#merlin fandom experts please chime in! is gwen ever referred to as gwen/guinevere pendragon in the show?

[misandriste]

Do you know if Gwen is ever called Gwen Pendragon in canon? I know for the majority of the show she definitely isn't, and then legendary Guinevere is just Guinevere or Guinevere of Cameliard. I'm trying to find the source for why everyone in fandom calls her that.

hi anon! i appreciate the question, and while i'm not a merlin expert (i only started watching last year so i know nothing about the history of the fandom, and have never even read the legends ┐(´～｀ˇ)┌) i'll try to give you an answer.

i've only watched season 1 so i don't know if she's ever called gwen pendragon in the show, but if there really is no mention of that moniker, i think that we call her that because she was married to arthur? i don't know if taking a husband's last name was common practice during those times (people in the middle ages didn't really have last names, did they?)… plus unlike merlin or morgana, whose names are very distinct and instantly recognizable, gwen has a slightly more common name that is still in use to this day, and she isn't given a last name in the show or the legends so in posts it's easier to pair her first name with arthur's last name (since they were married) to differentiate posts talking about gwen from bbc merlin / guinevere from legend / any other character named gwen / a friend you might have named gwen! it's just easy to recognize, and makes sense in our patriarchal society.