Heroes Wiki:Ability name origination

The names Heroes Wiki has chosen for the many evolved human abilities depicted in Heroes have originated from a variety of sources. Due to the potential for multiple potential names for an ability, naming conventions are used to classify the names into levels of increasing canonicity. These conventions, illustrated in the following table, are based on the source of the name and are used, in hierarchal order, to determine the most appropriate name for Heroes Wiki to use when documenting an ability. The hierarchy spans from the lowest level, where no non-speculative name is possible and the possessor's name is used, to the highest level, where the ability is named or described in an episode. Below is a listing of the level of source(s) for each chosen name and the related explanations and references, if any.

Ability Naming Conventions The following sources are used for determining evolved human ability names, in order: 1. Canon Sources Episodes 2. Near-canon Sources Webisodes, Graphic Novels, iStories, Heroes Evolutions 3. Secondary Sources Episode commentary, Interviews, Heroes: Survival 4. Common names for abilities Names from other works 5. Descriptions of abilities Descriptions 6. Possessor's name If no non-speculative description is possible

Name	Level of source	Explanations and references
Ability absorption	Near-canon	The name was explicitly given on a primatech file in From the Files of Primatech, Part 4.
Ability augmentation	Near-canon	Sean Fallon calls Paulette "an augmenter" (The Kill Squad, Part 3).
Ability replication	Descriptive	None
Accelerated probability	Near-canon	None
Acid secretion	Near-canon	"Acid secretion" is explicitly listed on Leonard's Assignment Tracker profile at primatechpaper.com.
Acidic blood	Secondary	"Acidic blood" was confirmed to be Mary's ability by graphic novel writer Bill Hooper.
Activation and deactivation	Descriptive	None
Adoptive muscle memory	Canon	Mohinder explicitly states this name (The Line).
Age shifting	Near-canon	Ivan Spektor calls the Russian an "age shifter".
Age transferal	Secondary	In an interview, writer Tom Inkel says, "Leona's power is to transfer aging".
Alchemy	Near-canon	This ability has been explicitly named "alchemy" in From the Files of Primatech, Part 1.
Alejandro's ability	Possessor	None
Animal control	Secondary	In Faction Zero, Markus....
Appearance alteration	Near-canon	"Appearance alteration" is the ability name listed in Connie's assignment tracker profile.
Aquatic breathing	Canon	EPIC explicitly names the ability "aquatic breathing" (Under the Mask).
Aura absorption	Near-canon	Linda Tavara refers to the bands of energy she sees as auras.
Belief induction	Secondary	Alethea Thorn's ability name is listed in her Heroes: Survival profile.
Bliss and horror	Near-canon	Text from It Takes a Village, Part 1 explicitly names this ability.
Bone spike protrusion	Near-canon	The intro to Under the Bridge, Part 2 states: "Perrin's ability activates on instinct, sending bone spikes in every direction".
Carbon isolation and formation	Secondary	Cole's Heroes: Survival profile explicitly names the power as "carbon isolation and formation".
Chlorine gas exudation	Near-canon	Sylar says, "Tina Ramierez. Exudes chlorine gas instead of carbon dioxide" (Viewpoints).
Clairsentience	Canon	A file in the Genesis Files is called "clairsentience". Also, Bridget Bailey explicitly references Dr. Suresh's Activating Evolution chapter on "clairsentience" when referring to her ability in an email (Heroes Evolutions).
Clairvoyance	Canon	"Clairvoyance" is explicitly named in the Genesis Files. Molly's tip in the Assignment tracker map confirms that she has this ability.
Cloaking	Common name	Cloaking is known from Star Trek as an ability to hide something..
Cloning	Near-canon	The name is explicitly listed in Julien Dumont's assignment tracker profile. The introduction to Revolutionary War, Part 2 says that Evan creates clones.
Constriction	Near-canon	Agent Howard calls his partner a "Constrictor" (Going Postal, Part 1).
Crumpling	Near-canon	Marcus uses the word "crumple" in Normal Lives.
Cyberpathy	Canon	EPIC explicitly names this ability "cyberpathy" (Under the Mask).
Danger sensing	Near-canon	None
David's ability	Possessor	None
Dehydration	Descriptive	Based on descriptions in Golden Handshake.
Dimension hopping	Secondary	Kelli Wheaton's ability name is listed in her Heroes: Survival profile.
Dimensional storage	Secondary	Store's ability name is listed in his Heroes: Survival profile.
Disintegration	Descriptive	None
Disintegration touch	Near-canon	Felicia says she has a "disintegration touch" (Career Choices).
Dream manipulation	Near-canon	"Dream manipulation" is explicitly named in Sanjog's tip in the Assignment Tracker Map.
Elasticity	Common name	None
Electric manipulation	Near-canon	This ability has been explicitly and expertly named by Elle's Assignment Tracker profile.
Electrical absorption	Near-canon	Mohinder says that the teenage patient can absorb electrical currents (Blackout, Part 2).
Elemental control	Common name	None
Empathic manipulation	Near-canon	Empathic manipulation is explicitly named in Syn's Assignment Tracker profile.
Empathic mimicry	Near-canon	"Empathic Mimcry"[sic] is explicitly named in Peter's tip in the Assignment Tracker Map.
Empathy	Near-canon	None
Energy absorption, transference, and redirection	Near-canon	The name was explicitly given in Mindy's Assignment Tracker profile and in From the Files of Primatech, Part 4.
Enhanced hearing	Canon	Explicitly named in Gabriel Gray's primatechpaper.com profile (Building 26).
Enhanced memory	Near-canon	Explicitly named in Matt Neuenberg's primatechpaper.com profile.
Enhanced strength	Canon	Knox's assignment tracker profile lists the ability as "enhanced strength" (The Butterfly Effect).
Enhanced strength and senses	Near-canon	The Heroes Reborn app explicitly names this ability as "enhanced strength and senses".
Enhanced synesthesia	Near-canon	The ability is explicitly called "enhanced synesthesia" in From the Files of Primatech, Part 1.
Enhanced teleporting	Secondary	Teleporter's ability name is listed in his Heroes: Survival profile.
Extraskeletal manipulation	Secondary	None
Fire breathing	Canon	Edgar's list names the ability "fire breathing". Also, the Bowmans are called "fire breathers" a number of times in Faction Zero.
Fire casting	Near-canon	The blazing homeless man is referred to as a "fire-casting evo" (Dirty Deeds).
Fireworks creation	Near-canon	Claire says that Detlev "created fireworks" (Save the Cheerleader, Destroy the World, Chapter 22).
Flight	Canon	Mohinder explicitly names it "Flight" in The Second Coming.
Forcefields	Near-canon	"Forcefields" is the name given in Rebellion, Part 3.
Freezing	Canon	Tracy's ability is explicitly listed on the file Nathan gives The President (Dual).
Future terrorist's ability	Possessor	The future terrorist was confirmed to be emitting a melting beam by artists Micah Gunnell and Beth Sotelo.
Gold mimicry	Descriptive	"Gold mimicry" describes what this ability does.
Granulation	Descriptive	Granulation describes what Gordon can do.
Gravitational manipulation	Near-canon	"Gravitational manipulation" is the ability name listed in Stephen Canfield's assignment tracker profile.
Green energy blast	Secondary	None
Healing	Canon	Hiro Nakamura calls his mother a healer (Our Father). Linda's notebook also explicitly lists Linderman's ability as "healing".
Healing touch	Canon	"Healing touch" is listed explicitly on Jeremy Greer's Assignment Tracker 2.0 profile (Tabula Rasa).
Health optimizing	Secondary	Marc is described as a "health optimizer" in his Heroes: Survival profile.
Heat generation	Canon	None
Illusion	Canon	Explicitly named by Candice in Kindred.
Image projection	Descriptive	"Image projection" describes all known aspects of Deitra's ability.
Impenetrable skin	Canon	The Haitian says that Samedi's "skin is impenetrable" (The Eclipse, Part 1).
Imprinting	Common name	"Imprinting" is a common name for what Joe Macon can do.
Induced radioactivity	Canon	"Induced Radioactivity" is explicitly named in the Genesis Files.
Inflammation	Descriptive	None
Intuitive aptitude	Canon	Explicitly named in Gabriel Gray's primatechpaper.com profile (Building 26).
Invisibility	Canon	Godsend refers to Claude as being invisible. Claude's Primatech file explicitly names the ability "invisibility" (From the Files of Primatech, Part 5).
Laser emission	Descriptive	Eric Doyle asks Michael about his lasers (Doyle).
Levitation	Near-canon	The introduction to History of a Secret says, "Abu Aswan has the power to levitate and move extremely heavy objects".
Lie detection	Canon	Sylar referred to Sue as a "lie detector" (Our Father).
Light absorption	Common name	Light absorption is a common name for Abe's ability.
Luke's ability	Possessor	None
Luminescence	Common name	Scientific description for glowing object.
Lung adaptation	Near-canon	In Berlin, Part 1, Devin describes Bianca's ability as being able to "adapt her lungs to any environment".
Magnetism	Canon	The Company's assignment tracker explicitly identifies the ability as "magnetism" (The Butterfly Effect).
Mass manipulation	Near-canon	Name of ability is specifically given in the Primatech files (From the Files of Primatech, Part 5).
Mediumship	Secondary	R.D. Hall called Ida May's power "mediumship" in an interview.
Melting	Canon	Described as "ability to melt" in Gabriel Gray's primatechpaper.com profile (Building 26).
Memory manipulation	Descriptive	None
Memory storage	Near-canon	None
Mental manipulation	Near-canon	René's ability is explicitly specified as mental manipulation on a Primatech ID badge in Graphic Novel:From the Files of Primatech, Part 8.
Metal mimicry	Descriptive	None
Microwave emission	Canon	Luke says his power is like a microwave (Trust and Blood).
Miko's ability	Possessor	None
Mist mimicry	Near-canon	A Matter of Trust says "He turned into mist" several times.
Nerve gas emission	Near-canon	Penny explicitly describes the ability as emitting "a nerve gas" in Faces, Part 1.
Nerve manipulation	Descriptive	None
Neurocognitive deficit	Canon	The term "neurocognitive deficit" is referred to in the Mozaic file (The Fix) and appears to match Anna's ability.
Non-biological duplication	Secondary	None
Oil secretion	Descriptive	None
Omnilingualism	Common name	None
Persuasion	Canon	Sylar refers to Eden's ability as "the power of persuasion" in Fallout; the power is also explicitly named in From the Files of Primatech, Part 1.
Phasing	Canon	Future Hiro says "D.L. can phase inside the buildings" in Five Years Gone.
Phoenix mimicry	Secondary	None
Plant growth	Near-canon	"Plant growth" is explicitly named in the chapter 1 of Purpose.
Plant manipulation	Near-canon	The Company's assignment tracker entry for Brendan Lewis explicitly calls his ability "plant manipulation".
Poison emission	Canon	Maya "emits a plague ... that makes people sick"--Tim Kring, episode commentary for The Kindness of Strangers; Maya uses the word "poison" to describe her ability in Powerless.
Possession	Near-canon	Claire says to Harold Esposito, "You can possess people." (Chapter 15 of Save the Cheerleader, Destroy the World).
Precognition	Canon	Eden refers to Isaac as "the precog" in Better Halves.
Precognitive dreaming	Near-canon	In From the Files of Primatech, Part 1, Angela's ability is explictly listed as precognitive dreaming.
Primal rage	Near-canon	Explicitly named by agent Tim Pope in the second iStory chapter for Primatech.
Probability computation	Near-canon	None
Puppet master	Canon	This ability is explicitly named in Edgar's list and in Eric Doyle's Assignment Tracker 2.0.
Pyrokinesis	Canon	Named explicitly in Flint's Assignment Tracker 2.0 profile (The Butterfly Effect).
Rapid cell regeneration	Canon	"Rapid cell regeneration" is explicitly named in the Genesis Files.
Rock formation	Near-canon	Dearing says that Gallegos "made rocks form out of thin air" (Dirty Deeds).
Sedation	Descriptive	None
Seismic burst	Secondary	None
Shape shifting	Canon	Both Sylar and Danko refer to James Martin as a "shape shifter" in Into Asylum.
Shattering	Secondary	iStory writer Ryan Gibson Stewart stated that Pearl and Trevor have the same ability, and it is meant to be called "shattering".
Shifting	Near-canon	None
Size alteration	Secondary	Size alteration is explicitly named in Eric Lee Harrison's Heroes: Survival profile.
Sound absorption	Near-canon	The agent says, "My special ability. My body absorbs all sound." (Going Postal).
Sound manipulation	Canon	The Company's assignment tracker on Jesse states his ability is "sound manipulation" (The Butterfly Effect..
Space-time manipulation	Canon	Hiro's ability is explicitly listed on the file Nathan gives The President (Dual).
Spider mimicry	Canon	Edgar's list explicitly names Caleb's ability.
Spontaneous combustion	Canon	This ability is explicitly named in Edgar's list. Also, in Boom, Noah explicitly states the ability name.
Super speed	Canon	Hiro tells Ando that "with super speed, [Daphne] is the world's greatest thief" (The Butterfly Effect). Edgar's list also explicitly names the ability.
Supercharging	Canon	Ando has said that he can "supercharge" another person's ability (Brave New World).
Technopathy	Near-canon	"Technopathy" is explicitly named in Micah's tip on the Assignment Tracker Map.
Telekinesis	Canon	Claude explicitly names this ability when asks Peter "which one of your sorry friends has telekinesis?" in Unexpected.
Telepathy	Canon	Explicitly listed in the Mozaic file (The Fix) and on the file Nathan gives The President (Dual).
Teleportation	Canon	"Teleportation" is the name of a file in The Genesis Files. Additionally, the interactive map and the assignment tracker map explicitly list "teleportation" as the name of the ability. Joanne says that Tommy is a teleporter (Odessa).
Telescopic vision	Near-canon	"Telescopic vision" is explicitly listed on Donna's Assignment Tracker profile at primatechpaper.com.
Temporal rewind	Secondary	"Temporal rewind" is explicitly named on the Heroes: Survival profile of John Mulligan, a character confirmed to belong to iStory writer Zach Wilson.
Terrakinesis	Near-canon	None
Umbrakinesis	Canon	None
Wall crawling	Common name	This is a common name for such an ability.
Water generation	Common name	None
Water mimicry	Near-canon	Noah says the liquid man can "mimic the density of water" and "can turn his body wholly into liquid" in Team Building Exercise.
Weather control	Canon	Alice says she thinks she can "control the weather". (1961).