Ok...I had to do some major research to make sure of a few things. Nyssa, as a name has origins in both Greece, AND Norway.
In Greece the name's meaning is "beginning", "ambition", and "goal". I'll take your word for it on "start", as it's a form of "beginning". And was originally spelled Nysa.
In the Scandinavian language the name means "friendly elf", "friendly farie", and "friendly fey". And as "elf", "farie" and "fey" all ment the same thing in Nordic myth (something I know something about, as a pagan following the Nordic path), they're compleatly interchangable. And can still be found in some Nordic baby name books. And was originally spelled Nyssa.
Nissa on the other hand, is a Hebrew name meaning "to test", as well as "ambition", similar to the Greek meaning. So there may be a connection.
Now Nysa, and Nissa both have Nyssa as a modern variant. But as "Keeper of Traken" was originally ment as Sarah Sutton's only story, one would think that the "frienly farie" was what was ment, as she came across as a farie princess. Which is fitting, as Sarah is Hebrew for "princess" (and "lady", but "princess" fits this application better). Though if you wanted to nit-pic spelling, (such as y verses i in Nyssa), remember that though Sarah was orginally spelled Sarai, it still has the same meaning today, despite the new spelling.
And though Terminus can mean "beginning", and "end". One could easily make the case that it also means the entrance to Hel's domain. Which, according to Nordic Myth, was guarded by the man-beast Garmr (pronounced Garm). The Vanir, who were an aspect of Norse gods, to which the Goddess Freyja (more commonly refered to as Freya) was a member. She was the goddess of love, fertility, and war. Also the Vanir tended to be a kin to Elves. To which Nyssa, in Nordic meaning, also is.
Now Nyssa can easily be put into the role of Freya. She's proven herself to be a capable warrior, as well as a becon of love and hope. And as far as fertility goes, she proven herself a healer, and stayed behind on Terminus to give life to those who no longer had any hope of living. Also Freya recieved half the slain brought by the Valkyrie. And as Lazars have been refered to as the "walking dead", the "slain" could also refer to them.
Freyja / Freya is also a root word to modern language. As "frau" came from it, meaning "lady" (like one of the meanings of Sarah). Which Nyssa certainly is.
_________________ Wondrous and Adorable Nyssa's Knight-Errant Regiment
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