etymology of "ennervate" / quote

[Steve Vander Ark]

No: HPFGUIDX 27683

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., Jen Faulkner <jfaulkne at e...> wrote:

> 
> The spell, however, is not *enervate*; it eNnervate.  Spelling, in 
this
> case, *counts*.

Thanks, Jen, I was trying to respond but I couldn't find my research 
source. I know I have it that way on the Lexicon, but for the life of 
me I couldn't figure out which of my many dictionaries and etymology 
references had told me exactly that. What we are seeing here is JKR's 
cleverness with language, in this case filtered through her 
experience as a French teacher. It is safe to say that she knows 
French better than Latin. This is apparent in a few other etymologies 
too.

This is a classic example of why we can keep discussing and talking 
about the Harry Potter books: everything is so rich and deep.

By the way, here's a delightful quote that appeared in print over the 
weekend, in an interview with Robbie Coltrane (Hagrid in the film):

"It's literature, it is about what we are like, about deeper things 
than just telling stories. It's just that it's aimed at an audience 
who don't drink a lot of chardonnay." 

I wonder how Coltrane knew that I don't drink chardonnay? I'm a 
Piesporter man myself. Well, that and peppermint schnapps.

Steve Vander Ark
The Harry Potter Lexicon
http://www.i2k.com/~svderark/lexicon