1. The phrase “vol de mort”, in French, can be loosely translated as “flight of death”, in reference to Voldemort’s quest for immortality.
短語“vol de mort”(“伏地魔”英文為“Voldemort”)在法語中可以大致譯為“死神之戰(zhàn)”,暗指伏地魔對(duì)于長(zhǎng)生不死的追求。
2. Professor McGonagall was named after Minerva, Roman goddess of wisdom.
麥格教授(Minerva McGonagall)名為Minerva,是羅馬神話中的智慧女神。
3. And Sybill –Professor Trelawney’s first name –is derived from the Greek name Sibylla, meaning “prophetess”.
而“西比爾(Sybill)”——特里勞妮教授的名字——是由希臘語Sibylla衍生出來的,意思是“女先知”。
4. In Greek mythology, Narcissus (like Narcissa Malfoy) was a man known for his beauty, who died after spending too much time looking at his own reflection.
在希臘神話中,Narcissus(很像馬爾福媽媽的名字Narcissa Malfoy)是一位美男子,但他把太多時(shí)間用于顧影自憐,最終抑郁而死。
5. Filch is an old English word meaning “to steal something, usually of small value”.
費(fèi)爾奇看門人的名字“Filch”是古英語詞匯,意義“偷竊,常指偷竊不值錢的東西”。
6. And Remus’surname, Lupin, comes from the Latin “lupinus”, meaning “of a wolf”.
而萊姆斯的姓“盧平(Lupin)”來自拉丁語的“Lupinus”,意思是“一匹狼”。
7. Sirius is named after the brightest star in the sky –which is also known as the Dog Star.
小天狼星(Sirius)是以天上最閃亮的一顆星星命名的,也叫大犬星。
8. Fred and George Weasley were born on 1 April –otherwise known as April Fools’Day.
韋斯萊兄弟弗雷德和喬治出生于4月1日,也就是眾所周知的愚人節(jié)。
9. Diagon Alley is a play on the word “diagonally”, while Knockturn Alley –its Dark counterpart –is a play on the word “Nocturnally”.
對(duì)角巷(Diagon Alley)是在“diagonally(對(duì)角線地)”這個(gè)詞上玩了一點(diǎn)文字游戲,而與之相對(duì)的翻倒巷(Knockturn Alley)則是從“Nocturnally(夜間活動(dòng)地)”一詞而來。
10. The name of the wizarding school Durmstrang is derived from the German literary movement “Sturm und Drang”, which literally translates to “storm and stress”.
德姆斯特朗魔法學(xué)校的名字(Durmstrang)來自德國(guó)文學(xué)運(yùn)動(dòng)“Sturm und Drang(狂飆突進(jìn)運(yùn)動(dòng))”,字面意思是“風(fēng)暴與壓力”。
11. When using the visitors’entrance to the Ministry of Magic, you step into a disused telephone box and dial 62442. These numbers, on a telephone keypad, correspond to the letters M-A-G-I-C.
來訪者要進(jìn)入魔法部,需要走進(jìn)一部廢棄的電話亭,撥號(hào)62442,而這幾個(gè)數(shù)字在電話鍵盤上對(duì)應(yīng)的是字母M-A-G-I-C(魔法)。
12. Griffon d’Or (pronounced the same way as Gryffindor) is French for “golden griffin”. The door to Dumbledore’s office holds a golden knocker in the shape of a griffin.
Griffon d’Or(和格蘭芬多學(xué)院Gryffindor發(fā)音相同)在法語中是“金色的獅身鷲面獸”的意思。鄧布利多院長(zhǎng)(Dumbledore)辦公室大門上就有一個(gè)金色的門環(huán),是獅身鷲面獸的形狀。
13. And Slytherin could be a play on the words “sly therein”. Slyness is one of the distinguishing qualities of members of Slytherin house.
而Slytherin(斯萊特林學(xué)院)一詞可能是“sly therein(狡猾在其中)"的變體,狡猾是斯萊特林學(xué)院成員的一個(gè)突出特點(diǎn)。