The wizarding community are already a magical lot, but there is also a lot of underlying magic behind their names. In fact, the etymology of certain characters’ names can reveal more about them than you ever thought you knew…
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Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter
The joy of Harry Potter’s name was that it seemed like one so delightfully ordinary for someone who achieved so much. But when we dig a little deeper, it seems to be a very fitting name for the Boy Who Lived.
The name Harry is the Middle English form of the name ‘Henry’, a name which was favoured by many an English king. Leadership runs deep in Harry’s name, as well as the motif of war – which Harry is sadly very familiar with. Harry is also related to the …show more content…
‘Albus’ appropriately means ‘white’, just like the Professor’s famous beard. But let’s not forget about his many middle names, which go far deeper into Dumbledore’s more complex characteristics.
‘Percival’ suggests a history of battle, as Percival was one of the legendary knights in King Arthur’s court. Wulfric, oddly enough, means ‘wolf power’ – although we’re pretty sure Albus didn’t have any lycanthropy skills. As for Brian? That is an old Celtic word, meaning ‘noble’, which Albus very much was.
Dumbledore uses the Elder Wand to extract a memory
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood …show more content…
As for ‘Riddle’, the word as we know it defines to ‘something that puzzles or perplexes’ which is certainly true for Tom Riddle, but back in the 1800s was a Middle English term to mean ‘perforated with many holes’ – much like when Harry stabbed his diary in Chamber of Secrets, you might say…
Tom Riddle in Slughorn's memory from The Half Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Hermione Granger
Hands up if you had been pronouncing Hermione’s name wrong when you first started reading the books. Yep, thought so. Complex pronunciations aside, ‘Her-My-Own-Knee’ is a name rich in mythological value, as in Greek mythology, Hermione was the daughter of King Menelaus of Sparta and his wife, Helen of Troy.
Meanwhile, Granger, according to the Middle English definition, was amusingly an occupational term for ‘bailiff’, which considering how much Hermione Granger has to tell off Ron and Harry, is rather fitting.
Hermione holding up her wand from the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Remus
No Image
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
Harry Potter
The joy of Harry Potter’s name was that it seemed like one so delightfully ordinary for someone who achieved so much. But when we dig a little deeper, it seems to be a very fitting name for the Boy Who Lived.
The name Harry is the Middle English form of the name ‘Henry’, a name which was favoured by many an English king. Leadership runs deep in Harry’s name, as well as the motif of war – which Harry is sadly very familiar with. Harry is also related to the …show more content…
‘Albus’ appropriately means ‘white’, just like the Professor’s famous beard. But let’s not forget about his many middle names, which go far deeper into Dumbledore’s more complex characteristics.
‘Percival’ suggests a history of battle, as Percival was one of the legendary knights in King Arthur’s court. Wulfric, oddly enough, means ‘wolf power’ – although we’re pretty sure Albus didn’t have any lycanthropy skills. As for Brian? That is an old Celtic word, meaning ‘noble’, which Albus very much was.
Dumbledore uses the Elder Wand to extract a memory
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood …show more content…
As for ‘Riddle’, the word as we know it defines to ‘something that puzzles or perplexes’ which is certainly true for Tom Riddle, but back in the 1800s was a Middle English term to mean ‘perforated with many holes’ – much like when Harry stabbed his diary in Chamber of Secrets, you might say…
Tom Riddle in Slughorn's memory from The Half Blood Prince
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
Hermione Granger
Hands up if you had been pronouncing Hermione’s name wrong when you first started reading the books. Yep, thought so. Complex pronunciations aside, ‘Her-My-Own-Knee’ is a name rich in mythological value, as in Greek mythology, Hermione was the daughter of King Menelaus of Sparta and his wife, Helen of Troy.
Meanwhile, Granger, according to the Middle English definition, was amusingly an occupational term for ‘bailiff’, which considering how much Hermione Granger has to tell off Ron and Harry, is rather fitting.
Hermione holding up her wand from the Chamber of Secrets
Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
Remus