Line #68 MeaningfulName/VisualNovels


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7	In {{Visual Novel}}s, {{Meaningful Name}}s are just as likely to appear as in {{Anime}} or VideoGames.
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11	* ''Franchise/AceAttorney'':
12	** Many characters in the series. Most of the names describe disposition or occupation, or give you a few hints as to the character's true nature. This is true of both the Japanese and the English versions, thanks to some {{Woolseyism}}s:
13	*** Detective Dick Gumshoe. As Edgeworth himself puts it, he's as troublesome as a gum in your shoe. "(Private) Dick" and "Gumshoe" are also old terms for detective.
14	*** Redd White (of Blue Corp).
15	*** Wendy Oldbag, which is a wordplay on OldWindbag.
16	*** The clown Moe, whose real name is Lawrence Curls, as a ShoutOut to ''Film/TheThreeStooges''.
17	*** Manfred von Karma, named after the RedBaron. [[spoiler:They were both brought down by a single bullet. You could say that {{karma}} came back to bite him in the ass, fifteen years later.]] "Manfred" also means "one who brings peace," which is appropriate for a prosecutor [[spoiler: and, in a twisted way, for a murderer as well]]. His Japanese surname, Karuma (狩魔), is written with the kanji for "hunt" and "demon" - [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast a very appropriate name for a villain]].
18	*** The original eponymous character, ''Phoenix Wright'', who rises from the ashes and flies. Comes back from the dead. Has turnabout trials, and is nearly defeated seventy-''three'' times every trial. His Japanese surname, Naruhodo, is a play on a phrase that means "Yes, I see."
19	*** Apollo Justice. Apollo was the god of the sun, truth and music (which is [[spoiler:foreshadowing his mother and father being musicians]]), and in the Orestheia, Apollo was the first one who defended (for [[spoiler:[[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything matricide]]]], no less). His Japanese name essentially means 'A surprising man of law'.
20	*** Athena Cykes. Her namesake was the goddess of the clear sky, but especially of defence, wisdom and arts; pretty fitting for an intelligent defense attorney who knows martial arts. Her Japanese name consists of the words 'Hope Moon' (foreshadowing [[spoiler:that her moon earring brings down the BigBad of ''Dual Destinies'']]) and 'Heart Sound' (which references her ability to listen to people's hearts, or rather, their hidden emotions).
21	*** Miles (Irish, meaning "warrior") Edgeworth and Reiji Mitsurugi ("honorable blade") are both references to the character's rapier wit and confrontational, sharp nature. 'Miles' also means 'Servant' in some languages, which was his [[spoiler:treatment under von Karma]]. "Honorable blade" is also a hint at his CharacterDevelopment.
22	*** Furio Tigre, the tiger to Phoenix/''Ryuu''ichi's [[TigerVersusDragon dragon]], and his Japanese name literally means 'Tiger Boy'.
23	*** [[spoiler:Calisto Yew--Calisto is a butterfly, yew is a kind of poisonous plant, referring to the butterfly/flower symbols of Cohdopia. Also, 'Callous to you']].
24	*** Quercus Alba's name in the Japanese version, [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Carnage Onred]]. His English name ties in to the one of Colias Palaeno, as 'Quercus Alba' is an old oak, while 'Colias Palaeno' is a butterfly.
25	*** Byrne Faraday. [[spoiler:Byrne? Gaelic for raven... fitting for a man who was part of the Yatagarasu, a thief group whose symbol was a raven]].
26	*** Trying to count the meanings in "Dahlia Hawthorne's" name would surely take a while, but the most important ones are the murder mystery ''Film/TheBlackDahlia'' and the ''Hawthorne Effect'' (of which she's a perfect example). It also sounds like 'Delilah'. To make it even more perfect, her sister's name, Iris, is, in fact, a direct translation from her Japanese name, so the whole flower-thing was partly a ''coincidence'', which just happened to fit. On top of that, in the language of flowers, dahlias represent treachery.
27	*** The entire Fey family, a family of spirit mediums. The word 'Fey' means "Having or displaying an otherworldly, magical, or fairylike aspect or quality.", or 'Close to death'.
28	*** Matt Engarde's name seems a little off (he's a very easy-going person) until you realize that [[spoiler:he's actually the man who hired a professional killer to murder the victim of the case in which he's introduced, and [[BitchInSheepsClothing the gentle personality was an act]]]].
29	*** Luke Atmey ("look at me") commits his crimes for the sake of bravado and attention.
30	** Case three of ''VisualNovel/ApolloJusticeAceAttorney'' features a fictional disease named "Incuritis" that is incurable. [[spoiler:Well, save for an extremely hard to get drug that can only be brought into the country illegally.]]
31	** In ''Investigations 2'', you have two chemicals. Normallium is in ''normal'' everyday things such as paints and washing detergants and is not deadly at all on its own. The other, Fatallium, is only found in very select things such as powerful and ''fatal'' pesticides that aren't sold to the general public. Combining the two results in a chemical reason that forms a deadly poisonous gas.
32	* The deuteragonist of ''[[VisualNovel/Adastra2018 Adastra]]'' is the BigFun wolf Amicus, who wants a brighter, more egalitarian future for his people and ends up being protagonist Marco's love interest. Fittingly, "Amicus" is quite bluntly Latin for [[NamesToTrustImmediately "Friend"]].
33	* In ''Daiteikoku'', Honeytra makes [[HoneyTrap honey traps]] to {{blackmail}} Japanese military officials into working for China.
34	* ''VisualNovel/{{Echo}}'':
35	** Protagonist Chase Hunter's name is more meaningful than one might think. At first glance, "Chase Hunter" is an hilariously generic name, fitting a protagonist who comes across as a [[VanillaProtagonist bland]] [[TheGenericGuy generic guy]], [[spoiler: emphasis on "comes across". If you read more into it, Chase Hunter is a [[NamesToRunAwayFromReallyFast Name to Run Away from Really Fast]] in disguise: "Chase" is the action of agressively pursuing someone who's trying to get away from you, while "Hunter" is someone or something intent on tracking down a prey and killing it. This is fitting for Chase, whose seemingly unremarkable and average exterior hides a manipulative man who, as a child, brutally murdered a friend of his by drowning him, even as said friend tried to get away.]]
36	** The titular town of Echo, [[spoiler: [[GeniusLoci which is arguably a character in it of itself]]]] is named after the phenomenon of soundwaves being reflected back to their source, ''returning''. Fittingly, a recurring theme in the Visual Novel is the return of trauma and past sins, culminating in mass hysteria and the story opens with an unknown speaker, [[spoiler: either the ghost of Samuel Ayers or the town itself]], gloating that they knew Chase and his friends would ''return'' to Echo after years away. [[spoiler: There is also the fact that the malevolent entity ruling over the town is theorized to be a reflection of all the bad vibes, wickedness and woes that were accumulated within the mines, like an echo in a cave.]]
37	* Vulgor from ''VisualNovel/FarBeyondTheWorld'' chose himself a name that is one letter away from "Vulgar". Don't expect him to be sophisticated, gentle, refined [[SirSwearsALot or have a squeaky clean language]]. Not that you'd expect that, since the first scene in the novel is an EstablishingCharacterMoment of Vulgor brutalizing the main character so he'll shut up.
38	* From ''VisualNovel/FateStayNight'':
39	** The main character, Emiya Shirou. The first kanji in the name Emiya means "protection". Shirou is spelled with the kanji for "soldier" and "son". As a word, "shirou" means "white", and can carry connotations similar to the English phrase "white hat". All of these fit with Shirou's character and {{backstory}}.
40	** Rin, the {{Tsundere}}, writes her name with the kanji for "cold". The word actually means an "official", fitting with Rin's role as administrator of the land used for the Grail War.
41	** Sakura's name means "{{cherry blossom}}", which is significant for reasons explained on that page.
42	** Having a name that means "beautiful" is a sick joke that life has played on Kotomine Kirei. It is also an appropriate reference to the prayer "Kýrie Eléison", meaning "Lord, have mercy!" (which, later in the story, [[spoiler:is the prayer Kirei uses to exorcise Zouken]]).
43	*** Kirei's backstory reveals that his name actually invokes this trope; his father gave him this name specifically because of those two meanings, hoping they will affect who his son grows up to be. [[{{Irony}} A sick joke, indeed]].
44	** Fujimura Taiga has much in common with tigers. She even wears a yellow and black striped shirt. She seems to acknowledge this (she's named her kendo stick Torashinai, "tora" being Japanese for tiger), but whatever you do, don't ''call'' her Tiger.
45	* ''VisualNovel/TheFruitOfGrisaia'': Amane's name means "The Sound of the Heaven", [[spoiler:which is actually significant in her good ending because she goes to heaven with Yuuji.]]
46	* In ''VisualNovel/HalloweenOtome'': Emma Cee's name was chosen of its similarity to MC (Main Character). Mr. Wolf's real name [[spoiler: Tyler]] is a reference to the singer and composer of much of the game's music.
47	* Mion in ''VisualNovel/HigurashiWhenTheyCry''. Her name includes the kanji for "[[{{Youkai}} oni]]," as is the tradition in the Sonozaki family. In keeping with this, Mion has an oni tattoo on her back; in general, oni are very significant throughout the question arcs of the series.
48	* ''VisualNovel/TheHouseInFataMorgana'':
49	** Michel is named after the archangel Michael. This is brought up several times.
50	** The Witch Morgana presumably refers to Morgan Le Fey.
51	* In ''VisualNovel/KatawaShoujo'':
52	** Hisao is written as "long time [of absence]" (久) + "man/husband" (夫), the former being a reference to his months-long hospitalization, and the latter meaning of the latter being what he could become to the girls.
53	** Emi means "Smiling Beauty", which fits her cheerful, energetic personality [[spoiler:which turns out to be a more of a facade]].
54	** Hanako means "flower child" or "blooming child", possibly a reference to [[CharacterDevelopment her opening up in her and Lilly's routes]].
55	** Lilly's name apparently comes from the lily (百合), or yuri. She has a PseudoRomanticFriendship with her best friend Hanako, and it is implied that she has [[EvenTheGirlsWantHer received love confessions from girls]] in the past. Her last name "Satou" is pronounced the same as the Japanese word for "sugar".
56	** Rin's family name Tezuka is [手塚] has (hand + mound), and is also a ShoutOut to the famous Creator/OsamuTezuka, which is fitting because Rin is an artist.
57	** Shizune[静音] has (quiet + sound). Her original development name was "Rosa", partially from the Japanese word for "deaf" (rousha).
58	** While Iwanako's name is [[AsLongAsItSoundsForeign not quite a Japanese name]], it contains the kanji for "fish", possibly a reference to her being "the one who got away".
59	* In ''VisualNovel/KissedByTheBaddestBidder'':
60	** "Soryu Oh" can be read as "blue dragon king." He's the grandson of the leader of an organized crime family called the Ice Dragons.
61	** "Mamoru Kishi" can be read as "protector with noble intentions". He's a DirtyCop, but only because he sees the noble uses in the auctions.
62	* ''VisualNovel/LittleBusters'': 'Rin' is the onomatopoeia for a bell ringing, in keeping with Rin's [[KindheartedCatLover cat]] [[AnimalMotifs theme]]. And fittingly, she also wears a bell in her hair.
63	* The furry visual novel ''Lyre'' introduces us to the ruling dynasty of the titular kingdom, the Ossians. "Ossian" is Gaelic for "fawn"...guess what species they are. Furthermore, the kingdom's prince [[spoiler: and later king]] is Adrius Ossian: Adrius is a Lithuanian name meaning "strength" or "storm", fitting the young monarch's resolve and his extremistic ideals, as he believes the world needs a ''strong'', iron-fisted ruler to be "fixed" of its flaws. As for the "storm" part, [[spoiler: Adrius describes himself as [[AGodAmI "the storm that will sweep over this land, cleansing it of all that threatens true peace"]] when ranting to an imprisoned Richter.]]
64	** The deuteragonist and love interest is named Lyall Reed. "Lyall" is Norse for "wolf", once again matching the character's species, but can also mean "faithful", "loyal", reflecting Lyall's UndyingLoyalty to King Raynar, his commitment to his role as Richter's bodyguard and his devotion to the latter as a loyal boyfriend.
65	* Possibly a coincidence, but a very dark one if not. Ririka/Lyrica, female lead of the obscure ChubbyChaser DatingSim ''VisualNovel/DebuPlus'', shares her name with a brand of diabetes medication.
66	* In ''VisualNovel/MajikoiLoveMeSeriously'', "Kawakami" uses the kanji for "God" as opposed to the more commonplace "Above" -- a fitting name for the [[FantasticFightingStyle fighting style known as Japan's ultimate secret weapon]].
67	* In ''VisualNovel/MarcoAndTheGalaxyDragon'', Marco named her pet alien pig-thing "Emergency Rations" because she’d intended to fatten him up and eat him if she ever ran out of food. She still makes the occasional joke about eating him when she’s hungry, much to his dismay.
68	* A possibly unintentional on in ''VisualNovel/{{Melody}}''. “Sophia” means “wisdom” in Greek, and Sophia is one person who keeps Melody grounded throughout the story.
69	* ''VisualNovel/NoCaseShouldRemainUnsolved'': Seowon was born very small and fragile. Her mother gave her this name ("Seo" for "rhinoceros" and "Won" for "origin") hoping it would give Seowon the strength of a rhino. [[spoiler:Her father thinks this name cursed her: Seowon charged forward like a rhino and left everyone behind.]]
70	* ''No More Future'' centers around Pandora, a company most famous for its labs and the incredible innovations happening in them. Unfortunately, they also at one point unleashed Chronos, a powerful A.I. that went full-on [[Literature/IHaveNoMouthAndIMustScream AM]] and tried to destroy the Earth; it's only apt, then, that the company would be named after the woman in Greek mythology who unleashed all of the world's evils.
71	* ''Spirit Hunter'' series:
72	** The default name given to the protagonist of ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunterDeathMark'', Kazuo Yashiki. The surname "Yashiki" here uses the kanji 八敷, but an alternative "yashiki" would be the kanji 屋敷, meaning "mansion", and Kazuo using the kanji 一男 means "eldest son". Mary was both saying his assigned name — "Yashiki-sama"/"Lord Yashiki" — and "Eldest Son who is Lord of the Mansion" since [[spoiler:he's really Masamune Kujou, the previous head of the Kujou family prior to his younger sister Saya taking over. For an additional spin, there's the kanji 八 for the number eight and the kanji 一 for the number one — the Kujou's kanji is 九条, 九 being the number nine.]]
73	** ''VisualNovel/SpiritHunterNG'':
74	*** ''Kubi'' translates to neck, which is what Kubitarou of Kintoki has a knack for chopping heads off of.
75	*** The Screaming Author, but not for the reason that one may think, [[spoiler:as she isn't actually an author. Her name as a human, Tubasa, comes from the word ''Tsubasa'' (翼), which means wing. She was then mutilated to resemble a crane, and as a spirit, she has a bird-like scream and can attack people with the wires that compose her wings.]]
76	* Quite a few of the names in the ''VisualNovel/StarrySky'' series are references to astronomy, the season, or their relevant zodiac sign:
77	** The [[CanonName protagonist]] is Yasahisa(夜久) Tsukiko (月子), which means "long night" and "moon child" respectively
78	** From the spring edition, the Pisces character Nanami Kanata has the kanji for sea in his name, the Capricorn is Tomoe (土萌) Yoh(羊), Tomoe is written with the kanji for "earth bud" and Yoh means "sheep, ram", and Cancer is Touzuki Suzuya, Touzuki means "Eastern Moon".
79	** The autumn edition features the Leo, Haruki(陽日) Naoshi(直獅). Haruki means "Sunny day" (a reference to his personality) and Naoshi includes the kanji for lion, the school doctor (Libra) is Hoshizuki (星月), meaning "Star Moon"
80	** In winter, there's Aozora(青空) Hayato(颯斗), Aozora meaning "blue sky" and Hayato has the kanji for the Big Dipper constellation.
81	* ''VisualNovel/{{Sunrider}}'':
82	** Icari’s name may be derived from the Japanese word Ikari, which can mean “anger”. This would fit with both her hatred of PACT and her nature as a Type-A {{Tsundere}}.
83	** Sola di Ryuvia’s first name means “alone” in Spanish, befitting her solitary nature and her status as a LivingRelic.
84	** Admiral Grey may be helping you to liberate the Neutral Rim from PACT, but he’s not doing so out of the goodness of his heart and he’s willing to do some morally dubious things in the name of victory and good PR.
85	*** Grey’s flagship is called the [[Creator/NiccoloMachiavelli Machiavelli]] Actual, reinforcing his morally ambiguous character.
86	** [[BigBad Veniczar Arcadius]]’s flagship is called the Legion, foreshadowing his [[IAmLegion true nature]].
87	* ''VisualNovel/UminekoWhenTheyCry'':
88	** There's a certain amount of ThemeNaming going on with the witches; Beatrice, Virgilia and [[spoiler: Clair Vauxof Bernard]] are named for characters in Dante's ''Literature/TheDivineComedy''. Maria, the Witch of Origins [[spoiler:has the power to create a soul out of the void]].
89	** The Seven Sisters of Purgatory. All named various names of The Devil, the most obvious being Satan and Lucifer. Rather [[ShownTheirWork brilliantly]], their "sins" are all related to that particular name, such as Lucifer being Pride: in the Bible, The Devil was known as Lucifer as an Angel who fell from Heaven because of pride. Mammon is used to refer to greed, etc.
90	** Despite Battler's name not being a plausible one in real life, it relates quite well to his [[{{Determinator}} personality]]; [[AlternateCharacterReading the kanji in his name]] literally mean "fighting person".
91	* ''VisualNovel/ZeroEscape'':
92	** In ''VisualNovel/NineHoursNinePersonsNineDoors'', the cast chooses codenames based on their bracelet numbers: 1, Ace, after the playing card; 2, Snake, after snake eyes on a pair of dice (extra fitting since he's also blind and snakes have terrible eyesight); 3, Santa, after "san", the Japanese word for "three"; 4, Clover, after a four-leaf clover; 6, June, after the sixth month in the year; 7, Seven, after... [[ShapedLikeItself seven]]; and 8, Lotus, after the number of petals on a lotus flower. The exceptions are protagonist Junpei (Bracelet 5), who doesn't get a codename because June blurted out his real name without thinking before they decided to use codenames, thus it was decreed pointless for him to have one; and the owner of Bracelet 9, who refused to give himself a codename and then promptly went and got himself killed, so everyone just refers to him as "the 9th Man" throughout the game due to lack of any better option.
93	** ''VisualNovel/VirtuesLastReward'':
94	*** Luna is a [[spoiler:robot that was made on the moon]], tying her into both the Latin and Spanish name for the Moon, as well as Luna, the Roman Goddess. [[spoiler:''VisualNovel/ZeroTimeDilemma'' reveals that Sigma made her as a ReplacementGoldfish for Diana, who shares a name with another moon goddess]].
95	*** Dio means "God" in Italian which ties into his role as [[spoiler:Left, the leader of the Myrmidons, and therefore the self-entitled "God" of the new human race]].
96	*** In-universe, Quark was named after the quark particle, due to how small he is.
97	*** The name that the amnesic man in a suit of armour gives to himself is "K". This refers to [[spoiler:either '''K'''yle '''K'''lim, who is in the suit in some timelines, or Akane '''K'''urashiki, who is in the suit in other timelines pretending to be Kyle]].
98	*** The ability to [[spoiler:transfer one's consciousness between timelines]] gets referred to as "jumping" in this game, which retroactively makes Junpei from the previous game's childhood nickname of "Jumpy" quite appropriate since he possessed this ability as well.
99	* ''VisualNovel/War13thDay'' takes place on Virgo Island, where everyone earns their name through their actions and/or personality traits. Each clan favors certain names as well.
100	-->'''Ambrosia:''' On Virgo Island, we earn our names through our characteristics, deeds, and accomplishments. It is common for us to have more than one name throughout our life.
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Context MeaningfulName / VisualNovels