(Loved Trope) Aptronyms

[u/dream_monkey]

Aptronyms are characters whose name is heavily symbolic or represent them as a character. Sometimes it is a subtle play on words, sometimes it’s just a clunky transliteration. Either way, it can help characterize a character and provide more allegorical depth. Authors must be careful not to delve into the realm of cliche, though.

1. Draco Malfoy (Harry Potter series) His name means Evil Dragon, and he tries really hard to live up to his name.

[Many commenters have pointed out that Darth Vader is not a true aptronym. I stand corrected .]

1. Darth Vader (Star Wars series) His name means Dark Father, which cleverly conceals one of the biggest reveals in cinema history.

2. Cthulhu (Lovecraft mythos) Cthulhu may just sound like a nonsense syllable, unpronounceable by a human mouth. The name is derived from the word “cthonic” which means a being that lives under the earth or in the underworld, so an ancient and terrible god that lies dreaming in death at the bottom of the ocean would definitely fit the description.

[u/Drakeskulled_Reaper]

Harleen Quinzel, becomes the girlfriend of the Joker, whodathunk.

A guy called Fries, working with cryogenics.

At least with Riddler he did it on purpose, he legally changed his surname to Nygma, just for the Enigma pun, gotta admire the commitment to the bit.

[u/Excellent_Past7628 → u/Drakeskulled_Reaper]

Yes, Gotham is the place that proves that nomitive determinism is actually real. If Batman really wanted to keep his city safe, he should just go through the county’s records and just keep track of anyone with names that are nouns, verbs, literary references or bad puns.

[u/Drakeskulled_Reaper → u/Excellent_Past7628]

Specifically the people who work with, or are noted to be really into, something that would correlate to their punny name.