Alleras/Theories

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  1. Stated as questions or possibilities.
  2. More appropriate for another article.
  3. Illogical or previously disproven.
  4. Proven by canon source, and moved to main page.
  5. Speculative and lacking any evidence to support arguments.
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Alleras is an acolyte studying at the Citadel in Oldtown.[1] However, many readers of A Song of Ice and Fire suspect that Alleras is a secret identity of Sarella Sand,[2] and that Sarella has disguised herself in order to be able to study at the Citadel.

Supporting Evidence

The following pieces of information can be considered supporting evidence for the theory:

  • Alleras is Sarella spelled backwards.
  • Like Sarella, Alleras is half-Dornish. Sarella's father is Prince Oberyn Martell, a Dornish prince, and her mother is a ship captain from the Summer Islands.[1] Alleras is said to have a Summer Islander trader for a mother,[3] and his father is a Dornishman.[4]
    • Additionally, Alleras says: "I am no lord's son."[3] If Alleras is Sarella, then Alleras's father would indeed not be a lord, but a prince; furthermore, Sarella is Oberyn's daughter, not son.
  • Alleras's physical appearance has similarities with Oberyn Martell, Sarella's father, and possibly suggests a female appearance:
    • Alleras is said to have black hair, black eyes, and a widow's peak.[4][5] Oberyn too has black eyes, black hair, and a widow's peak.[6]
    • Alleras is described as a slim and slight youth,[3] possibly suggesting a young woman's build in disguise. (Sarella is nineteen years old.[1])
  • When Doran Martell orders Sarella's sisters arrested to keep them from pursuing revenge for the death of their father, he acknowledges that Sarella is not in Dorne.[4]
  • Alleras displays detailed knowledge on recent Targaryen history (specifically Daenerys, Viserys, and Rhaegar's son Aegon),[3] which would be logical if he is indeed Sarella, as Sarella's aunt, Elia Martell, was married to Prince Rhaegar Targaryen, Aegon's father and Daenerys's and Viserys's older brother.
  • Alleras speaks with a "soft Dornish drawl",[5] indicating he was raised in Dorne, just as Sarella was.[7]
  • Alleras' remarkable skill with a bow[3] is consistent with the knowledge that Oberyn trained all of his daughters with weapons.[8]
  • It is said by Sarella's sister Nymeria Sand that "our little sister loves [Oldtown]."[4] Although Nymeria does not specify which of her six younger sisters she means, Sarella's character as described by others suggest she might have been the person Nymeria meant, and likely to be interested in the studies of the Citadel:
    • According to her cousin, Arianne Martell, "Sarella was forever pushing in where she didn't belong" when they were children.[7] As the Citadel only accepts male students, disguising herself as a young man in order to enter the Citadel would indeed be "pushing in where she does not belong".
    • When Sarella traveled to Shandystone with her father Oberyn, cousin Arianne, and older sister Tyene Sand, she "turned over rocks, brushed sand off the mosaics, and wanted to know everything there was to know about the people who had lived [there]."[7]
  • When discussing the arrest of all eight of Oberyn's bastard daughters, Sarella's absence from Dorne is seen as the reason she cannot be arrested. Doran Martell tells Areo Hotah to "leave [Sarella] to her... game." Disguising herself as a male in order to study at the educational institution which allows only males[9] would be consistent with Doran's statement regarding her current activity outside of Dorne.
  • Samwell Tarly was told by Maester Aemon that "the Sphinx is the riddle, not the riddler."[10] Although Samwell concludes that Aemon could not literally have meant Alleras, who is nicknamed the Sphinx,[5] the statement has been seen by many readers as a hint by the author regarding Alleras's secret identity.

See also

The following links are a selection of the many places online where fans have discussed or outlined the theory:

References