[Ed. note: Someone who speaks Japanese has kindly translated the katakana of Sapphire's original name for me, and she says "Safiiru" is the closest translation. (Thanks Emeryl! ^_^)]
Which brings us to our next question: Where did his name come from? Obviously, Saffir is named after the gemstone sapphire (hence, the English equivalent of his name), but why the slight variation in pronounciation? I've heard somewhere that the main villains of the Black Moon family may have been named after the French names of their respective gemstones, but
why don't you compare for yourself:
Dimando - dimant (m.)
Although there is a bit of a variation between the two, it's still a possibility... And it is interesting to note that the villains possess the masculine and feminine natures of their jewel namesakes. (As a side note, Rubeus is an actual given name, while Esmeraude is similar to the name Esmerelda.)
 Other Name Origins: Nemesis Sometimes referred to as the NegaMoon, Nemesis is the reputed tenth planet of the Solar System; this is where the Black Moon family was exiled to, after being banished from Earth. In Greek mythology, Nemesis was the daughter of Night and the goddess of vengeance; the word nemesis itself is now defined as "retributive justice". The goddess Nemesis is the personification of the divine wrath of the gods for insolence towards them, as well as the punishment for this. [From the Oxford Dictionary] Considering this, the fact that the Black Moon family were sent to the planet Nemesis can be seen as symbolic... The people of the Black Moon were originally of Earth, but had revolted against the "Moon Goddess", Neo-Queen Serenity, because they did not conform to her beliefs (i.e. eternal life for the inhabitants of Earth). For that, they were cast out to the barren, desolate world of Nemesis as punishment (as aforementioned, Nemesis also represents the punishment for defying the gods).
Image of Sapphire is from The House of Evil and is used with permission. |
Safiiru, Saffiru, Saffir
Out of all the Sailor Moon villains, Sapphire's original Japanese name has perhaps the most variations in spelling when translated to English. Safiiru, Saffiru and Saffir tend to be the most common spellings, but I've seen translations from anywhere like Sapphiro (Animerica magazine) to Safiel (fansubs). So, which is the correct one? Without any knowledge of Japanese, I can't tell you for sure... However, I suspect Safiiru and Saffiru are the closest to the katakana (Japanese letters). Personally though, I tend to use Saffir, since it sounds the closest to how it was pronounced in the original Japanese.
![[Pear-cut sapphire]](1h0330800.jpg)
Sapphire is a form of the mineral corundum. The name of the jewel comes from
an ancient Greek word meaning blue, though the term "sapphire" itself refers to any color of the gemstone, with the exception of red; those are known as rubies. (I've always found it ironic that while sapphires and rubies have the same chemical structure, their Nemesian namesakes have nothing in common.
^_^) Both also come in a "star" variety, which shows a six-pointed star when polished into a cabachon, or smooth oval. Sapphires are very popularly used in jewelry, because of their durability and brilliance.
![[Another pear-cut sapphire]](1l0035400.jpg)
In terms of symbolism, sapphires are known as "the symbol of the heavens, bestower of innocence, truth, good health, and presever of chastity." A sapphire worn by a woman supposedly ensures faithfulness. When worn by a man, it indicates wisdom and high thoughts (Appropriate, don't you think? ^_~). Sapphire is currently the birthstone for September, though in ancient times, it was also considered the birthstones of the star signs Taurus and Gemini.
