who had a name, but was referred to as The Shooter.
** Jaina Solo ends up having the semi-official nickname of "[[TheyCallHimSword the Sword of the Jedi]]", halfway between sobriquet and prophecy. It was bestowed upon her by Luke Skywalker (possibly-but-not-definitely at the prompting of TheForce), at a ceremony honoring her and the other survivors of the high-risk [[StormingTheCastle Myrkr commando raid]] that destroyed [[HeroKiller the voyxn]] and came to symbolize her unwavering dedication to the Jedi Order's protection and military interests. On the other hand, she also went by the identity of the Yuuzhan Vong goddess Yun-Harla for a time, primarily as a mind game -- but only after she had heard about the Vong talking up the connection between her and the deception goddess.

* In the ''Literature/SixteenThirtyTwo'' novels, Mike Stearns is better known as "The Prince of Germany" or simply "The Prince", despite not being a noble. It is official enough to be used in headlines, such as "PRINCE MEETS WITH EMPEROR" (Mike Stearns meeting Emperor Gustavus Adolphus).

** In ''Literature/{{Legend}}'', the bad guys address Druss simply as [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Deathwalker]].

* In ''Literature/TheLordOfTheRings'', Helm, a historical king of Rohan was knows as Helm Hammerhand, because he was so strong that he could kill a man with his bare hands.

* Both discussed and exploited in ''Literature/HarryPotter'' in regards to the {{big bad}}, Lord Voldemort, although both he and [[TheHero the main character]] are given multiple titles by the rest of the Wizarding World. Harry Potter's most famous one is 'the Boy Who Lived', but in books 6 and 7, he's saddled with TheChosenOne, and in book seven, [[spoiler: after Voldemort takes control of the Ministry of Magic, he's branded "Undesirable No. 1.]] Lord Voldemort has 'He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named', 'You-Know-Who', and [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast The Dark Lord]]. Most of the Wizarding World is too afraid to say 'Voldemort', and use one of those three euphemisms to talk about him in conversation. This is portrayed as an irrational fear throughout most of the series, and [[BigGood Dumbledore]] advises Harry not to avoid saying his name because "fear of a name increases fear of the thing itself". However, in book 7, it turns out that [[ProperlyParanoid there was a very good reason that the average witch and wizard avoided saying his name]], seeing as, [[spoiler: after he comes into power, Voldemort promptly casts a spell that reveals the location of anyone who says it. [[BatmanGambit Since the only ones brave enough to do so are his enemies,]] this causes problems for the heroes early in the book.]]

* ''Literature/JourneyToChaos'': Nunmnal Enaz is known as "The Witch of Dnnac Ledo". The title primarily comes from how she ruined the life of Harry Butchin to advance the science of medical mana mutation and didn't show remorse afterward. To wit: [[spoiler:to get around a ban on exporting elven technology to humans, she convinced him into abandoning his body and transferring his soul to a suit of AnimatedArmor. After a defect in the technology led to Harry Butchin's patients developing monsanity as a side effect, she stood aside while his medical practice failed his reputation was trashed, and he was chased by angry mobs. This pushed him over the DespairEventHorizon and he cast aside his identity to become an EliteMook by the name of "Nulso Xialin".]] In addition, she often does frightful things in her laboratory that involve BalefulPolymorph.

** Vanyel Ashkevron started out the weedy, oversensitive, and [[YaoiGuys none-too-interested-in-the-wenches]] misfit son of a provincial Valdemaran noble. He ended up known as 'Demonsbane', 'Shadow-Stalker', 'The Hero of Stony Tor', and ([[spoiler:posthumously]]) "The Last Herald-Mage".

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** There's at least one fanfiction where Cat has to ask who Christopher is, having not heard his proper name before. In ''Charmed Life'' it takes half a book for them to learn it's a title, not the family's surname — which is Chant, like theirs.

* ''Literature/DoraWilkSeries'': The title character has werewolves nicknaming her "Cahan" after their top hunt goddess. Baal, on the other hand, is known among his subjects as the Crimson Prince - "crimson" as in "the color of blood" - due to the way he deals with his problems.

* In ''Literature/TheElricSaga'', Elric of Melnibone is also sometimes known as Womanslayer (for unintentionally impaling his beloved fiance Cymoril), but most famously he's known as the "White Wolf". He may be the first character in literature to be named that, but he won't be the last - just ask [[Literature/TheWitcher Geralt of Rivia]] and also [[Literature/TheSongOfTheShatteredSands Ceda Ahyanesh'ala]].

* ''Literature/HonorHarrington'' is nicknamed "the Salamander" by news organizations on her home planet, as in her military exploits she has a knack for always being found "where the fire is hottest" - and always making it out again. (In ancient and medieval European lore, salamanders were supposed to be able to endure even the hottest flames.)