1. The phrase “vol de mort”, in French, can be loosely translated as “flight of death”, in reference to Voldemort’s quest for immortality.
短语“vol de mort”（“伏地魔”英文为“Voldemort”）在法语中可以大致译为“死神之战”，暗指伏地魔对于长生不死的追求。
2. Professor McGonagall was named after Minerva, Roman goddess of wisdom.
麦格教授（Minerva McGonagall）名为Minerva，是罗马神话中的智慧女神。
3. And Sybill –Professor Trelawney’s first name –is derived from the Greek name Sibylla, meaning “prophetess”.
而“西比尔（Sybill）”——特里劳妮教授的名字——是由希腊语Sibylla衍生出来的，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.
在希腊神话中，Narcissus（很像马尔福妈妈的名字Narcissa Malfoy）是一位美男子，但他把太多时间用于顾影自怜，最终抑郁而死。
5. Filch is an old English word meaning “to steal something, usually of small value”.
费尔奇看门人的名字“Filch”是古英语词汇，意义“偷窃，常指偷窃不值钱的东西”。
6. And Remus’surname, Lupin, comes from the Latin “lupinus”, meaning “of a wolf”.
而莱姆斯的姓“卢平（Lupin）”来自拉丁语的“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）是以天上最闪亮的一颗星星命名的，也叫大犬星。
8. Fred and George Weasley were born on 1 April –otherwise known as April Fools’Day.
韦斯莱兄弟弗雷德和乔治出生于4月1日，也就是众所周知的愚人节。
9. Diagon Alley is a play on the word “diagonally”, while Knockturn Alley –its Dark counterpart –is a play on the word “Nocturnally”.
对角巷（Diagon Alley）是在“diagonally（对角线地）”这个词上玩了一点文字游戏，而与之相对的翻倒巷（Knockturn Alley）则是从“Nocturnally（夜间活动地）”一词而来。
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”.
德姆斯特朗魔法学校的名字（Durmstrang）来自德国文学运动“Sturm und Drang（狂飙突进运动）”，字面意思是“风暴与压力”。
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.
来访者要进入魔法部，需要走进一部废弃的电话亭，拨号62442，而这几个数字在电话键盘上对应的是字母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（和格兰芬多学院Gryffindor发音相同）在法语中是“金色的狮身鹫面兽”的意思。邓布利多院长（Dumbledore）办公室大门上就有一个金色的门环，是狮身鹫面兽的形状。
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（斯莱特林学院）一词可能是“sly therein（狡猾在其中）"的变体，狡猾是斯莱特林学院成员的一个突出特点。
（沪江英语）
