Entertainment

We May Finally Know Jon Snow’s Real Name, Thanks To This ‘Game Of Thrones’ Preview

by Ani Bundel
HBO

Game of Thrones Season 7 is less than a month away. (28 days, and yes, we're counting).

The first major GOT news drop arrived this weekend, courtesy of Empire Magazine's latest print edition. But tucked away in the pages on the newsstand, an eagle-eyed Redditor discovered something that looks like it could be a serious spoiler indeed.

Reddit

Though book readers have suspected for years the truth behind Jon's parentage, it wasn't until just last season -- In the finale of all things! -- that the show finally got around to confirming the long-standing "alphabet math" that R+L really did equal J.

And now, in the middle of an article, just casually hanging out is a declaration of his real name? Really?

Image via Giphy

To be fair, this is not a bad guess. There is already a theory out there, based on someone slowing down the scene from "The Winds of Winter" and trying to lipread what Lyanna says, that says Jon's true name is Jaehaerys. It's a traditional Targaryen name (not a Stark one!), which would suggest Lyanna and Rhaegar had already agreed on it before she gave birth.

In fact, there have been two other Jaehaerys who ruled Westeros prior to the events of Game of Thrones.

King Jaehaerys I Targaryen, also known as Jaehaerys the Wise, was the fourth of the Targaryen rulers to sit upon the Iron Throne. He is one of the longest reigning monarchs in Westeros history (55 years! Liz II would think him cute).

His reign is remembered as one of a time of peace and prosperity in Westeros, which is a rarity. His heirs, on the other hand, were numerous. And when he finally died, their battle for who would take the throne from him spawned the infamous "Dance of Dragons" civil war period.

Jaehaerys II Targaryen, on the other hand, was a much more recent ruler. He was the father of "Mad King" Aerys (who we saw in flashbacks this past season), and grandfather to Rhaegar (as well as Dany). Rhaegar choosing to name his son after his grandfather, as part of the legitimizing process, would make a lot of sense.

Unfortunately, it turns out this theory is just that... a theory. In fact, Dan Jolin, Empire Features Editor, admitted on Twitter he pulled that name from the fan theory floating around the internet -- to the author of the theory herself.

So no, not confirmed. Too bad, so sad. To make you feel better, here's a brand new, just-released image from Season 7.

Game of Thrones Season 7 premieres on July 16, 2017, at 9 p.m. ET on HBO.