Karkaroff a educator(slavic word origins)

[slytherin_jenn]

No: HPFGUIDX 95522

I looked up all the 'slavic' sounding last names through every slavic 
language dictionary I could find and couldn't get anywhere close to a 
meaning. The -off ending in Karkaroff and there's some Durmstrang 
student if GoF that has the same ending for their last name I don't 
think is Russian, or at least I've never heard any Russian name end 
in -off but rather -ov. The -off suffix may be Germanic in origin but 
I don't know any of those languages so I can't say with any 
certainty. However, their first names are definetly Slavic, both Igor 
and Victor are very common Russian names; Antonin might be from 
another slavic country but not common in Russian.
 
I don't know if JKR has any knowledge of the Slavic languages and 
maybe she was just trying to make the names sound Slavic as they 
certainly do. Also I haven't seen Russia mentioned in any of the 
books, while there have been several mentions of some of the smaller 
countries in Eastern Europe like Bulgaria and Transylvania. I don't 
think there are any references to where Karkaroff et.al are from 
except that Durmstrang is in the North and Krum plays for Bulgaria, 
though I could be wrong.

I think also that if Durmstrang has had a long-standing reputation 
for teaching the Dark Arts, it would be common sense for Voldemort to 
seek out some of Durmstrang's finest students and recruit them for 
the Death Eaters. He did after all send his Death Eaters to recruit 
the Giants and by the way Hagrid describes them, they are located 
somewhere in mainland Europe(the Alps perhaps). Which perhaps leads 
to a bigger question of what Voldemort is really after? His base has 
been England which is where he lived for most of his life and most of 
his activities that have been mentioned have taken place in England. 
Though I think that he has to have some larger plan in mind than just 
killing Harry Potter and destroying the Order.

Sorry for early morning ramblings :P
jenn