[HPforGrownups] Arabella Figg--starting over

[yr awen]

No: HPFGUIDX 42643

Wow... cool. I got my first-ever alumni magazine from my old university today (I'm an alumna... ::shiver::) and discovered, weirdly, that Philip Nel is a fellow graduate of the University of Rochester, albeit from a decade ago. Small, strange world, this.

Now onto the real point:
  Richelle:
  Next, as for all names coming from Latin, well, they don't.  :)  But a lot
  of them *do* especially when there are "hidden" things about that person
  disguised in them.  Hermione comes from Shakespeare, Dumbledore is Old
  English, Ron was King Arthur's spear, Krum is German for crooked etc.<<<<<<<
  To beat the topic of Ron's name a little more, yes, Ron *is* the spear of Arthur, but the name Ron itself, and by extension, Ronald, might either be significant or ironic, depending on how you view Ron's character and if Ron is going to be The Great Betrayer of Harry <g> Ron, or Rone -- Layamon spells it both ways -- is the West Midlands dialect form of 'run', the Old English word that can mean, variously, 'counsel', with shadings toward 'secret counsel'; 'rune' or 'runic letter'; or 'secret/mystery.' Derivatives from 'run' include 'runere', a tale-carrier or gossip, and the verb 'runian', 'to conspire against.' For my part, though, I prefer to view Ron's name in one of the former senses, rather than the latter.

  I would imagine that Layamon took Rone in the sense of 'counsel', if the name of Arthur's spear is original to him. It might be his translation of a Latin source he used when writing The Brut, but be that as it may... Ronald the name means 'counsel-strong' -- sort of funny when one considers that Ron isn't exactly the best counsellor, or the one who makes it a practice of listening to counsel (I love the boy, but he *is* a bit hard-headed.)

  Richelle:
   I can't get Potter to translate to "have great power" either.  Can someone tell me the root words used in the other
  translations?  Thanks!<<<<<<<

  Huh. I haven't heard any of the discussion surrounding the possible Other Meanings in Harry's last name. There are times when I want to say that Potter is just... a name, just as 'Harry' is a name JKR happens to like. Then, of course, I get all speculative and completely blow it.

  HF.


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