A form of Names to Run Away From Really Fast: Powerful tyrants, generals, and fighting men of history will generally lend some of their potent reputation to anyone who uses them as a namesake. Characters with these names are bound to be proud and ambitious; sometimes brave and noble, sometimes evil and ruthless.
Examples:
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Alexander
But only if they never abbreviate it to "Alex"... or for that matter "Xander"...or worst of all, "Sandy". Named after Alexander the Great, the Macedonian king who conquered Greece, Asia Minor, Egypt, and Persia. And was starting on India. Bonus points for the somewhat more obscure Iskandar, which was the name the Persian's knew him by, see the Other Wiki.
Anime
Alexander Anderson from Hellsing, Alucard's most dangerous adversary.
Alex Louis Armstrong. He can get away with shortening it to "Alex" partly because we hardly ever hear his full name, and partly because he's already such a silly yet badass character that the name doesn't do much to take away from his badassery.
Gargoyles: Alexander Xanatos. Confirmed by Word Of God to be named after the Macedonian king, reflecting his parents' ambitions for him.
Real Life
It is probably not a mere coincidence that Rodrigo Borgia, when he succeeded to the Papacy in 1492, from all possible options chose Alexander as his Papal name, thus becoming Pope Alexander VI.
Attila the Hun has pretty much turned the name into an adjective meaning 'barbarian' or 'vicious conqueror'. With good reason.
However, "Attila" actually means (in Gothic) "little father". German variants of the name are Etzel and (yes!) Edsel.
Augustus
But only if they never abbreviate it to "Gus", or, worse yet, "Gussie". Or, for that matter, "Auggie", but that's pretty uncommon. Named after Gaius Octavius Augustus, nephew of Julius Caesar and first emperor of Rome. (And not even the worst one.) (In fact, most would probably agree that he was the BEST one.)
Literature
Pious Augustus, a.k.a. Philippe Augustine, a.k.a. Paul Augustine.
Caesar
Both of the titles 'kaiser' and 'tsar'/czar' are derived from 'Caesar'. Of course, the kaisers and tsars were notable lines of conquerors in their own rights. Named after Gaius Julius Caesar, who conquered and unified Italy, Gaul, and the Iberian peninsula towards the end of the Roman Republic.
Anime
Cesare Borgia, son of the aforementioned Pope Alexander. Not as bad as his enemies suggested, but still a bad dude. That Cesare Borgia was well aware of the symbolic potential of his name is documented by the self-chosen motto which he had inscribed on his sword: Aut Caesar aut nihil — "either (a) Caesar or nothing".
Cyrus
The name's fame comes from Cyrus The Great, founder of the Achaemenid Persian Empire. However, this name has become less popular (both for real people and fictional characters) after a certain teenage pop star ruined it for everyone.
Film
Darius Just in Isaac Asimov'sMurder at the ABA is generally a decent enough fellow, albeit with a sharp tongue and the martial arts skills to back it up.
The first name of several Roman emperors including Gaius Octavian Augustus, one the greatest emperors.
Literature
In the Codex Alera, the entire House of Gaius, adopted (Isana and Aquitainius Attis) and particularly by blood (all those by blood are automatically a Personof Mass Destruction). Particular examples Gaius Sextus who set the benchmark for Heroic Sacrifice and an incredibly Badass Grandpa, Gaius Septimus, one of the greatest swordsmen ever to live and almost as powerful as his father without inheriting his furies, and Gaius Octavian (later known as Gaius Tavarus Magnus, i.e. Lord Wolverine the Great) who is the main character, grew up without furies and combines the raw power of the House of Gaius with a mind that looks at everything sideways.
Gaius (misspelled "Guius"), the third boss of Valis II.
Genghis
The original gets the double whammy of also having Khan used as part of his nickname. He's thatBadass). His real name Temujin is less intimidating, but it pops up occasionally. Even though Temujin roughly translates to "Strong-As-Iron" in Mongolian, and "Supreme Earth Man" in Chinese.
Literature
An Amazon queen in Greek Mythology, though as one of the few "tough" feminine names, a girl with this name has at least an even chance of being good. "Polly" is generally too quaint-sounding to be tough or evil, though.
Anime and Manga
Sailor Moon: Makoto's dub name was Lita. Fitting, considering she's the most amazonian of the Inner Soldiers.
Julian the Apostate needs no introduction; Julian, the semi-legendary Count of Ceuta, joined the Muslims and let them cross over into Spain; and the probably fictional Saint Julian the Hospitaller murdered his parents while they were staying at his house — although he was tricked into it, and got his name for using his wealth to build shelters for the poor afterwards. A Julian is seldom as psychotic as some of the names on this list, but he should be taken very seriously. Not to mention the fact that it is the adjective form for describing some of the early Roman emperors (though they are more commonly referred to as Julio-Claudian).
Anime and Manga
Technically a Mongol-Turkic title, but whatever. Coincidentally a common surname in South Asia. Lots of Pakistanis, as well as Indian Muslims, will have the surname "Khan".
Film
Latin for "(the) Great" or "Big". A rare personal name in Roman antiquity, it made another career after the newly-christianized, warlike royals of medieval Scandinavia adopted it as a first name by shortening the name of their idol Charlemagne ("Carolus Magnus" or "Karlamagnus" to them).*
The Latin meaning of the name was mostly lost to them. However, as it happens, 'magn' also means 'power' or 'might' in Old Norse. Magni ('strong one'/'strength') is the name of a son of the God Thor.
]] Due to this lofty origin, it was exclusive to members of the high aristocracy, usually royals, in the Middle Ages. Today it is a fairly common (and therefore, harmless) first name in many Nordic countries. In fiction, often points to a Scandinavian, vaguely Viking-y, aristocratic background.
Comic Books
Magneto from X-Men, alias Erik Magnus Lehnsherr. The way Magneto spells his Erik with a k has an additional effect of making him look Nordic. Also, "Lehnsherr" is German for 'liege' or feudal lord.
A slight variation: Gladiator's hero, Maximus Decimus Meridius. Due to the quirks of Roman naming (and also because of the idiosyncratic way his name was rendered), most viewers don't realize that Maximus is not actually his given name, but a title. In English, his name comes out as Maximus the Great, Conqueror of the South. Certainly a name to run away from if you're in the arena with the fellow, or just happen to have assassinated his Emperor.
Using the normal Roman nomenclature, Maximus would be his given name, Decimus his family name, and Meridius perhaps a nickname given after a notable victory. But since everyone in the movie calls him Maximus - and almost no one called a Roman by his given name except his closest family - perhaps a more accurate rendering of the name would be Decimus Meridius Maximus?
Magnus Honey from Roald Dahl's Matilda is an exception, as he seems to have been a Nice Guy, perhaps in keeping with his surname. Also Dahl is from Norway, where Magnus is a conventional name.
In the Codex Alera, Gaius Tavarus Magnus (Lord Wolverine the Great), formerly Gaius Octavian, formerly Rufus Scipio, formerly Tavi Ex Cursori, formerly Tavi Patronus Gaius, Tavi of Calderon, formerly Tavi of Bernardholt. Looks at everything sideways and is the epitome of Guile Hero, combined with a heavy dose of Crazy Awesome, every plan being Crazy Enough to work and is eventually a Personof Mass Destruction.
Magnus Greel, the villain of The Talons of Weng-Chiang, one of the most egregious war criminals in human history.
In the Sanctuary series Helen Magnus; dated, and had a daughter with Jack the Ripper who can teleport by the way, has a complicated relationship with Nikola Tesla who was a vampire, is in conflict with Dr. Jekylle and Mr. Hyde, used to hang out with James Watson and Nigel Griffin before they died of old age (she can live for ever, Tesla is a vampire and Druitt... well no word on what keeps him, or Adam alive), currently friends include Bigfoot and a werewolf and occasionally has to deal with a rampaging superabnormal like Big Bertha aka Kali.
Chrono Trigger gives us Magus, who is certainly evil and scary enough and is only missing one letter. On the other hand, "magus" is Latin for "wizard" and is not related to "magnus."
Another Icelander: Magnus Magnusson, the late host of Quiz ShowMastermind. The mere sight of that iconic black chair could strike terror into the bowels of any would-be contestant.
Prominent conqueror kings from the Middle Ages who added taste to the name Magnus would be Charlemagne (Carolus Magnus), Magnus I "the Good" of Norway and Denmark, Magnus IV "The Caresser" of Sweden and Magnus III "Barelegs" of Norway.
As a Roman epithet, Magnus was most prominently connected with Alexander and Pompey. There is also Magnus Maximus, a 4th century usurper who toppled the Western Roman Empire in a disastrous civil war.
Subverted in Disney's The Aristocats which features a dog called Napoleon who although not an actual villain, almost certainly would be if he encountered the protagonists of the film.
Nero
Also means "black" in Italian, both literally and figuratively.
Film
The villain of the 2009 Star Trek feature film is called Captain Nero.
Fran Stalinoskovichdavidovichski in Dodgeball who can knock out and possibly kill a man with one throw of a dodgeball.
Tarquin
The name of several of Rome's pre-Republic Etruscan kings, but especially associated with Tarquin the Proud, Rome's final king and a reputed tyrant, as well as his son, Sextus Tarquinus, known as a rapist.
Film
Given its allusions to Roman history, this might be an inspiration for Tarkin in Star Wars, one of the Empire's top generals.
Note that "Vladimir" roughly translated as "ruler of (this) community", but due to language drift it translates to "ruler of the world" now. Note that in Russian these names are just everyday names, so they are not that scary.
Film
Vlad Heterodyne, AKA Vlad the Blasphemous, from Girl Genius. Built the first Castle Heterodyne (a simple fortress, particularly compared to later incarnations, but effective and intimidating nonetheless) and invented the Jägerdraught, the drink that turns people into Jägerkin.
Vladimir Ilyich Ulyanov, better known as Lenin (Lenin, a Badass?), Vlad the Impaler (aka Dracula), Vladimir Putin (particularly if you used to be part of the USSR). List wouldn't be complete without the guy who started the tradition: Vladimir the Great, Kievan prince who christened Rus.
William
William The Conqueror (and William Wallace too) make William and variations on the name a usage of this trope.
Comics
Marvel's Bill Foster with alias like the Black Goliath, the fourth Goliath, and the second Giant-Man is definately someone to run away from really fast.
William Boldwood from Thomas Hardy's novel Far from the Maddening Crowd, set his sights on pursuing a conquest of a different sort than his name sake.
William Briden a character in H.P. Lovecraft's work, who actually survives his first encounter with Cthulhu and escapes from R'lyeh, although having seen an Eldritch Abomination and having Gone Mad From The Revelation he isn't exactly able to survive for the several weeks his ship spends at sea awaiting rescue.
He has almost the same name as one of history's more memorable badasses: the sole survivor of the Retreat From Kabul. (Well, sole survivor other than Flashman, that is.) This might be a coincidence, but given that Lovecraft was a fervent Anglophile and obsessed with history, it's quite possible that it intended as a Shout Out.
William Ewart Gladstone from the Bartimaeus trilogy "was a very powerful nineteenth century British magician, who rose to become a Prime Minister. He led the Grand Army of the Empire on conquests that decimated countries and made them a part of the British empire" - The Other Wiki
Mr. William Bones, Esquire, better known as Billy Bones, from Treasure Island was the first mate of Captain Flint and not someone you wanted to piss off. Even Long John Silver was wary of confronting Billy directly.
Live Action TV
Star Trek's Will Riker
Mighty Morphin' Power Rangers: Billy Cranston. A highly intelligent, determined warrior (especially as the series progressed) who faced down countless monsters. Not somebody to mess with. Monster has an annoying special trick to make attacks not work? He'll find a way to neutralize it and join his team-mates in the ensuing beatdown.
Xerxes
The original Xerxes did conquer half of the middle east, though he is most often remembered for his failed attempt at conquering Greece. Good to know: Xerxes' name also appears as Ahasuerus; both forms are just different transliterations of his Persian name Xayāra.
Video Games
Also the name of Mozenrath's flying eel companion in Disney's Aladdin animated series, but he's more of a Nuisance Connected to Someone to Run Away Really Fast From than anything. Still, they made the effort.
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Anime
