Etymology of Lupin's name (Was: The Names of the Books and the Teachers . . .)

[justcarol67]

No: HPFGUIDX 147988

Randy wrote: 
> Lupin "pines for the Moon" (pines for la lune).  

Carol responds:
My apologies for the huge snips, but I'm not really interested in the
idea that the HP books are an allegorical exploration of the seven
deadly sins. They may be *applicable* to the story, but to see the
whole story as an allegory seems to me a reductionist approach.

However, I did want to comment on this one point. Lupin doesn't "pine
for" the moon; he fears and hates it. The full moon is his Boggart
because it represents his fear of the painful monthly transformation
(which could have lethal consequences if he bites someone).

The name Lupin is a respelling of "lupine" (wolflike, from Latin
lupus, "wolf") and is a clue, along with Remus (one of the legendary
twins Romulus and Remus who were raised by a she-wolf) that he's a
werewolf.

Carol, noting that lupine is also a flower, apparently so named
because it was believed to "wolf" down the nutrients needed for other
plants to grow in the same area