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sophieswundergarten · 1 year

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Alright I know I made a whole impassioned speech about the gorgeous symbolism in Milligan's name and everything last night.

But.

Mr. Stewart. Sir. My good man. Author of one of my favorite series of all time and all around creative genius. As much as I absolutely adore your books.

What was going through your head with your naming system???

Some of them make complete and total sense, and some of them are just odd in the most weirdly intriguing way? I respect the decision on all of them because they fit the characters amazingly (for the most part), but, on occasion??

Therefore, I am going to rank all of the names from the main people in no particular order, according to my own research and slightly goofy reasoning.

S. Q. Pedalian - Exquisite character. But his name is a pun?? And it's an ironic pun, because "sesquipedalian" means to have a lot of syllables or use long words, which S. Q. continually struggles with!!!

7/10 Sad, and a little bit funny, but all in all clever and a really unique name for a sweet boy. Very calm and soft colors and connected to a very curly and gangly word that fits him quite well. I think he would really like using the word that is his namesake, whether he knows it or not.

Constance Contraire - "Constance" is, of course, a name meaning "constant" or "steadfast". "Contraire" is just an actual French word that means "opposite", which is an amazing summarization of her personality.

10/10 Hysterical and one hundred percent accurate, and it is alliterative! Very poetic. The "ire" at the end feels very defiant and Constance-y, not to mention that "Ire" as a word means "anger".

George "Sticky" Washington - "George" means "farmer" or "someone who works the earth", while "Washington" likely means "home of the Wassa people", and can be attributed to a place in England. Now, the very obvious connection is to George Washington the historical figure, who is likely someone Sticky looks up to, and also had a lot of pressure on him, there is something to be said about the metaphorical meanings of "home" and "settling" in conjunction with "farmer" (someone who works hard to grow).

8/10 Not as much fun in the meaning, but still a solid and green/blue cool colored name. It feels like a particularly friendly frog with sticky frog skin.

Kate Wetherall - "Kate" is short for "Katherine", which means "pure" ("Caitlin" is also a form of "Katherine"). I've talked about "Wetherall" being a play on "Weather all", but it is just so spectacular I had to go over it again. There are not a lot of credible sources, and while one mentioned that it might mean "place where wether sheep are kept" (wethers are male castrated sheep), I am much more inclined to think that it is made up, as it makes more sense.

7/10 Still love the way it communicates her independence and how hard she works, and the "pure" part is a nice association to her and Milligan's relationship with water (and the both of them being strong swimmers). Her last name also feels very windmill-y and helter-skelter energetic, like her.

Reynard Muldoon - "Reynard" is from a Germanic name meaning "strong in council", which is beautiful and poetic and just the best name for the one who tends to guide the group and continually falls back on them for reassurance. "Muldoon" is just one of those old Gaelic kind of names that means "descendant of whoever".

9/10 Lovely hidden meaning, and even more so when you consider that the only person to purposefully continue calling him that is Curtain. Really soothing colors, warm browns and more reddy colors, soft like a sweater.

Jackson & Jillson - I don't know their last names, so they get put together. First off, "son" as a name suffix literally means "son of". Some people say "Jack" is a form of "John", meaning "God is gracious", but there are one or two other theories. "Jillson" is a name of dubious realness, as I can't find a lot about it. Some sources (very, very few) say it might mean "Son of Juliana/Gills", but it is highly unclear. "Jill" by itself means "youthful", so the "son" suffix doesn't make much sense there either.

10/10 Even though they don't really make any sense, the "Jack and Jill" theme is evident and they both feel suitably pointy to be executives. Wonderfully silly and yet sharing the facade of trying to be Serious and Official.

Martina Crowe - "Martina" is a name derived from Mars, the Roman god of war, and "Crowe" is to do with the bird, and can be used for someone with black hair. It is also possible that "Crowe" means "hound of destruction", but either way it works with her aggressive and competitive spirit.

10/10 Perfectly fits her, black hair, need to dominate and all. It is a sophisticated sounding name, and comes across as authoritative. It is also prickly, and you can feel the prioritization of winning over social graces.

Milligan - Not really a name, but has the inherent meaning of his promise to take Kate to the "mill again" and is therefore a great name full of the most heartbreaking and incredible symbolism.

∞/10 I can't describe how well this name works in every conceivable way.

Number Two/Pencilla - Despite both of them being hints at her pencil-like appearance, I really like all of the love you can see in "Number Two". Her decision to go by her code name is initially out of her dislike of her legal name, but it is also a reference to her being Mr. Benedict's second in command (and possibly to the fact that she was the second person to join his organization, depending on when Milligan arrived).

10/10 A terrific way to show her commitment to her work, and, in a similar way to Milligan, how her name changes to be what those who love her call her.

Rhonda Kazembe - "Rhonda" can either mean "good spear" or "noisy", depending on who you believe. "Kazembe" is the name of a traditional kingdom in Zambia, from what I could find. This has very little to do with her personality, but it sounds really pretty and is distracting, which I think may have been the point. Similar to her appearance when she was initially introduced to the kids, her name is unusual and draws attention to her (which is why I included "noisy" as a meaning), and it aids in her misdirection.

8/10 Not a lot of symbolic meaning, but I very much love how it sounds, her first name is full of nice round sounds and warm smiles, and her last name reminds me of the fun patterns on her clothes.

Dipika Perumal - "Dipika" means "light", and "Perumal" means "great one". While "Perumal" 's meaning is in reference to a version of the Hindu god Vishnu, in a literal sense it is quite accurate. Miss Perumal is a great light in Reynie's life, and in the lives of the others she meets. She is a guide and a kind but truthful source of advice.

9/10 It sounds like tea being poured into a cup. A lovely name that describes her in an intimately accurate way, as well as her surname being in Tamil.

Nicholas Benedict - "Nicholas" means "victory of the people", and "Benedict" means "the blessed one", both of which are in line with his personality. He is fighting for the people of the world, and while he may not consider himself blessed, he is certainly a blessing and a benevolent figure to others.

9/10 Extremely comforting name, fits him and his intentions amazingly. It has just the right amount of whimsy while still being grounding and secure.

Nathaniel Benedict/Ledroptha Curtain - "Nathaniel" means "gift of God", and with the surname "Benedict", it is easy to see how this applies to him. He definitely believes that he is a blessing, God's gift to the world. "Ledroptha Curtain" is a whole other story. Either it seems to be his real, actual name and some crazy people named him that, or maybe he made it his legal name (the books), or he definitely made it his name, for some weird reason (the show).

5/10 I'm really pleased with whoever made the decision to make his name "Nathaniel" for the show, but I just can't condone the stupid pun that he never uses!! What was he going to use it for?? He basically never interacts with a curtain, especially because his master plan isn't really physical!!

We're including Garrison and Crawlings because I feel like they're sort of each other's counterparts? Seeing as one is show-only and the other is book-only.

Dr. Garrison - "Garrison" can be both a name and a real word, and both mean "fortress" or "stronghold". And while Garrison may be considered a stronghold of secrets, she also hides herself in many strongholds, first on the island and then in the rootcellar.

7/10 Very thematic, but I wish we had learned her first name. I feel like it could have been just a little more creative and well-fitting.

Crawlings - That's just his name. There isn't really a way to find meaning in it, especially as it's only one word. I suppose it conveys a creeping, spooky, unsettling feeling, but he just sounds odd.

?/10 I don't really know what to do with him.

And, lastly, because I felt bad for leaving him out:

Jeffers - It means "Son of Jeffery", which, in turn, means "peace" or "God's pledge". Now, this does not really refer to his personality, because he is never at peace, poor man. It may refer to his goal to keep the peace, sort of?

7/10 Just a good goon name.

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