FACULTY OF PHILOSOPHY

“A rose by any other

name would not smell as
sweet" – the meaning and
function of proper names
in “Harry Potter”

Student: Jelena Milovanović, 16 Mentor: Đorđe Vidanović, Ph.D

Niš, 2016
Table of Contents

1. Introduction.............................................................................................................................2

2. Theoretical background..........................................................................................................3

2.1. Semantics of proper names..............................................................................................3

2.2 Proper names of literary characters...................................................................................6

2.3 Is the author really dead?................................................................................................10

3. Corpus analysis.....................................................................................................................11

3.1. Data and method.............................................................................................................11

3.2. Names analysis...............................................................................................................12

4. Discussion.............................................................................................................................19

5. Conclusion............................................................................................................................23

6. Bibliography.........................................................................................................................24

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1. Introduction

Name is a universal phenomenon found in every language and culture in the world.
People use names in order to recognize and distinguish one person or a thing from another.
Moreover, giving or receiving a name implies that a person has been ‘brought’ to existence –
recognized as a member of a particular culture and/or a community. The importance, meaning
and function of personal names have been discussed as early as in Plato’s dialogue “Cratylus”
where it was debated whether a name is “an instrument of teaching and distinguishing
natures” or whether it’s just a matter of “convention and agreement“.

As Bertills (2003) points out, names are born out of the interaction between a person,
their language community and environment, formed according to language-specific models
and influenced by the surrounding culture and society. Each culture has its own tradition of
naming and although different languages and cultures may contain identical name material
and the principles of naming are to a degree similar worldwide, names are often culture and
language specific (Bertills 2003a: 17). Even though it is universally accepted that the most
prominent function of proper names is that of reference – they are used as labels to identify
and single out a certain individual from the rest of the people, they are not monofunctional
(Anderson, 2007). Proper names, according to Bertills (2003: 393) can help us make sense of
the world around us by supplying structure and coherence to it.

The present study shifts the focus of attention from proper names in the actual world
to proper names of literary characters in the ‘world’ of a narrative. It aims at demonstrating,
relying on the leading postulates of Eco, Barthes, Bakhtin, Voloshinov and Pierce, and
through the meticulous analysis of etymology, phonology, syntax and especially semantics of
proper names of literary characters from the first three novels of the “Harry Potter” series by
J.K. Rowling that names of literary characters are not merely Millian arbitrary, meaningless
marks set upon things and individuals to distinguish one from another but an important
narrative device – unstable and open elements that serve as ‘triggers’ for a construction of
many different connotative meanings. The paper assumes that proper names of literary
characters uphold a motivated relationship with their referents - indicating physical and/or
psychological traits of their bearers as well as social/ethnic/cultural group to which the
particular character belongs.

Additionally, the present paper seeks to examine the role of the author, text and the
reader in meaning construction. It opposes Roland Barthes’ theory of the death of the author
and while partially accepts the notion of intertextuality postulating that the meaning of a text
does not reside in the text which is always rewritten – influenced by various texts previously
written (Barthes 1977, 146), it argues against the claim that the meaning depends exclusively
on the reader. Rather, it seeks to prove the second assumption that the author intentionally
uses specific proper names for specific characters that are, in turn, micro-narratives in
themselves in order to provide clues that her readers use for unlimited meaning construction.
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Thus, a present study advocates a ‘middle ground’ regarding meaning construction in a
narrative by postulating that the meaning of the text is actively constructed both by the author
and the reader.

The corpus of this research operating within the field of narrative semiotics consists of
17 proper names of characters found in the first three novels (“Harry Potter and The
Philosopher’s stone”, “Harry Potter and The Chamber of Secrets” and “Harry Potter and The
Prisoner of Azkaban”) of the “Harry Potter” series written by J.K. Rowling. The selected
proper names were analyzed in terms of etymology, phonology and semantics..

Due to the world-wide popularity of the series that does not fade even after eighteen
years, a great number of research papers and studies pertaining to various areas of linguistic
research have been done in an attempt to unravel the mystery of “the Harry Potter
phenomenon”. Consequently, various scholars dealt with the meaning of proper names of
characters, fantastic animals or places belonging to the world of fantasy created by J.K.
Rowling out of a belief that there is more to these names than meets the eye. The purpose of
the present study is not to present alternative sets of meanings – radically different from the
conclusions reached by previous authors who dealt with the aforementioned subject, but to
use these connotative meanings to reach general conclusions about the features of proper
names of literary characters in general as well as to point to the difference between proper
names in the actual world and the names of literary characters in the world of a narrative.
Most importantly, the purpose of the present study is to contribute, through the analysis of the
way in which the author uses the proper names of characters and to what end as well as
through the multiple connotative meanings and associations that readers might construe
merely from the proper names of characters, to the better understanding of how meaning is
constructed in a narrative. Finally, its purpose is to remind everyone interested in narrative
semiotics, literary criticism, narratology or translation that neither the author nor the reader
should be neglected when it comes to meaning construction in a narrative.

2. Theoretical background
2.1. Semantics of proper names

Semantics of proper names has long been a point of dispute among various scholars
belonging to the two leading, but contrasting, train of thoughts – descriptivism represented by
Frege and Russell and referentialism whose leading representatives are Mill and Kripke.
Frege (1892) and Russell (1905/1990) in their descriptivist theory proposed that proper names
acquire their referent through a set of qualities that a referent has to possess. This implies that
a proper name is almost equal to a set of descriptive statements and that the proper referent of
a name is whoever possesses the qualities described. Additionally, Frege (1892) makes a
difference between ‘reference’ or Bedeutung (the referent of a name) and ‘sense’ or Sinn (the
way in which a name refers to that referent) claiming that different names referring to the
same person may have different semantic structure. Russell (1905/1990) supported this view

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in asserting that the name refers to a description, and that description, like a definition, picks
out the bearer of the name.

A direct reference theory and its leading representative John Stuart Mill argues that
proper names have no meaning – more precisely, they have denotation but not connotation
and their semantic function consists simply of referring to an object and nothing else (W.R. de
Jong, 1982). They are tags that do not indicate or imply anything about an individual to whom
they refer. Saul Kripke, supporting Millianism, in his work Naming and Necessity (1981)
argued against the descriptivist theory of proper names postulating that names act as rigid
designators – the names refer to objects or individuals regardless of the qualities that they may
possess in different circumstances in any possible world. According to Kripke, objects acquire
their names through the process of baptism where they could be named by ostension or the
reference of the name might be fixed by a description. It is important to point out that Kripke
does not use ‘description’ in the Fregeian sense – according to his theory the description
merely fixes the reference of the name to the individual object, and the name would refer to
the object even if the object loses the properties which were initially used in the description.
After the initial baptism the name of the object is passed from one person to another, creating
a chain in which each user of a name must learn the original reference from the previous user
and intend to use it to refer to the same object that its predecessor used the name to refer to.
Consequently, each use of the name ultimately refers back to the original object or an
individual through the communicative chain among the users of the name.

The most difficult task that both the descriptivists and referentialists had to account
for, and which is of paramount importance for the present study, is the question of sense and
reference of proper names in literature. Having in mind that literary characters are not ‘real’
individuals and that they lack spatio-temporal location it seems that their names could not
possibly refer to anything or anyone. Descriptivists, Frege in particular, used the argument of
empty names to support its theory that names are not synonymous with their referents.
Namely, if the only function of naming is reference then these names would have no semantic
function at all. If that is true, then the sentence: “Albus Dumbledore is the headmaster of
Hogwarts.” would be meaningless. However, there is probably not a single individual that
would not be able to grasp the meaning of such a sentence. Therefore, Frege offers a solution
to the enigma of empty names by proposing that empty names have sense and are therefore
meaningful but lack reference.

Nevertheless, the apparent lack of referent posed a significant problem for Kripke and
his causal theory since if a name cannot be directly causally related to its referent because a
referent is a fictional person, then the causal theory cannot account for these names nor could
they be considered true proper names. In order to escape this paradox, Kripke in his Reference
and Existence (1973) developed the Pretense theory assuming that in context of fiction it is a
part of pretense that criteria for reference and the semantic criteria for naming are satisfied.
Additionally, this theory implies that in fiction no propositions are actually expressed, there is
just a pretense that they are expressed. Furthermore, according to this theory the characters in
fiction could not have possibly existed even if there had been found an individual in the actual
world that would have been sufficiently similar to a fictional character. Consequently, “Albus

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Dumbledore exists.” would be understood as a ‘pretended’ truth – that is, it is implicitly
bounded by “It is true in the novel that” operator. The pretense theory, as much as it partially
accounted for the problem of reference of proper names of fictional characters, still could not
thoroughly account for all semantic phenomena surrounding fiction and fictional characters.

Amie Thomasson in her work Fiction and Metaphysics (1999) offers the most
plausible solution regarding the (non)existence of fictional characters, their dependences and
the problem of naming. To start with, fictional characters are created intentionally by their
respective authors. Neither literary works nor the fictional characters are abstract entities that
exist somewhere waiting for the author to write about them, but rather – they are created
entities, brought to existence through the creative act of the author. Therefore, fictional
characters depend both on their authors and on literary texts. They are brought to existence by
their authors but continue to exist, regardless of the life or death of the authors, through
literary works that, in turn, never cease to exist until there are copies left and people/readers
able to understand and retell what they had read. These dependencies are very important for
resolving the ontological status of fictional characters and the problem of the reference of
their names. Thomasson relies on them when accounting for Kripke’s causal theory of
reference. Namely, it is true that fictional characters lack spatio-temporal location but they are
not completely severed from the spatio-temporal world. If we remember that they depend on
the creative act of their authors and literary works it can be concluded that they exist in any
worlds and time in which their authors exist. Thus, even though the name cannot be directly
casually related to its referent if the referent is the fictional character, it can be causally related
to a foundation of a referent, the text, to which in turn the referent is connected by the relation
of ontological dependence (Thomasson 1999:44). This enables one to use the name to refer to
a fictional character through their spatio-temporal foundations. Applying Kripke’s causal
theory of reference to proper names of fictional characters would, therefore, be possible but
must be conceived of differently than that for proper spatio-temporal objects (Thomasson
1999:47). The initial act of baptism where fictional characters acquire their names might be an
act of writing or reading which means that the naming ceremony is the part of the text. After
the name has been attached to a literary character through the words of the text it can be
passed from one person or text to the next in the same manner that it happens with the proper
names of ordinary individuals. There can be those who didn’t read the text where the initial
baptism took place but can learn the name of the fictional character from those who had. This
chain of communication leads, as it is again the case with proper names of ordinary
individuals, ultimately back to the creating of the character and the baptism process.

For the purpose of the present study a combination of Frege’s descriptivism and
Kripke’s causal theory of reference will be accepted as it will be demonstrated how names of
some of the chosen characters are causally related and can be traced back to the original name
bearers who were, predominantly, very prominent figures of mythology, history or literature.
These original referents are associated with certain number of descriptions/features that are
transmitted through the causal chain of reference onto the characters who bear the same name.

Nevertheless, when it comes to literary characters, very often the meanings of the
proper names can be used to identify their functions within the narrative as well as the

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intention of the author behind the choice of the particular names for particular characters.
Contrary to the process of name-giving in the actual world where sometimes the name given
at birth reflected the hopes of the name-giver for the name-bearer – it was believed that the
person would possess the characteristics associated with the name or that it would determine
its bearer’s destiny (nomen est omen), the features (physical, psychological, social etc.) of
literary characters often determine the choice of their names. Moreover, proper names of
literary characters usually reflect not the author’s intention for the name-bearers but for their
readers – as it will be demonstrated in the following subsection, the authors intentionally
choose particular names in order to serve as triggers for a multitude of associations that the
readers might construe.

2.2 Proper names of literary characters

Names of literary characters, due to the fact that name-givers are authors who are
active participants of their societies, often bear great similarity with names and naming in the
ordinary world. However, the criteria for name selection and name formation for characters in
a literary text is significantly different from name-giving in real life in terms of the structure,
content and function of the name (Bertills 2003: 394). Unlike in the real world where usually
the only function of the name is to identify its bearer without implying anything about its
characteristics, names of literary characters possess various connotative meanings and often
express a motivated relationship with their bearers defining them in terms of physical and
psychological features, expressing their socio-economic status or relationships with other
characters. Bertills in defining literary characters points out that,

names of literary characters may best be described as elements unfolding collages of

multiple meanings and functions relevant on various levels of the text. In other words,
personal names in literature are entangled in the narrative context which they may
epitomize. Yet they may also function as independent textual elements upholding
linguistic meaning. The lexical meanings of the name elements are particularly important;
the form and the content of the name may express significant aspects of the name-bearer
on both the connotative and denotative levels. (Bertills, 2003: 4)

Before venturing into the analysis of very many possible denotative and connotative
meanings of proper names in literary works as well as different classifying, descriptive and
narrative functions they may possess it is important to state their classification. Aniala at al.
(2008: 333 – 334) divide all literary names into two broad categories: fictive – those that refer
to fictive characters and imaginary places that exist only in the world of fiction but that often
bear some resemblance to the real-world in order to be understandable to the readers, and
non-fictive – also called authentic, that refer to places or people that exist in the real-world
that is outside of the world of fiction. The same authors offered a further division into
authentic, realistic but unauthentic (refer to names that could be used in the real world but
refer to places and people that exist in the world of fiction), artificial (invented/coined by the
author to refer to fictive things or people and do not exist in the real world) and borrowed
names (names taken from other literary works that do not exist in the real world). Bertills

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(2003: 10-11) offers a threefold division of names in the works of fiction for which she uses
an umbrella term – fictive names, into: conventional (established names, found in name
lexicons), invented (names not yet traceable or established in name lexicons) and imaginary
(completely meaningless names that bear no traces to the lexicon or to the onomasticon). Yet
another term in connection with the classification of proper names of literary characters that
Bertills mentions in Beyond Identification (2003) and that is very important for the purpose of
the present study is semantically loaded names – a term introduced by Theo Hermans (1985)
which refers to invented names in which some kind of semantic content is evident.

Proper names of literary characters belong to the literary work, they are intentionally
created for it and, therefore, both influence and are influenced by the narrative context. They
cannot be analyzed in isolation as they are, primarily, an important narrative device that
authors use for characterization as well as for different narrative purposes. Saukkonen (1984:
36)(in Bertills 2003: 37) suggests that:

The consideration of language, meaning and proper names with regard to literature must
take into account the literary purposes, the narrative context and the relationship between
the author, the readers and the text itself as these affect language use - and in turn, the
formation of proper names in the work of fiction. Language use in works of fiction is
connected to specific purposes - the aim of the artistic text is to create a certain
atmosphere, an image, a vision, which the recipient can experience, expand and transform
further in her/his consciousness and which can, in many ways, generally influence the
recipient's fundamental ideas, attitudes, emotions on a general level of her/his
consciousness.

Therefore, when analyzing proper names of literary characters the intention of the
author, the narrative context and the possible interpretation of the readers must be taken into
consideration. Barthes in his work S/Z (1974), claiming that a text is a representation of
culture, proposes five codes (proairetic, hermeutic, semic, symbolic and referential/cultural)
that constitute a framework for the analysis of any text. Proper names belong to the semic
code, a code that concerns the unit of a signifier that creates connotation, which provides
cultural stereotypes (models of personality, dressing, naming etc.) that enable the readers to
gather pieces of information about the characters (Bathes 1974: 17). Thus, a proper name may
be regarded as an umbrella term for all the traits, characteristics and information gathered
throughout the text related to the character.

While proper names in literary works always denote their bearers they may lead to a
chain of connotations depending on the ethnic and social background, education or age of the
reader or on the aspects outside language. Connotations may arise from the orthographic form
of a name, its etymology, phonetic form, syntax of semantics or be based on the narrative
context. Semantically loaded, or telling, names are particularly suggestive and represent a
valuable source of information for the reader. From the very name the reader may discover
physical and psychological traits of the character, ethnicity, its economic and social status or
predict its behavior and role throughout the novel. When the lexical meaning ‘fails’
connotation may arise from etymology where certain names may be connected with common
nouns which are associated with certain characteristics that, in turn, are transferred into the
character (e.g. Lilly in “Harry Potter” from the flower of the same name that is connected

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with virginity, purity, beauty and innocence – same as the literary character in question) or
from the phonetic aspect where phonesthemes, ideophones and similarities in terms of
pronunciation play a crucial function in interpretation and may point to certain features of the
character in question (e.g. Snape vs. snake).

Readers may also discover the relationships between characters based on their names
and modes of address. Having in mind that proper names in literary works form a
‘namescape’, an individual name, apart from being studied individually – in relation to its
name-bearer, should be studied in connection to the names of other characters in the narrative
(Bertills 2003: 94). Similarities in terms of proper names of a group of characters may
indicate a shared property – for example, longer names may indicate respectable, wealthy,
families of noble origin while short names are given to the members of ‘common’ families.
Different modes of address among characters may be indicators of closeness between them or
may point to a difference in terms of class or a position. Furthermore, when two characters
have two completely different, even opposite, names it may point to the strikingly different
roles that the two characters have in the literary work.

Authors use proper names in order to introduce they characters to the readers and thus
create a horizon of expectations that the readers will confirm of refute during the reading
process, structure the world of the narrative that they try to create, introduce the main theme
of the narrative or to, even, deceive the reader. J.K. Rowling in her “Harry Potter” series, as it
will be meticulously analyzed later in the present study, creates a fantasy world that exists and
is often intertwined with the actual world. Therefore, beside semantically loaded invented and
imaginary names, her characters have conventional proper names that serve as connectors
between the real and the magical world. Additionally, from the very names of the two greatest
wizards of her fantasy world the readers may discover the main theme of the narrative which
is later in the series further developed with all its complexities. Albus (Dumbledore) and Lord
Voldemort. The former connected with white, goodness and serenity while latter associated
with death, mortality, darkness and pain. Generally speaking, the main theme of the novel is
the constant fight between good and evil experienced not only on the macro-level of the novel
but also on the micro-level where some of the characters experience inner struggle as they
constantly keep crossing the line between the two sides. Moreover, authors can rely on
expected connotations that a proper name could evoke in the readers in order to mislead them
into misinterpretation for the purpose of the plot of the narrative. The readers create certain
expectations based on the proper names of the character (e.g. Sirius Black 1) only to discover,
during the reading process, their expectations ‘betrayed’ because the character behaves
completely the opposite (Bertills, 2003: 103-104).

Moreover, authors might use proper names in order to promote or condemn leading
ideologies, but – nevertheless, the analysis of the choice of proper names may reveal not only
1
In the beginning of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” presented as a blood-thirsty murderer
who betrayed Harry’s parents to Voldemort and who persistently tries to murder him. Therefore, the
readers make a connection between his surname ‘Black’ and the color black that indicates murder,
fear, and darkness. Later in the book it becomes obvious that Sirius is innocent and the first part of the
name proves to be more important for the interpretation as ‘Sirius’ is the name of the brightest star of
Canis Major (The Great Dog) constellation. Additionally, the shape of Black’s animagus is a dog.
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overtly perceived ideologies the author fights for or against, but certain covert ideologies as
well that the author did not want to express or that served as a driving force on the
unconscious level. The world of Harry Potter fights for tolerance and equality on all levels
which is expressed even in the author’s choice of proper names for the leading characters –
‘Harry’ an orphan boy with a common name defeats ‘Lord Voldemort’ who chooses a name
with a title that should suggest nobility and respectability, ‘Lupin’ - a werewolf is greatly
respected by Albus Dumbledore – the greatest wizard of his time, Parvati Petil and Cho
Chang – girls whose names strongly suggest their origin - an Indian and a Chinese girl, exist
of equal terms with George, Harry or Fred who are typically British. The question of power
and to what lengths one can go in pursuing it is presented in the name of one of the most
hated Lords in the works of fiction – Lord Voldemort. Originally named Tom Riddle, he
rejected this name because it was too common and selected the one that would evoke both
fear and respect. He succeeded in his intention as people refuse to use his name out of fear,
but in the end of every book his failure, leading eventually to his final demise, is inflicted by
the main character who bears a very common name ‘Harry’.

Sometimes authors use proper names to create archetypes and patterns that will be
known and recognized unconsciously by every reader and uses these archetypal patterns as
narrative devices. According to Northop Frye (1973), Carl Gustav Jung (1959), Joseph
Campbell (1949) and the rest of those who belong to archetypal literary criticism archetypes
are images, characters and themes that symbolically embody universal meanings and basic
human experiences. They are universally recognized and present in every culture in the world
because they are deeply embedded in the collective unconscious and involve racial memories
of situations, events and relationships from time immemorial (Jung 1959: 84). These
archetypal patterns evoke the same response in all people. Thus, the author uses proper names
that classify literary characters into well-known archetypes to make readers identify with the
characters, awake different associations and connotative meanings in the minds of the readers
or to facilitate their understanding of the story because it follows an already known universal
pattern.

It is important to point out that proper names of literary characters are never stable and
static elements but, rather, semiotic signs that are constantly changing by each reader who
brings its own meaning during the reading process. The author intentionally chooses
particular proper names in order to provide a sort of a starting point for its readers’ from
which they may draw various connotative meanings and associations in relation both to the
characters and the world of the narrative. Whether these meanings that are constantly created
and recreated by every reader are completely independent of the intention of the author and
the context of the narrative is yet another question that merits attention.

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2.3 Is the author really dead?

The question of who ultimately creates meaning of the text – the author, the reader or
the text itself has long been a controversial subject debated by various scholars interested in
narrative semiotics and literary criticism. Both Hirch (1967) and the scholars who belong to
Freudian literary criticism privilege the author in meaning construction. Freudian criticism
represents an approach to literary strongly influenced by psychoanalysis which claims that the
psyche of the author – both its conscious and unconscious decision, should be taken into
consideration when it comes to meaning production (Harland, 1999). Hirch, in his work
Validity of Interpretation (1967), argues that the author is the creator of the text which implies
that the text is intentionally created and, therefore, the author’s intention cannot be
disregarded in interpretation. According to Hirch the power of interpretation is reserved for
the author as he is the one who creates discourse which is essential in understanding the
meaning of words that are meaningless without a context.

New Criticism, represented by W.K. Wimsatt and Monroe Beardsley (1946/1949),

opposed previously discussed author-oriented theories advocating the view that the text itself
is the most important in the meaning construction. By introducing two leading concept of this
approach – ‘intentional fallacy’ and ‘affective fallacy’, Wimsatt and Beardsley (1946/1949)
claim that neither the intention of the author not the effect that a narrative or text has on a
reader is important for the interpretation. The text itself and its structure should be studied in
order to discover meaning.

Reader-response criticism advocates a completely opposite approach to the question of

meaning production from the one proposed by the scholars who support author-oriented
theories in arguing that the meaning of the text depends on and is produced by the reader
through the reading process. Although many leading scholars such as Iser (1972), Jauss
(1976), Rosenblatt (1978), Barthes (1968/1974) and the rest belonging to this stream of
literary criticism differ significantly in their views they all share a common belief that the
reader is the most important component in meaning creation and that there is not text without
the reader. Barthes in his works “The Death of the Author” (1968) and S/Z (1974) claims that
the meaning of the text does not come from the authors but is actively created by the reader
through the textual analysis. What Barthes tries to do is to liberate the text from the
‘hegemony’ of the author. The author does not precede or exists outside language but is
created by it. Consequently, he cannot claim any particular work since he had not written it –
the author, according to Barthes, is not the originator – he does not create anything new but
only rewrites what has already been written. A text is a multi-dimensional space in which a
variety of writings, none of them original, blend and clash (Barthes 1974: 21). Readers,
through each reading, create the text anew by creating their own meanings.

The present paper argues against the complete disregard of both the author and the
reader in meaning construction. Rather, it advocates a view that represents a sort of the
‘middle ground’ between the two polarities – the meaning of the text is actively constructed
both by the author and the reader and is socially and contextually dependent. In that matter it

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is closest to the views of Bakhtin and Voloshinov who regarded the text as dialogical and
heteroglot. Dialogism implies that they recognize the existence of multiple voice and
viewpoints in the text. Therefore, the author cannot monopolize meaning. Rather, the meaning
of the text is actively constructed both by the author and the reader. Meaning, according to
Voloshinov, does not reside in words as items of a dictionary, it does not reside in the
objectively posited world, but it is a joint act of creation by an author and a reader.

As it will be demonstrated through the analysis of the proper names of literary

characters, the text is intentionally created by the author for the reader and therefore that
creation cannot be completely severed from its creator. This means that authors provide the
context of the narrative which functions as a framework for meaning construction. It is not
implied that readers are given merely a passive role in meaning creation. On the contrary, the
present study relies on Eco’s (1981) views of the text as a fabric woven from signs, open to
various interpretations, which requires cooperation between the author and the reader in
meaning construction and interpretation (Eco, 1981: 29). Authors create texts and
intentionally leave gaps to be filled by each reader who constructs its own meanings through
the reading process using his social background and world knowledge. Nevertheless, if the
reader interprets certain parts of the text completely disregarding the context of the narrative
and the internal logical consistency of the story, the plot of the narrative may seem
meaningless and illogical.

Finally, it is important to tackle the issue of intertextuality in relation to meaning

construction as it will prove to be greatly significant for the present study due to the fact that
the original referents of some of the proper names that J.K. Rowling chose for her characters
are taken from other literary works. Intertextuality is a term, a concept, originally introduced
by Julia Kristeva (1980) who argues against the concept of the text as an isolated entity
operating in a self-contained manner. Rather, any text is both written and interpreted in light
of another text from which it borrows concepts, rhetoric or ideology which are, in turn,
merged in the new text in order to provide an additional layer of meanings. Therefore,
meaning is not transferred directly from writer to reader but instead is mediated through, or
filtered by, “codes” imparted to the writer and reader by other texts (Kristeva, 1980: 69).

3. Corpus analysis
3.1. Data and method

The corpus of the present study consists of nineteen proper names of literary
characters taken from the first three books – ‘Harry Potter and The Philosopher Stone’, ‘Harry
Potter and The Chamber of Secrets” and ‘Harry Potter and The Prisoner of Azkaban’ of the
Harry Potter series written by J. K. Rowling. Having in mind the large number of different
characters in these novels it was necessary to limit the scope of the present study to the
aforementioned first three books out of seven. The selected proper names will be described
and analyzed in terms of their etymology, syntax, semantics and phonology in order to prove
the starting assumption that proper names of literary characters possess various connotative
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meanings and often express a motivated relationship with their bearers defining them in terms
of physical and psychological features, expressing their socio-economic status or relationships
with other characters.

Additionally, it will be proven that proper names in literary works are intentionally
chosen by the authors as they represent an important narrative device that authors use for
various aims and purposes and from which the readers, apart from discovering different
features of their bearers, may also discover the main theme of the narrative as well as overt
and covert ideologies that authors fight for or against in a given literary work.

Finally, the results of the analysis will be used in order to prove the second assumption
that although each reader bring its own meanings to the text, the fact that the author
intentionally uses specific proper names for specific characters in order to provide clues that
her readers use for unlimited meaning construction speaks in favor of the claim that the
meaning of the text depends on both the author and the reader.

3.2. Names analysis

The most loved wizard boy owes his enormous worldwide success to J. K. Rowling’s
admirable talent to marvelously combine bits and pieces of tales already told. The art of the
storyteller, according to Sullivan (2004: 443), was not in inventing new stories but in retelling
something old and retelling it very well. The recognition for creating the best-selling book
series in history is a testimony that no one did it better than J. K. Rowling whose utopian,
fantasy, world is so appealing because it is not distant from the real one but, rather, represents
a combination of both the wizarding and the muggle world of contemporary England that
coexist side by side. In shaping this unique world the author uses specific proper names for
her characters that clearly depict this real-imaginary dualistic nature. As it will be seen from
the analysis of individual names, the proper names of students are mostly conventional proper
names from the anthroponymy of English while the names of the teachers are predominantly
Bertills’ imaginary names – coined by the author for the purpose of the story and they do not
exist in real-life onomastics.

It is important to point out that, similarly to the proper names in real-life that belong to
a particular culture, proper names of literary characters in a work of fiction form a system of
proper names that belong to the particular fictive world and actively interact with it (Bertills,
2003). Consequently, for the purpose of the present study proper names of individual
characters will be analyzed not in isolation but with regard to both the context of the narrative
and proper names of other characters which altogether influence the overall meaning of the
text.

The central part of every work of fiction is the main protagonist and all other
characters are there to contribute to his/her ‘story’. Consequently, the name of the main
protagonist is equally vital as it can influence the readers’ impression about the narrative as a
whole. Harry is a typical British conventional name which can be easily pronounced and
recognized as a cultural connector – it is used by the author to connect the story to a

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particular, British, culture. Moreover, according to Aniala et al. (2008), giving a fictive person
such a normal name can be used to emphasize character's normality in comparison with the
surroundings. In order to make her world of fantasy convincing to the reader, the author chose
a ‘normal’, even too common name with which the readers may easily identify. Moreover,
from the very beginning of the first book it is clear that Harry is an orphan whose uncle and
aunt mistreat him on every occasion. A seemingly ordinary orphan boy is, yet again,
purposely used by the author in order to awake the readers’ innate memories, collective
unconscious, as the archetype of the orphan is too familiar to all the readers from previous
experiences and makes her main character unmistakably recognized and sympathized with.

However, from the etymological point of view it can be seen that the name Harry is
not so ordinary. It is a Medieval English form of Henry which is a popular name for rulers and
which, in turn, derives from the Germanic name Heimirich which meant ‘home ruler’. A
combination of a common orphan boy whose name is reserved for rulers invokes a reference
to yet another well-known orphan King – King Arthur and make readers create, according to
Jauss (1976) and his Reader Response Theory, a horizon of expectations regarding this
character and his future behavior.

In the beginning of the first book, while boarding the Hogwarts Express, Harry meets
a noisy woman and her four sons, one of whom is his future best friend – Ron Weasley. When
it comes to this character both first name and the surname are important and speak volumes
about the character’s personality, behavior and his connection to the main character. Ron
comes from Ronald which, in turn, comes from the Old Norse Ragnvaldr which means
‘ruler’s counselor’. Additionally, in Arthurian legend Ron is the name of King Arthur’s trusty
ebony spear. If the main character is a ‘home ruler’ and his best friend is ‘ruler’s counselor’
the readers may create certain assumptions about their relationship from their proper names
which would be confirmed during the reading process because they remain friends until the
end and Ron provides Harry with selfless love and support throughout the series. Weasley
offers further insight into the personality of this character as it is connected to weasels which
are small animals with reddish brown fur who are known to have bad reputation especially in
Ireland where they are considered unfortunate animals (OAD, 2011). Ron and his entire
family have red hair which is clearly connected with ‘brown-reddish fur’ of weasels and they
are unfortunate because they are poor. This is confirmed in “Harry Potter and the Philosopher
Stone” when Ron tells Harry that he wears Bill’s old robes, Charlie’s old wand and Percy’s
old rat. This further complements readers impression of Harry and the relationship between
the two boys as they perfectly understand each other – Ron’s misfortune was Harry’s
misfortune his entire life with the Dursleys that he spent wearing Dudley’s old clothes and not
getting birthday presents. The word weasel may also, from the semantic point of view,
describe someone who he is deceitful or cowardly (OAD, 2011). Although deceit and
treachery cannot be connected to Ron, his cowardice is evident in almost every risky
situation. The readers may, led by this, at first believe, as Ron himself often does, that this
character is not as good or as brave as his older brothers. However, as the story progresses and
becomes darker in the later books it becomes clear that the first part of his name is more
important in characterization and that the author purposely chose this almost oxymoronic
combination of a name and a surname to depict the character that is often having an inner
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conflict between doing what he fears to do and doing the right thing for his friends, but
doubtlessly always chooses the latter. It is worth mentioning that if the ‘boy who lived’ is the
archetype of the hero, someone whose name means ‘ruler’s counselor’ and who lives up to his
name throughout the story is a typical archetype of the helper.

Hermione Granger, the smartest witch of her age, is the third member of the famous
trio and Harry’s second best friend in the books. Unlike the proper names of the previous two
characters, J. K. Rowling chose more ‘unusual’ name and a very common surname for her
leading female character. Hermione is derived from Hermes which is the Greek messenger
God. In Greek mythology, Hermione was the daughter of Melenaus and Helen
(behindthename.com). Indeed, quite similarly to the original referent of the name, Hermione
is often recognized as the most intelligent student who on many different occasions
communicates her ideas most intelligibly and often finds in books solutions that help them
overcome the troubles they encounter. This name is also an example of intertextuality since
one of the characters in Shakespeare’s Winter Tale is also called Hermione and J. K. Rowling
admitted being influenced by Shakespeare in creating her own character (Lydon, 1999).
However, the aforementioned character is not well-known and the probability that the readers
would connect it to Shakespeare is very unlikely. More important is its connection to French
hermine – ermine in English which is a small animal in the weasel tribe (OAD, 2011). This is
a clear connection to Ron and from it the readers may infer that Hermione and Ron will have
a special bond – which proves to be true in the sixth and seventh book of the series. The
surname Granger is of Old French origin; it is derived from grangier which meant ‘farm
steward, man in charge of a grange”. According to another source it is a British surname
derived from grange which is a term for a barn or farm with buildings that store grain. The
reference of Hermione’s surname to farms, farmers and agriculture the reader can connect
with her muggle origin. Her parents are not wizards and thus – a connection to Earth is
symbolically a connection to the muggle world. Additionally, as it was the case with the first
name, the surname of this character can be related to characters from another two novels –
namely, in ‘Fahrenheit 451’ by Ray Bradbury (1953), there is a man named Granger, who has
a photographic memory that he uses only for memorizing books. ‘Granger’ is also the first
name of a character in a book called ‘Frindle’ by the American Andrew Clements (1996). Mrs
Granger is a prim and proper person, who always forces people to obey the rules and play by
them. The reader, if he is familiar with these two novels, can easily relate memorizing books
and forcing other people to obey rules to Hermione whose obsession with knowledge and
rules is evident in every situation. Although her knowledge helped her friends numerous times
in difficult situations, her obsession with memorizing books and learning in a combination
with her ‘common’ origin can be interpreted as her wish to make up by knowledge for what
she lacked by birth.

The first boy that the main character meets when buying robes for his first year at
school is not named during this occasion – the only description that the readers get is Harry’s
bad feeling about the boys as he reminds him of his cousin Dudley who bullied him. Not
naming in literature is as important as naming. While Harry is named from the start which
enables the readers to identify and sympathize with him, the boy remains unnamed until he
introduces himself to Harry on the train as “Malfoy, Draco Malfoy” (Harry Potter and The
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Philosopher Stone 1997:108). The bad feeling that the readers get from Harry’s reference to
his cousin Dudley only intensifies after finding out the boy’s name. Draco is unmistakably,
through its Latin roots in draco which is a Latin word for dragon, related to one of the most
ancient symbols of evil – dragons or snakes. In ancient times dragons were represented as
huge snakes with legs. This is also a reference to Draco’s house at Hogwarts – Slytherin
whose symbol is a snake and that is, yet again, connected to evil as the readers learn early in
the series that the largest number of dark wizards came precisely from this house. Unlike
other students with common names, Draco is the only one with a distinguished name whose
roots are easily traced back to Latin. A distinguished name is used to indicate that he comes
from a well-known, wealthy, family of wizards with a long tradition. This assumption can
also be confirmed when his attitudes towards other of his fellow students of mixed origin are
taken into consideration. He clearly despises anyone who is not of ‘pure-blood’. The name
could also be connected to the adjective draconic which means 'rigorous, harsh, severe, cruel'
(OED, 2011). A combination of these connotations and Harry’s perceived similarities
between Draco and Dudley lead readers to put these two characters on the opposite sides of
the pole and to correctly predict Draco’s future relationship and behavior towards Harry.
Indeed, Draco proves to possess all the ‘qualities’ implied by his name and similarly to
Dudley who bullied Harry at home, Draco continues that tradition at Hogwarts. His surname
Malfoy do not improve readers’ opinion as the prefix Mal- invokes a reference to Latin male
‘ill, badly’ or malus ‘bad’ and is found in adjectives such as ‘malicious’, ‘malignant’,
‘malevolent’ which all point to something bad – either behavior or treatment of other people.
The second part foy is obsolete in Modern English but it comes from French and means ‘faith,
allegiance, homage’. Therefore, ‘bad faith’ clearly speaks something about Draco’s behavior
and treatment of other, but also about his family’s connection and allegiance to the Dark Lord.
Moreover, the striking differences between Harry and Draco may clearly make readers
discover the main theme of the narrative which is later confirmed in names of Albus
Dumbledore and Lord Voldemort – a constant batter between good and evil.

In the entire series Draco cannot be separated from his father Lucius and his two
partners in crime Gregory Goyle and Vincent Crabbe. The well-known proverb “like father
like son” can be applied to Draco and Lucius who apart from sharing the features indicated by
their surname share certain similarities when it comes to first names as well. Lucius brings to
mind connotations with Lucifer that is in the Christian tradition known as a proper name of
the Devil before the fall. Additionally, it is an alternative spelling of the adjective luscious
which is connected to something rich and attractive which may point to the wealth and
connections that Lucius has. Draco’s friends Gregory and Vincent have two conventional
names of British origin but the combination of their first names and surnames provide
additional information to the readers about these characters. The word crab can easily be
perceived in the surname Crabbe which indicates slowness of the character – both in terms of
his physical movements and his wit. The pronunciation of Gregory Goyle is similar to the one
of gargoyle which provokes in the readers the connotations of something ugly and grotesque.
This combination is intentionally used by the author in order to describe her character who is
indeed like a gargoyle with his muscular body and long, gorilla, arms (Harry Potter and the
Chamber of Secrets 1998: 208). Moreover, the author plays with words as when the initial

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letter of the names Crabbe and Goyle are substituted the words grab and coil are the result. If
Malfoy is symbolically a dragon-snake, his friends are metaphorically his extension as snakes
grab and coil its prey.

While King Arthur had Merlin for his mentor, Harry Potter resembles his orphan
predecessor in having Albus Dumbledore. The greatest and the most powerful wizard ever
known has never left Harry – he was with his since the moment he brought him to his uncle
and aunt until the very end. From the first encounter with this character early in the first book
until the last page of the seventh book the readers never question the created impression of
Albus Dumbledore even though throughout the seventh book even Harry has his doubts about
him. Albus comes from Latin and it means ‘white’ as well as ‘wisdom’ from alb and perfectly
describes Dumbledore who has a long white beard and grey hair and the readers perceive him
in the same manner as Harry – he is all-powerful and all-knowing. White hair and long white
beard together with wisdom make readers connect Dumbledore to Merlin from the Arthurian
legend and to Gandalf from Tolkien’s “Lord of the Rings” which affects their expectations for
this character. The archetype of the wizard is, once again, created by the author by mere
naming. White is also symbolically connected to goodness, moral purity, light and serenity
which are traits and virtues that perfectly describe Albus Dumbledore. His goodness and
moral purity is never questioned and he also invokes goodness in every character believing
that every person must possess something good. He is very protective – not only of Harry but
also of all of his students and teachers working at Hogwarts. Harry often describes how he felt
safe whenever Dumbledore is around:

You couldn’t help trusting Albus Dumbledore, and as Harry watched him beaming around at the
students, he felt really calm for the first time since the Dementors had entered the train compartment.
(Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban 1999: 91)

which refers to the aura of serenity and composure that this character gives off. The surname
Dumbledore is much harder for interpretation in terms of semantics. It is an 18th century
English word for ‘bumblebee’ that was at that time also called ‘humble-bee’ because of the
buzzing sound the bees make. Additionally, the surname can be understood to mean a ‘golden
bee’, a compound of bumble and French d ‘or (Oittinen 2008: 123). In terms of phonology the
surname can be related to words such as tumble, fumble, humble, bumble, jumble or mumble
which all refer to doing something awkwardly and in a confused manner which all, in turn,
describe a part of Dumbledore’s personality which makes him appealing to the readers and
easy to identify with despite his power and wisdom. Harry and many other characters in the
books find Dumbledore’s likes for chamber music, lemon drops and tenpin bowling strange
due to the fact that it is not something that is usually expected from someone wise and
respected. However, this part of his name as well as of his personality that it depicts enables
the readers through the main protagonist to see Dumbledore as human and as flawed as
anybody else which facilitate the process of identification with the character.

If Albus Dumbledore represents goodness and whiteness, Lord Voldemort represents

everything opposite. It is a particularly telling name which perfectly fits the character and
invokes feelings of fear, detachment and resentment in the readers from the very beginning.
Voldemort is strongly connected to death – whether in terms of etymology, semantics and/or
16 | P a g e
its phonology. The name can be divided into three parts vol de mort which in French means
‘flight of death’ or ‘theft of death’. It may refer to the fact that Voldemort was not killed by a
killing curse but merely defeated which, in turn, may suggest that he conquered death. This is
confirmed throughout the series as it becomes clear that death or, rather, the avoidance of
death is Voldemort’s everlasting obsession. In terms of phonology, the second, or the third
part of the name mort alludes to mortal, mortality, mortify which all connected to death or
pain. Death and pain is what Voldemort brings both to the main protagonist whom he made an
orphan and to the rest of the wizarding world. His deeds are so terrifying that everyone
(except for Harry and Dumbledore) is afraid to call him by his name. He-who-must-not-be-
named, you-know-who or the Dark Lord are the accepted alternatives that wizards and
witches use when referring to this character. His connection to darkness, death and evil is
further reinforced by the name of his followers – Death Eaters. The importance of names and
naming in general and its tight connection to one’s identity can be seen in the fact that Lord
Voldemort is a self-proclaimed name of the character – it is the anagram of his birth name
Tom Marvolo Riddle. Tom is a conventional name, too common for someone who despise
anyone of mixed origin and who is, at the same time, so obsessed with power. Thus it had to
be changed into something that would be unique, but also into something that invoke fear and
respect. The ‘lord’ indicates a man of a high rank or someone who has been given the title
Lord as an honor (OED, 2011). Consequently, it suggests that the character considers himself
someone who should be honored. Additionally, the connection between his birth name and his
chosen name is an intelligent word play by the author because when his birth name is first
mentioned in the second book the readers still do not now that Tom Marvolo Riddle is Lord
Voldemort. The Riddle part in his name indicates that there is more to this boy (he appears as
a memory of his 17 year-old self) – it is a riddle that the readers have to solve. Moreover, the
fact that the name of this character stands in a direct opposition with the name of Albus
Dumbledore point to the theme of the narrative and the readers may easily recognize the
archetypal fight between light and darkness, good and evil, deeply embedded into Jung’s
collective unconscious.

One of the character that appear early in the first book is Minerva McGonagall – the
teacher of transfiguration at Hogwarts and the head of Gryffindor. Although at the beginning
she may appear very stern and cold to the readers, throughout the books other aspects of her
personality are revealed which are all depicted in her name. The surname McGonagall is not
very important in terms of connotations as J. K. Rowling herself said that she named this
character after the famous Scottish poet William McGonagall whose surname she just loved
(Lydon, 1999). However, there is no similarity between the poet who is famous because his
poems show no skill or understanding of poetry but are very funny and popular as a result
(OAD, 2011) and the character who is an excellent and a very skillful teacher and witch. The
aforementioned surname only points to the Scottish origin of professor McGonagall. The first
name is much more important as Minerva is the Ancient Roman goddess of wisdom. The
Romans associated her name with the Latin word mens which means mind/intellect. She was
also the Roman goddess of schoolchildren. Later, when she was identified with the Greek
goddess Athena she gained her role as a deity of war and combat. The readers can trace the
connotations of wisdom, intellect, kindness, war, combat and bravery as leading traits of this

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character’s personality through every book. Although stern and described as the only teacher
that can keep any class silent the proof of her kindness can be seen when she gives Harry a
very expensive broom or on numerous occasions when she shows her feelings. In the fifth
book when one of the teachers gets fired she is the one who goes to help and ends up in a
hospital because she was fighting against three people. Her bravery is further demonstrated in
the later books as she remains loyal to Hogwarts, Harry and Dumbledore although her life is
at risk. Additionally, it is no wonder that her name points to the goddess of school children as
the character is one of the best teachers at Hogwarts and thus awakens the readers’ collective
unconscious enabling them to recognize this character as the archetype of the teacher.

The most controversial character in the series is Severus Snape, the potion master and
the teacher that dislikes Harry the most. It is also one of the few characters who completely
betrays readers’ expectations built on various connotations invoked by both his name and a
surname. Upon the first encounter with Harry, Snape is described as a man with greasy black
hair, a hooked nose, sallow skin and black eyes that “were cold and empty and made you
think of dark tunnels” (Harry Potter and the Philosopher Stone 1997: 150). Both his name and
a surname are semantically expressive and they reinforce readers’ negative opinion of him
that they gain through Harry’s point of view. Severus comes from Latin severus which means
severe that, in turn, points to somebody that is hard, cruel and rigorous in one's treatment of,
or attitude towards offenders (OED, 2011). His severe behavior is best depicted in his
treatment of Harry and his friends who he punishes whenever he gets the chance. The
negative impression is further intensified in his surname. Snape bears orthographic and
phonological similarity with snake which is the most ancient symbol of evil. It also points to
the fact that Snape is the head of Slytherin the symbol of which is a snake. In the fourth book
of the series readers’ further confirm their opinion of this character when it is discovered that
Snape was once a Death Eater. Nevertheless, J. K. Rowling intelligently chose this name for
the character as she intended to invoke precisely the connotations that the name and a
surname of Severus Snape invoked in the readers in order to misguide the reader, for the
purpose of the plot, into believing that Snape is genuinely evil. It is not until the last book that
the readers discover Snape might be the character that suffered the most.

Another character whose name J. K. Rowling uses to deceive her readers is Harry’s
godfather and his father’s best friend Sirius Black. Sirius gets introduced to the reader early in
the third book “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban” as it becomes clear that he is the
prisoner who committed terrible crimes and escaped from Azkaban in order to murder Harry.
Relying on the context the readers connect his surname Black with the color black which
invokes connotations of evil, darkness and death. Until the very end the readers are led, or
misled, to believe that Sirius is a dark wizard because he, allegedly, is the one who was the
secret keeper of the Potters and who betrayed them to Voldemort which, in turn, enabled him
to find and kill them. Only after the main protagonist discovers the truth it becomes clear that
the first name of this character is much more important for the characterization. Sirius is the
name of the brightest star in Canis Major, also called The Great Dog constellation. After
finding out the whole story about Sirius, James and their friendship it becomes clear that
Sirius was the brightest star in Harry’s father life which he continues to be in Harry’s until his
death in the fifth book. Additionally, his animagus is a big black dog which bears an obvious
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connection to The Great Dog. James Potter and Sirius Black cannot be mentioned or even
conceived of without the third member of their trio – Remus Lupin. Harry meets him at
Hogwarts Express and later finds out that Lupin is the new Defense Against the Dark Arts
teacher. This is yet another character whose name the author carefully chose to reveal to the
readers who are able to interpret it more about the character. Remus was, originally, in Roman
mythology one of the founders of Rome who was suckled by a wolf. Lupin comes from the
Latin word lupus which means ‘wolf’. These implications together with the fact that Lupin is
always ‘sick’ during the full moon may suggest to the readers that he is a werewolf much
earlier that Hermione actually confirms it.

Proper names of other teachers and Hogwarts’ personnel are equally suggestive and
expressive indicating either the subject that the character is teaching or the profession of its
bearer. Herbology, the subject concerning magical plants, is taught by professor Sprout which
is connected to the noun sprout which is defined as a shoot of plants. Professor Vector teacher
Arithmancy which represents divination by numbers while Sybill Trelawney’s subject is
divination. Sybil is an antique name from Greek mythology for a priestess and a woman who
could look into the future. It comes from the Lating sibylla which means seer. T.S. Eliot in the
epigraph to his famous poem “The Wasteland” also mentions Sibyll as a prophetess. Argus
Filch is a caretaker at Hogwarts who is always eager to catch students doing something
inappropriate and forbidden. The name Argus that comes from a mythological person said to
have a hundred eyes (OED, 2011) perfectly suits him. Another two members of the Hogwarts
staff also have names suitable to their character and profession – Madam Pomfrey who is a
nurse at Hogwarts has both her first name and a surname derived from plants that can be used
as medicines which clearly refer to her position as a healer at Hogwarts. The librarian, Madam
Pince, has a surname that is a clipping of pince-nez which are spectacles pinched on the nose
by a clip. Readers often need glasses so the surname may indicate the character’s profession
as a guardian of Hogwarts library.

4. Discussion

The results of the analysis of proper names of literary characters of the first three
novels from the “Harry Potter” series confirms the starting hypothesis of the present study and
suggest that proper names of literary characters are, indeed, neither arbitrary marks set upon
individuals in order to distinguish him/her from the rest of the characters nor do they have
only denotation but not connotation. Unlike proper names in the real world whose semantic
function consists simply of referring to an object and nothing else, proper names of literary
characters are a rich source of various connotative meanings and show a motivated
relationship with their bearers - indicating certain physical and/or psychological traits of their
referents, as well as social/ethnic/cultural group to which the particular character belongs as
well as the relationship between one character or a group of characters and another. The
results of the analysis have proven that all proper names, even conventional, have their
meanings and functions in a literary work and enable the readers to discover different
characteristics of both individual characters and a literary work in general.

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 The system of proper names in the novels reflects the organization and structure of the
fictive world that J. K. Rowling tried to create. Her fictive world is not situated in an
alternative reality but in the present-day England where wizards and muggles interact. This
division but, paradoxically, also interrelatedness of the two worlds is reflected in the proper
names of the characters. Proper names of young wizards and witches that are students at
Hogwards are mostly conventional names from the real-world British anthroponymy and have
a double function in the narrative. Firstly, they connect both fictive characters and the fictive
world to a particular context and culture – namely, that of England. Secondly, their function is
to serve as connectors between the two worlds as some of their bearers come from the muggle
British society into the wizarding world of Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry.
Proper names of teachers at Hogwarts as well as the name of the main villain, on the other
hand, are mostly semantically loaded Ainiala’s (2008) artificial or Bertills’ (2003) imaginary
and invented proper names coined by the author that are suggestive and/or expressive and
from which the readers may discover, as it was shown in the analysis, physical and/or
psychological characteristics of their bearers, ethnicity as well as the schools subject which a
particular character teaches. Generally speaking the names of the professors as well as Lord
Voldemort form a different namescape from that of the students’ as they are more linked to
the magical world.

Furthermore, the findings suggest that proper names of literary characters are
particularly tied to both the context of the novel and proper names of other characters.
Therefore, certain shades of meaning are available only when a proper name is seen and
analyzed not only in isolation but in relation to the context and other proper names. Similar
names indicate similarities between characters while different names are often used in order to
suggest disparities among characters. In the three novel examined it is perceived that all
characters that are ‘evil’ share similar connotative meanings of their proper names – they are
all connected to darkness, snakes, death or evil doings of sorts. Similarly, proper names of the
good characters share connotative meanings of light, bravery, loyalty, intelligence and
wisdom among many others. Moreover, the relationships among characters are indicated in
their proper names as it is the case of Harry and Ron or Ron and Hermione. Only if readers
consider their proper names as a part of the ‘web’ of names in the literary work are they able
to assume that Harry and Ron’s friendship is suggested in the very names – Harry is
etymologically connected to the Medieval English name Henry which is a popular name for
rulers and which, in turn, derives from the Germanic name Heimirich which meant ‘home
ruler’ while Ronald is connected to the Old Norse Ragnvaldr which means ‘ruler’s counselor’.
Additionally, Ron’s surname Weasley bears an obvious connection to weasels while
Hermione is connected to French hermine – ermine in English which is a small animal in the
weasel tribe. This is a clear connection to Ron and it indicates that Hermione and Ron will
have a special bond – which proves to be true in the sixth and seventh book of the series.

The results have also shown that specific proper names are intentionally chosen by the
author in order to suit their bearers. Unlike the process of naming in the real world where
sometimes the name given at birth reflected the hopes of the name-giver for the name-bearer,
the features (physical, psychological, social etc.) of literary characters often determine the
choice of their names. Moreover, proper names of literary characters usually reflect not the
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author’s intention for the name-bearers but for their readers – they intentionally choose
particular names in order to serve as triggers for a multitude of associations that the readers
might construe. Therefore, the author through the particular proper name might potentially
reveal to the readers physical and/or psychological features of the character; its ethnic origin
and social status; its profession or relation to other characters in the narrative as well as its
potential behavior or a future role in the story.

Apart from being used by the author in order to reveal something more about their
bearers and thus enabling the readers to form a ‘bond’ with characters, it is shown that proper
names in a work of literature are an important narrative device that perform different narrative
functions. J.K. Rowling by mere naming creates the narrative structure that follows
Campbell’s model of the monomyth or hero's journey that is one the major plots in literature
as it contains many archetypal patterns mirroring basic human experiences that are part of our
collective unconscious and can be observed at any time in any culture. Harry, starting from
the meaning of his name which is ‘home ruler’ through specific circumstances of his birth to
very many different pieces of information available throughout the novels, embodies the hero
archetype immediately followed by Ron, Ronald, Weasely whose name means ‘ruler’s
counselor’ and who, firstly by his very name and later through his deeds, represents the
archetype of the helper. Albus Dumbledore, as it was shown, embodies the archetype of the
wizard bearing striking similarities with other well-known wizards – Merlin and Gandalf.
Moreover, if analyzed in connection with the main protagonist, he also represents the
archetype of the mentor who trains the hero during the initiation stage and dies when the
training stage comes to an end to enable the hero to find his own way by relying on his own
strength. If Harry Potter represents the archetype of the hero, then Lord Voldemort is
obviously an archetypal villan. In comparison to all proper names of the evil characters, the
name Lord Voldemort immediatelly invokes the most negative associations and connotations
in the vast majority of readers. It is the only name that bears such a clear and direct
connection to death, recognizable not only for the British readers but worldwide – in almost
all the languages in the world mort(e) umistakably suggest death or something closely related
to it. In structuring her narrative as a monomyth and making her characters resemble and
represent well-know archetypes the author facilitate readers’ identification with the characters
as well as their understanding of the narrative in general because, according to Jung (1959),
we are attracted to specific types of stories and characters due to their appeal to our collective
unconscious.

Proper names of literary characters might also be used by the author to create the
setting of the narrative as well as to indicate the theme. In the three novels examined the
author uses proper names of literary characters in order to create her fictional world that is
situated in and interacts with the contemporary world of everyday Britain. Consequently, one
group of characters bear conventional names from British anthroponymy while the other
group of characters has imaginary or fictive names that are more connected to the magical
world. The main theme of the narrative is also embodied and can be deduced from proper
names of the characters. Albus Dumbledore whose name is connected with the white color
which, in turn, indicates goodness, serenity, light and wisdom is directly opposed to Lord
Voldemort or the Dark Lord whose name indicates death, darkness, evil and pain. The
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archetypal fight between good and evil, darkness and light, reflected in the meanings of these
two characters also represents the main theme of the narrative present in every of the seven
books from the series.

The fact that the results of the analysis prove that proper names of literary characters
are intentionally chosen by the authors in order to serve as triggers for various connotative
meanings that the readers might construe as well as important narrative devices confirms the
second hypothesis that the meaning of the text does not depend exclusively on the reader and
that authors’ intention cannot be completely disregarded. While it is true that literary texts are
open to various interpretations and that each reader brings its own meaning to the text
depending on his/her age, education, social and cultural background it should also be taken
into consideration that all literary works are intentionally created by authors who cannot
control all the possible interpretations that the readers might provide but who create the
context of the narrative which functions as a framework for meaning construction. As it was
demonstrated on the example of proper names of literary characters from the Harry Potter
series authors create texts and intentionally leave gaps to be filled by each reader who
constructs its own meanings through the reading process using his social background and
world knowledge. Therefore, not every reader will be able to connect Ron with the Old Norse
Ragnvaldr and come to the conclusion that ‘ruler’s counselor’ will be Harry’s best friend nor
will every reader be able to connect Hermione to Ray Bradbury’s character who has a
photographic memory that he uses only for memorizing books which is transferred to J. K.
Rowling’s Hermione. Nevertheless, even if the reader fails to recognize these clues left by the
author he/she will, eventually, through the reading process and relying on the context reach
the same conclusions and form the same opinion as the reader who recognized the indications
upon reading the character’s name. On the other hand, if the reader interprets certain parts of
the text completely disregarding the context of the narrative and author’s intentions, the plot
of the narrative may seem meaningless and illogical. Using the example of the examined
proper names – if, by any chance, any reader misinterprets Voldemort’s name and connects it
with something good instead with evil doings and death the complete narrative would not
make any sense. Therefore, the findings of the present study suggest that the meaning of the
text is actively constructed both by the author and the reader.

Lastly, it is worth mentioning that the results of the analysis showed that proper names
of many characters were taken from other literary works which suggest that the meaning of
the text is strongly influenced not only by the author and the readers but also by other literary
texts from which it borrows symbols, concepts or ideology which are embedded into the new
text in order to create an additional layer of meaning available for the readers who are able to
recognize it. Therefore, it has to be pointed out that both the author and the readers are
influenced by other texts in writing and interpreting any literary work.

5. Conclusion

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 The aim of the present study dealing with meanings and functions of proper names of
literary characters was to examine whether there are differences in proper names as well as in
the very process of naming between the real world and a world of a narrative starting from the
first assumption that proper names of literary characters have a motivated relationship with
their bearers describing them in terms of physical/physiological features, ethnic origin, social
status or predict their possible behavior. Moreover, apart from the distinguishing a certain
character, in the present study it was assumed that proper names of characters in a literary
work are an important narrative device with very many different functions that the author uses
for characterization, or to structure the narrative, indicate the main theme, reveal the
relationships between the characters as well as ‘clues’ that, in turn, serve as triggers for the
readers’ meaning construction.

Secondly, the aforementioned research paper aimed at examining the role of the
author, text and the reader in meaning construction. It was assumed that the meaning of the
text does not depend exclusively on the reader but, rather, due to the fact that any literary
work is an intentional creation of its author whose role cannot be disregarded, that it is
actively constructed by both the author and the reader who are, nevertheless, in their creation
as well as interpretation influenced by other texts previously written.

The analysis of meanings and functions of the proper names of literary characters from
the first three books in the Harry Potter series were used as a starting point in the present
study whose purpose was not to come up with a new set or sets of connotative meanings not
mentioned in any of the previous papers that dealt with the proper names but to use meanings
and functions of these names to reach general conclusions about the features of proper names
of literary characters in general as well as to point to the difference between proper names in
the actual world and the names of literary characters in the world of a narrative. Additionally,
the purpose of the present study was to contribute to the better understanding of how meaning
is constructed in a narrative as well as to remind everyone interested in narrative semiotics,
literary criticism, narratology or translation that neither the author nor the reader should be
neglected when it comes to meaning construction.

The results of the analysis confirmed the first assumption as it was discovered that
each of the examined proper names – whether conventional names of the students or
imaginary and invented names of the teachers, Lord Voldemort, and staff at Hogwarts, apart
from possessing various connotative meanings, were intentionally chosen by the author for
their bearers with whom they indeed show a motivated relationship describing them in terms
of physical and psychological features, social status, ethnic origin, professions or predicting
their future behavior. Moreover, it was also confirmed that the author used proper names for
various narrative functions regarding the structure and theme of the novel as well as
characterization.

The second assumption was also confirmed as the results proved that the author
intentionally chose the selected proper names in order to serve as triggers for their readers’
meaning construction which lead to the conclusion that although each reader brings its own
meaning to the text and although there is no text without the reader, the role of the author in

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the meaning construction cannot be completely disregarded. The text is the creation of the
author who intentionally created it for the purpose of communicating or transferring
something to the one who reads. Therefore, the text is a stimulus for free associations to
which each reader comes with its own interpretation but to what extent that interpretation
could be free without crossing the fine line and turning into overinterpretation depends on the
framework set and created by the author.

The present study – the results obtained and conclusions reached may serve as a good
starting point for further research. One possible suggestion is to account for the names of
places and imaginary creatures in a work of fiction. Secondly, the question of how non-
existent entities could have names as well as whether literary characters are non-existent for
the authors as well as readers should be answered. How is it possible that we can refer, talk,
even sympathize and empathize, admire or condemn, have certain belief about non-existent
entities that do not have a spatio-temporal location? Such a question would be dealing with
the ontology and metaphysics of fictional characters and could, therefore, represent a valuable
contribution to the ongoing debate about the subject in the field of the philosophy of mind.

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