Hermione's name; other names

[Joyce Curry]

No: HPFGUIDX 31262

My first post.

I have been following the discussion of Hermione's name with some
interest as I have always been fascinated by the meaning of names.

Phil Nel writes, " . . . while we should take an author's remarks into
account, we should be wary of making the argument that the author's
interpretation is the only 'correct' interpretation.  If an author
chooses a name that alludes to other works or ideas, this name will
continue to make those allusions, irrespective of what the author now
says about the name."

I agree with Phil Nel that while JKR may say that she does not intend
for name of Hermione to mean any more than it appears on the surface,
frequently more meaning can be found in an author's choice of words.
Hermione is the female form of the name Hermes, the Greek god who served
as messenger for the other gods.  If there is one thing Hermione does
and does very well, is to tell Harry and Ron, (and us, the readers,
)what is going on.  She is a messenger when she conveys information to
others.  Whether JKR intended this or not, Hermione the character fits
Hermione the name.

I would also like to point out that most names in these books have
additional or deeper meanings than just a name.  IMHO, that would
include the names of all of the Weasleys and Harry.  For starters, look
at the alphabetical order of the male Weasleys: Arthur, Bill, Charlie,
Percy, Fred, George and Ron.  This of course doesn't hold entirely true,
if we assume that Bill is short for William, but going by what the
Weasleys actually call their male children, Percy is out of order in
this list.  Or rather, you could say he doesn't fit in his family.  It
leaves some interesting possibilities for what, if anything, this could
mean for Percy's future role in the books.  If you look at the meaning
of the various names, Percy's name is the only one that does not have a
Germanic or Nordic origin.  The origin of Percival, the name from which
Percy is derived, is unclear.  I have found a few references to a french
origin, meaning "pierced valley", but I have also found a few references
that suggest the name was made up during the late medieval period.

As for the names of the other Weasley males, there is common thread of
power and kingliness.  Arthur, Bill, Charlie and George refer to the
names of English kings, either real or fictitious.  As for Ron and Fred,
Ronald, from which Ron is derived, means "powerful authority" or
"powerful might" and Fred (from Frederick) means  "peaceful ruler".

Then there is Harry, derived from Henry which means "princely" or "home
ruler".

JKR may not have intended these names to be anything more than good
English names, but knowing more about the characters' names adds much to
the characters' personalities, just like knowing the historic meaning of
the wand woods (which I also found fascinating).

Joyce (enjoying the list as much as I can with its overwhelming number
of posts)