Alastor - Greek God who sought revenge on people.
Albus - In Latin means white (maybe for white beard). Wisdom. Or.. Governor of Britain at the death of the emperor Pertinax, Decimus Clodius Albinus (Albinus=Albus?) attempted to seize the throne but ended up as Caesar in alliance with another imperial contender, Septimius Severus. After Severus defeated two other rivals (Voldemort and... maybe Slytherin?), the now expendable Albinus was forced into another attempt at usurpation, an attempt that came to an end at the bloody battle of Lyon.
Aragog - "Arachnid" means spider. Gig is a giant. Put them together you get large spider ("ara"-arachnid, "gig"-large) and if Ara is used as Arachnid and gig it's aragig. But maybe it was changed to Aragog.
Argus - In Greek mythology, Argus was a monster that had a hundred eyes and was ever-so-watchful.
Arthur - Could represent King Arthur. The legend presents Arthur as a leader in ancient times who defeats the Saxons and other enemies. He thereby unites the people of Britain in peace and harmony.
Beauxbatons - French for 'beautiful wands'.
Dobby - Dobby is slang terminology for cleaning or washing.. House-elves do a lot of that.
Draco - Draco is a constellation that looks like a dragon but is a snake. In Latin, Draco means "dragon." Also Draco was an ancient ruler who came up with a series of laws known as the Draconian Code. It favored wealthy people and was extremely harsh to those who broke laws.
Dumbledore - Means "Bumblebee" in latin.
Durmstrang - German phrases: strang means sturm which is a storm, and Drang is stress.
Dursley - A town near J.K. Rowlings's birthplace.
Filch - To "steal."
Firenze - Italian name for the city of Florence.
Flitwick - A town in England.
Fleur Delacour - Means "Flower of the Court" in French and "Flower of the Heart" in Latin.
Fluffy - "Cerberus" the three-headed dog was the guarder of the underworld in greek mythology.
Gilderoy - A highwayman known for being handsome.
Goyle - Goyle's first name is Gregory. Greg Goyle, say it ten times fast and it's Gargoyle, a foul monstrous beast.
Gringotts - Ingot, means bar/gold. Gringotts is filled with Galleons.
Hedwig - A saint that lived in Germany in the 13th and 14th centuries.
Hagrid - Name and tale comes from greek myth. The ancient Hagrid from the myth was the god of Jewels. This god was said to be the kindest of the gods, but Hades framed him for the death of Piraeus's - the killer of Medusa - son. Hagrid was banished from Olympus but Zues allowed him to stay as the watcher of the animals. And, the word haggard means "wild-looking".
Harry - Can we forget Harry Houdini, the famous magician?
Hermes - The Greek Messenger of the Gods. He was also Patron of Travellers and responsible for taking the dead to Hades.
Lockhart - Town in Australia near Wagga Wagga ("Compose a poem about my defeat of the Wagga Wagga Werewolf"?).
Lucius - Similar to Lucifer (the devil).
Ludo - "ludus" in latin means "game" and the verb "ludo" in latin means "to play" hence Ludo Bagman being the head of the Department of Magical Games and Sports in the ministry.
Lupin - Lunar means moon. Lupin means wolf-like. Canis Lupus is the scientific name for wolf.
Malfoy - "Mal foi" means "bad faith" in French. Malfoy has "mal" in it, meaning evil.
McDonald, Natalie - On page one-hundred and eighty in US (page one-hundred and fifty-nine UK), The student Natalie McDonald is placed by the sorting hat into Gryffindor. What we don't know is that Natalie McDonald was a young Harry Potter fan diagnosed with lymphoblastic leukemia the day before her seventh birthday. She was so devoted to Harry that her parents brought her the third book by courier from England.
A friend of the family wrote to J.K. about Natalie's obsession and her nearing of death. Shortly after, J.K. sent a lengthy letter, containing every secret about the upcoming books. Unfortunately for her, the letter arrived two days after Natalie's death. However, Natalie's mother became very good friends with J.K. and the two now are close pen pals.
McGonagall - Means "bad poet" in latin. Poets should require some of the things McGonagall doesn't have, like a dramatic side, all the time.
Minerva - In Roman and Greek (as Athena) Mythology, she was the Goddess of Wisdom. She gave strict punishments. She also was a very good weaver and could weave masterpiece tapestries. Once, a pompous mortal known as Arachny had wound up challenging Athena to a contest. Athena, in the end, transfigured Arachny into a creature that wove beautifully, but could never boast again: A spider.
Mirror of Erised - Erised backwards is desire (as in "you'll see what you desire").
Molly - Throughout history, Molly has been a unique yet bold name for women. Such people as Molly Pitcher and the 'unsinkable' Molly Brown are famous for courageous efforts and outstanding actions.
Moody - Not in a good mood.
Nagini - 'Naga' is female snake in Sanskrit.
Narcissa - The name is the female form of Narcissus, a mortal in Greek mythology who was so obsessed with himself that the gods turned him into a flower as he knelt along a lake, gazing at his reflection in awe. Such words that sprout from his name include narcissistic.
Nicholas Flamel - Was a real alchemist, and supposedly DID create the Philosopher's Stone (not "Sorceror's"). The tale was that he had spent decades of his life trying to create the Philosopher's Stone, which could turn any metal in to gold and unlock the secrets to immortality, but could not figure it out.
One night, Nicholas Flamel had a dream in which an angel came to his bed, held out a book and said, these words, which were to remain in the memory of the hearer: "Look well at this book, Nicholas. At first you will understand nothing in it -- neither you nor any other man. But one day you will see in it that which no other man will be able to see." Surely that would contain the secrets to making the Philosopher's Stone!
A short while later while he was alone in his shop a man in desparate need of money appeared with a book to sell. He recognized it as the book that the angel in his dream had been holding and paid for it immediately, without bargaining.
The problem was that the book was written in part-hebrew and he couldn't read it. All of the jews in France had recently been driven out of his country by persecution. He knew that there were still many jews left in Spain, so he copied a small-portion of the book and headed out on his journey to find a translator. He searched for months and couldn't find one, and so started his journey home in discouragement. During the quest homeward, he stopped at an inn and was fortunate enough to be joined at his table by a French merchant who had contacts with someone who might be able to translate the book. The French merchant introduced Flamel to his friend, the Maestro Canches. When Nicholas told him that he had with him the book of Abraham the Jew the Maestro's eye's lit up and he explained that Abraham the Jew was a venerable master who was a great master and spent his whole life studying the mysteries of the Cabala. His book had disappeared, surfacing in some remote corner of the globe for moments and then disappearing again. Unfortunately, the pages that Nicholas had brought with him was not enough to unlock the secrets of the stone. The Maestro agreed to go back to Nicholas's home and translate the entire book.
Ironically, on the journey home the Maestro fell ill and passed away. Nicholas piously buried him at a nearby church and continued on.
When he arrived home he found his wife, his shop and his books as he had left them. Though it took him years, the pages that the Maestro had translated had given Nicholas enough clues to translate the book himself.
Adherring strictly to the rules within the book of Abraham the Jew, he first turned a half pound of mercury in to gold. As he was changing the metals, he changed himself.
From this point on he was rich. He built hospitals, low-income housing for the poor, churches and lived out the rest of his days joyously.
After Nicholas had reached the age of 80, he went about planning his death. Not the means of the death itself but the details such as his coffin, tombstone (the one he ordered was very heavy), burial location, etc. He wanted his death to be as perfect as his life.
Shortly after he died, rumors that he had created the Elixir of Life spread. Any prowlers seeking the stone that could turn any metal in to gold soon were lurking nearby his house and shop searching for the metal.
The heat soon died down and rumors that Nicholas Flamel and his wife Pernelle was still alive were forgotten. Many, many years later, an arcaeologist named Paul Lucas talked to a Turk that told him that Nicholas and his wife Pernelle were still alive. Paul did more research and then wrote and published a book that said that the Flamels' burials were nothing but clever shams, and that they were still alive. The publication of this book aroused many curious people. The people were so curious that they dug-up Nicholas's grave and opened the coffin. There was nothing there.
Nimbus - "Nimbus" means "cloud." Nimbus was also a god in Greek Mythology.
Norris, Mrs. - A character in one of J.K. Rowling's favorie author's (Jane Austen) books.
Parvati - Parvati is a Hindu Goddess married to Hindu God Siva the Destroyer. She gave birth to a baby boy named Ganesh, who Siva beheaded, but replaced the old head with an elephant head after Parvati reamed him out. Sister of the Goddess of the Ganges.
Padma. "Patel" is a common Indian last-name.
Peeves - "Peeve" means "little devil" or something that gets on your nerves (like a pet peeve).
Petunia - Petunia, the flower, is always thought of among florists as meaning resentment or anger.
Pomfrey - Comfrey is the name of a very good medicinal herb still used today.
Remus - Brother of Romulous (founder of Rome). They were raised by a female wolf. He was killed by Romulous.
Ronald - Ronald's name comes from a legend of a great emperor from the 6th dynasty of a certain family. This emperor, Running Weasel, never lost a game of chess. But sadly, the guards outside his home accidently let loose a rat dyed yellow. The rat started a fire which Running Weasel died in.
6th dynasty? Ronald was the 6th born in his family. He own a rat which he tried to turn yellow in the first book and accidently set loose in the 3rd book. Wormtail happened to be a coward, another translation of the word yellow. Ronald has yet to lose a game of chess and has actually turned out to be a nice stategist. Who else owns a rat?
Ronan - An irish saint
Rubeus - Hagrid Rubeus was the Greek God of Jewels. He worked as a keeper on Mt. Olympus
Severus - Sever means "to cut-off". Severe also means cruel, strict in latin. In ancient history, Lucius Septimius Severus restored stability to the Roman empire after the tumultuous reign of the emperor Commodus (See Albus) and the civil wars that erupted in the wake of Commodus' murder (if you watched "Gladiator" then you should know this).
Sibyll - Sibyll comes from the Sibyls, who were famous propheys in ancient mythology.
Sirius - Named after Sirius Star, or Dog Star. Seen during summer "dog" days.
Skeeter, Rita - "Skeeter" is short for "mosquito." As most people can attest, mosquitos are among the most annoying life-forms on this planet.
Snape - A town in England, also based after a person JKR knew.
Tom Marvolo Riddle - If you rearrang the letters it spells: "I am Lord Voldemort."
Viktor - Viktor is actually latin for victor, or victorious.
Voldemort, Lord - There was a dark wizard in mid-evil times named Voldermortist. In another language, Voldermortist means "Lord of Evil" or "Dark Lord". Legend has it that Voldermortist once tried to destroy Merlin before the time of King Arthur (Mr. Weasley?), by bewitching good people, and simply bribing those who already were evil. Legend has it that Merlin destroyed Voldermortist by using a simple paralyzing charm (full body bind?), fed him to the many-headed-beast (Fluffy?) of the lake, the Lady of the Lake's pet (Giant Squid?), freed the bewitched people, and destroyed the evil men. That was maybe twelve, thirteen years before Arthur (how long it was from Voldemort's destruction until Harry started Hogwarts). In French means "thief of death" (meaning escaping death).
~PORT KEYS!~
