" Draco (Latin, “dragon”), northern circumpolar constellation situated between the Big Dipper and Little Dipper, just below the celestial pole. The star Etamin, Gamma (g) Draconis, a second-magnitude star and the brightest star in the constellation, was the principal object of measurement used by the British astronomer James Bradley in 1729 in discovering the aberration of light."

"Hermione, in Greek mythology, daughter of Helen of Troy and Menelaus, king of Sparta. Although she was betrothed to Orestes, king of Mycenae, after the Trojan War Hermione married Neoptolemus, the son of the Greek hero Achilles. Orestes later killed Neoptolemus and became Hermione's second husband."

Although I personally doubt any connection to the broomstick, "nimbus" has two meanings. One, a halo, as on an angel; and two, rain-producing clouds from the Latin word for rain.

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Ronald Weasley
There isn't much confirmed information, but there are rumors running about of the history of Harry's red haired friend. Supposedly, in the time of King Arthur (and Merlin, a wizard, might I add), there was a soldier called Running Weasel. (Obviously Malfoy wasn't the only one to realize the similarity between Ron's surname and the name of the animal.) Anyway, this soldier's life was ended by a rat (!) knocking over a lantern and burning Running Weasel up. This was not just an ordinary rat because other soldiers looking for a good time had dyed him yellow (like Ron tried to turn Scabbers in Bk. 1).

I don't know if this has any basis in fact, but if it does, Ron better watch out.
As for Ron's name, Ronald is a Scottish form of Reginald (Old English), and the meaning listed for that name is "powerful and mighty." (?) The name Weasley is completely fictional.

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Remus Lupin
There is a lot of mythology behind this name. First of all, Remus was a character in Roman mythology. It was, after all, he and his brother Romulus who founded Rome. This is their history [from Encarta]:

" Left to drown at the edge of the flooding Tiber River, the legendary twins Romulus and Remus were found and raised by a she-wolf. As men, the brothers returned to the spot where they had been abandoned and founded the city of Rome. The Romans celebrated the festival of Parilia, today called the Natalis Romae, or the birth of Rome, on April 21 to commemorate the day the brothers founded the city. "

Then, Remus was killed by his brother as they argued over the name of the city. (Reme or Rome, I wonder?)
The name Remus is a name still given to children today. It is Latin for "fast-moving."

The name Lupin is also from Latin. Lupus is the word for wolf, and although I can't find lupin (I've heard it means wolf-like) in my Latin dictionary, the words lupinus and lupinum exist. There is, of course, the lupine flower, yet I can't see the connection between Prof. Lupin and a flower.

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Sirius Black
Another name with  mythology behind it. Let Encarta begin:
" Sirius (Greek Seirios, "scorching”), also Dog Star, brightest star in the sky, situated in the constellation Canis Major [Latin for "greater dog"]. The star was highly venerated by the ancient Egyptians, who regarded it as a token of the rising of the Nile and of a subsequent good harvest."
Sirius' name means Dog Black, or if you flip it around, Black Dog. How fitting!

Animagi
A wizard who can turn into an animal at will. How useful. I'm not certain of the etymology

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 Spells
Some of the spells in the books are completely made up. Others are from Latin, and some are variations on English words.

Accio - In Harry Potter, this is a spell to summon an object. Its Latin meaning is "to call something to come." [Note: I only have a Latin-Hungarian dictionary and I don't speak Hungarian well enough to properly understand the dictionary's definition. So my translations are fairly accurate, esp. with the help of my Hungarian born parents.]
Avada Kedavra - unblockable killing curse. "Avada kedavra"" is an Aramaic phrase that means "may the thing be destroyed." [From What's in a Name?] Note: J.K. Rowling has mentioned  that this spell comes from Latin, yet this cannot be possible since the letter "K" did note exist in Latin, only Greek.
Cruciatus - Although in the books this is only the spell for torture, its Latin name means all 3 of the unforgivables. Both crucio and cruciatus mean: one, torture; two, forcing someone to do something; and three, eliminating them.
Lumos - This is by far the most common spell in all the books. It lights up your wand like a flashlight, to see by in the dark. The Latin word for light is actually luma, but it's close enough.
Nox - the counter-spell to lumos, the Latin meaning for this word is midnight.

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I'll continue to update this page, but if you know any tidbits of info, email me
at hpmaniacs@yahoo.com. If you are interested in learning more, go to this great site with tons of information about the origins of things in Harry Potter by clicking here.