Harry Wells' full name is given in the credits as 'Sergeant Harry G. Wells'. This has nothing to do with meaning and everything to do with Neil Marshall, the director of Dog Soldiers, admitting that he wanted to indirectly name one of the characters after his favourite author. (Indirectly, because the author's first name was Herbert.) I decided the Harry part was short for Harold before I became aware that in England it's more often a nickname for Henry; oh well. Still, it's bloody appropriate given that it means "leader of the army". No lie. 's derived from Old English here "army" and weald "leader, ruler". The G is for George, and that- well. From the Greek name Γεωργιος (Georgios) which was derived from the Greek word γεωργος (georgos) meaning "farmer, earthworker", itself derived from the elements γη (ge) "earth" and εργον (ergon) "work". I swear on my eyes, I picked both the names without looking at the meaning, long before I stuck the ex-soldier on a farm.
Annie Wells- From the Hebrew name חַנָּה (Channah) which meant "favour" or "grace". Yeah, that sounds about right.
Ray- Ray's first name is Raymond. If he were Italian this would be grounds for snickering, as in the Romance languages that would mean 'king of the world', but he's not. With a last name like Stantz we're going with the assumption that it's the German etymology, and on that front? From the Germanic name Reginmund, composed of the elements ragin "advice" and mund "protector". So really, not that far off.
Whistler- Whistler's real name is Erwin Emory, and he never uses it. The handle he uses is the result of being based on a phone phreak who worked out how to alter a Cap'n Crunch free giveaway whistle to produce a tone that'd let him take control of telephone trunk lines. Since Whistler does all his messing about with the system by means of sound, the nickname probably derives from his own track record.
Very few of the names in the Belgariad universe ever have etymologies. The syllable 'Bel' is usually indicated to mean 'beloved', as is 'Pol'. My best guess, knowing Eddings, is that 'Belar' was meant to mean 'beloved bear' or something of that nature.
The Great Librarian doesn't have a name.
Ironhide and Bumblebee are from a culture that pretty much does self-explanatory names ninety percent of the time. Ironhide's a tough old bastard who's probably got the hardest armour plating of any of the Autobots. Bumblebee has said ICly that his Cybertronian name doesn't have a direct analogue in Earth languages, and that he goes by Bumblebee on the grounds that it's a small, hardworking being that nobody much notices but is generally considered friendly and well liked.
Gordon Freeman- His last name was a deliberate homage to Freeman Dyson, the mathematician and quantum physicist. In Half-Life 2 and the Episodes, the name gets played up hard; Earth was conquered by an interdimensional empire called the Combine long ago, and Gordon is referred to as 'the one free man'. His first name comes from a Scottish place name that amounts to 'the big hill'.
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Harry Wells' full name is given in the credits as 'Sergeant Harry G. Wells'. This has nothing to do with meaning and everything to do with Neil Marshall, the director of Dog Soldiers, admitting that he wanted to indirectly name one of the characters after his favourite author. (Indirectly, because the author's first name was Herbert.) I decided the Harry part was short for Harold before I became aware that in England it's more often a nickname for Henry; oh well. Still, it's bloody appropriate given that it means "leader of the army". No lie. 's derived from Old English here "army" and weald "leader, ruler". The G is for George, and that- well. From the Greek name Γεωργιος (Georgios) which was derived from the Greek word γεωργος (georgos) meaning "farmer, earthworker", itself derived from the elements γη (ge) "earth" and εργον (ergon) "work". I swear on my eyes, I picked both the names without looking at the meaning, long before I stuck the ex-soldier on a farm.
Annie Wells- From the Hebrew name חַנָּה (Channah) which meant "favour" or "grace". Yeah, that sounds about right.
Ray- Ray's first name is Raymond. If he were Italian this would be grounds for snickering, as in the Romance languages that would mean 'king of the world', but he's not. With a last name like Stantz we're going with the assumption that it's the German etymology, and on that front? From the Germanic name Reginmund, composed of the elements ragin "advice" and mund "protector". So really, not that far off.
Whistler- Whistler's real name is Erwin Emory, and he never uses it. The handle he uses is the result of being based on a phone phreak who worked out how to alter a Cap'n Crunch free giveaway whistle to produce a tone that'd let him take control of telephone trunk lines. Since Whistler does all his messing about with the system by means of sound, the nickname probably derives from his own track record.
Very few of the names in the Belgariad universe ever have etymologies. The syllable 'Bel' is usually indicated to mean 'beloved', as is 'Pol'. My best guess, knowing Eddings, is that 'Belar' was meant to mean 'beloved bear' or something of that nature.
The Great Librarian doesn't have a name.
Ironhide and Bumblebee are from a culture that pretty much does self-explanatory names ninety percent of the time. Ironhide's a tough old bastard who's probably got the hardest armour plating of any of the Autobots. Bumblebee has said ICly that his Cybertronian name doesn't have a direct analogue in Earth languages, and that he goes by Bumblebee on the grounds that it's a small, hardworking being that nobody much notices but is generally considered friendly and well liked.
Gordon Freeman- His last name was a deliberate homage to Freeman Dyson, the mathematician and quantum physicist. In Half-Life 2 and the Episodes, the name gets played up hard; Earth was conquered by an interdimensional empire called the Combine long ago, and Gordon is referred to as 'the one free man'. His first name comes from a Scottish place name that amounts to 'the big hill'.