Veronaville/Onomatology

The onomatology (meaning study of the origin of names) of the Sim characters are sometimes hilarious, but always interesting. Many of the names had been intentionally chosen for onomatology reasons. Simmers have found out many of the meanings, although a large-enough portion do not mean as much as the etymology of others. Some of the names came as a shock, other names didn't seem to have an onomatological relation. Not all of the names were intended for the definitions researched, but it is still interesting (and sometimes coincidental) to see what the name meanings are. This etymology is only for the residents of Veronaville.
All Veronaville Sims' names come from Shakespeare's plays.
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== The Monty family ==
Monty: a reference to the Montague family in "Romeo and Juliet", as is much of Veronaville.
*Romeo: In "Romeo and Juliet", Romeo falls in love with his enemies' daughter, but is later banished when he accidentally kills Tybalt in a street brawl. His plans to meet Juliet are mixed up, and the play ends with their deaths.
*Mercutio (Romeo's brother): Mercutio is the witty friend of Romeo, and kinsman to the Prince, in "Romeo and Juliet". He is killed by Tybalt, who is later killed by Romeo.
*Claudio (Romeo's father): Shakespeare has two characters named Claudio: The lord of Florence in "Much Ado About Nothing," and a gentleman in "Measure for Measure".
*Olivia (Romeo's mother): Olivia is one of the main characters in "Twelfth Night."
*Antonio (Romeo's paternal uncle): Antonio is the title character of "The Merchant of Venice." He is a middle-aged bachelor and merchant by trade who has his financial interests tied up in overseas shipments when the play begins. Antonio could also refer to "Twelfth Night," in which Antonio acts as a guide to Sebastian, and is implied to be in love with him. Antonio is also the name of Hero and Beatrice's uncle in "Much Ado About Nothing" the stand-in Duke of Milan and brother of Prospero in "The Tempest". In total, seven of Shakespeare's plays feature characters called Antonio, making it the most commonly used name in his work.
*Hero (Romeo's paternal aunt via marriage): Hero falls in love with Claudio in "Much Ado About Nothing." She is wronged by Don John, and Borachio, and is abandoned at the altar by Claudio, so she fakes her death, until her name is cleared.
*Beatrice (Romeo's paternal cousin): Beatrice is a central character in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." In the play, she falls in love with Benedick, who was not her brother in the play.
*Benedick (Romeo's paternal cousin): Benedick is a central character in Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." In the play, he falls in love with Beatrice, who was not his sister in the play.
*Bianca (Romeo's paternal aunt): Bianca is the younger sister of Katherine in "The Taming of the Shrew." She is loved by Gremio and Hortensio, and eventually marries Lucentio. In "Othello," Bianca is Cassio's mistress.
*Patrizio (Romeo's paternal grandfather): Patrizio's character is a spoof of the patriarch of the Montague family in "Romeo and Juliet." His name is made to sound similar to Patriarch.
*Isabella (Romeo's paternal grandmother): Isabella is the virtuous central female character in "Measure for Measure": a novice nun who pleads to Angelo for the life of her brother Claudio.
*Valentine (Patrizio's father): Valentine is one of "The Two Gentlemen of Verona." He falls in love with Silvia, becomes exiled, and leads a band of robbers. He is also an attendant of Orsino in "Twelfth Night".
*Silvia (Patrizio's mother): Silvia is the faithful lover of Valentine, and the victim of an attempted rape by Proteus, in "The Two Gentlemen of Verona".
*Bassanio (Patrizio's paternal grandfather): Loved by Antonio, Bassanio is the suitor who wins the heart of Portia in "The Merchant of Venice".
*Portia (Patrizio's paternal grandmother): Portia is the central female character in "The Merchant of Venice". She disguises herself as a lawyer in an attempt to thwart Shylock's attempt on Antonio's life.
Capitano Family:
*Angelo (Patrizio's maternal grandfather): Angelo is deputized by Duke Vincentio during the latter's absence from Vienna, but proves corrupt, seeking the woohooish favor of Isabella in "Measure for Measure".
*Mariana (Patrizio's maternal grandmother): Mariana is a friend of the Widow in "All's Well That Ends Well", and is the jilted fiancée of Angelo, who woohoos with him in the "bed trick" in "Measure for Measure".
Pantalone Family: (Has to do Zanni) impoverished man and hired servant of one of the other characters, typically Pantalone.
*Vincentio (Isabella's father): Vincentio is the Duke of Vienna in "Measure for Measure".
*Francisca (Isabella's mother): Fransisca is a nun in "Measure for Measure".
*Proteus (Isabella's paternal grandfather): Proteus is Julia's lover in "Two Gentlemen of Verona".
*Julia (Isabella's paternal grandmother): Julia is the beloved of Proteus in "Two Gentlemen of Verona".
Zanni Family: Zanni can refer to either the archetype comic servant of the Commedia dell'arte or various stereotypical servant characters of the same genre. The English word "zany" is derived from "Zanni".
*Lucio (Isabella's maternal grandfather): Lucio is a friend of Claudio in "Measure for Measure"
*Overdone (Isabella's maternal grandmother): A reference to Mistress Overdone, a brothel keeper in "Measure for Measure".
== The Capp family ==
Capp: A reference to the Capulets, Juliet's family in "Romeo and Juliet".
*Juliette: Juliet is the titular character in "Romeo and Juliet". She falls in love with her enemy's son, Romeo, at a Capulet banquet party that he snuck in to. Juliet and Romeo promise to get married in the famous balcony scene. While Romeo is in exile due to killing Tybalt, Juliet's cousin, she and Friar Lawrence make a plan for Romeo to see her by faking her own death. Romeo gets the impression that she's really dead, and kills himself. Juliet then stabs herself with Romeo's dagger, and collapses over his body. The Capulets and Montagues, because of this, decide to end the feud.
*Tybalt (Juliette's brother): Juliet's cousin in "Romeo and Juliet", Tybalt is hotheaded and loves to fight. He kills Mercutio and is then killed by Romeo, setting the stage for the lovers' demises.
*Hermia (Juliette's sister): Hermia is the main character in "A Midsummer Night's Dream". Her love for Lysander was disapproved of by her father, so the two decided to run away to the forest. One of Puck's spells go wrong, and Lysander falls in love with Hermia's best friend Helena. The lovers are properly sorted out in the end.
*Cordelia (Juliette's mother): Cordelia is one of Lear's daughters in "King Lear", and the only one who truly loves him. She marries the king of France, but is marked as a traitor and hanged.
*Caliban (Juliette's father): Caliban is the deformed slave of Prospero in "The Tempest". He is the son of the witch Sycorax, and serves as an antagonist.
*Goneril (Juliette's maternal aunt): Goneril is the eldest of Lear's daughter in "King Lear". She only loves money, and is fighting with Regan for the love of Edmund. She eventually dies near the end.
*Albany (Juliette's maternal uncle via marriage): The Duke of Albany, a region of England, is the husband of Goneril in "King Lear".
*Miranda (Juliette's maternal cousin): Miranda is the daughter of the magician Prospero in "The Tempest". She is imprisoned on the island, but eventually freed.
*Hal (Juliette's maternal cousin): Hal is a central character in "Henry IV, Part 1" and "Henry IV, Part 2" and the title character of "Henry V".
*Desdemona (Juliette's maternal cousin): Desdemona is the wife of Othello in "Othello". The treacherous Iago convinces Othello that Desdemona is unfaithful, and she is suffocated by him. Desdemona means 'unfortunate' in Greek.
*Ariel (Juliette's maternal cousin)" Ariel is an air spirit in service to Prospero in "The Tempest". In the play, Ariel seems to be male.
*Regan (Juliette's maternal aunt): Regan is Lear's middle daughter in "King Lear". She competes with Goneril for Edmund's love, but her sister poisons her and she dies.
*Cornwall (Juliette's maternal uncle via marriage): The Duke of Cornwall, an area of England, is Regan's husband in "King Lear".
*Kent (Juliette's maternal uncle): The Earl of Kent is a character in "King Lear". He is loyal to the King, an ally to Cordelia and suspicious of Goneril and Regan, although his efforts are ultimately in vain.
*Contessa (Juliette's maternal grandmother): Contessa is the Italian term for Countess, hinting that there may be royalty in her family.
*Consort (Juliette's maternal grandfather): Consort is a title given in some monarchies to the husband of a queen regnant.
*Scribonia (Contessa's mother): Scribonia was the second wife of Roman emperor Augustus Caesar, and the mother of his only natural child.
*Octavius (Contessa's father): Octavius was one of the three men (triumvirs) who ruled Rome after the assassination of Julius Caesar.
*Cleopatra (Contessa's maternal grandmother): Cleopatra was a Hellenistic ruler of Egypt and in Shakespeare plays.
*Antony (Contessa's maternal grandfather): Antony was a Roman general and one of the three men (triumvirs) who ruled Rome after the assassination of Julius Caesar in 44 B.C.
Caesar Family: (Has to do with Julius Caesar).
*Julius (Contessa's paternal grandfather): "Julius Caesar" was a Roman dictator and is a tragedy by William Shakespeare.
*Calpurnia (Contessa's paternal grandmother): Calpurnia is the wife of Caesar in Shakespeare's plays.
Gale Family: A strong wind.
*Prospero (Juliette's paternal grandfather): Prospero is the hero of "The Tempest". He is a magician who, with the help of Ariel, shipwrecked his enemies on the island he and his daughter were imprisoned on.
*Sycorax (Juliette's paternal grandmother): Sycorax is a witch and main antagonist in "The Tempest".
Thebe Family: A location in Greece.
*Andromache (Consort's mother): Andromache was the daughter of Eetion, the King of Thebe, and wife of Hector in Greek mythology.
*Hector (Consort's father): Hector was the Son to Priam, King of Troy, and husband of Andromache in Greek mythology. He is killed at the end of the play "Troilus and Cressida".
*Queen (Consort's maternal grandmother): Queen Thebe is a reference to the unnamed wife of Eetion, Greek king of Thebe. Her name suggests royalty in the Capp bloodline.
*Eetion (Consort's maternal grandfather): Eetion was the king of Thebe in Greek mythology.
Albion Family: The ancient Greek name for England.
*Hecuba (Consort's paternal grandmother): Hecuba was a queen in Greek mythology and the wife of King Priam of Troy, with who she had 19 children.
*Priam (Consort's paternal grandfather): Priam was the King of Troy in Greek mythology. He had six sons, including Hector, and one daughter, the prophet Cassandra.
Dane Family: A Dane is someone from Denmark.
*Hamlet (Cornwall's father and paternal grandfather): Hamlet is the name of the protagonist and his father in "Hamlet". Prince Hamlet, the title character, is charged by the ghost of his late father to seek revenge on the latter's murderer, Claudius, his own brother. The prince spends the play in a moral dilemma, trying to decide whether or not he should commit murder to avenge his father; he considers every possible alternative, including suicide, in the famous 'to be or not to be' soliloquy.Hamlet the elder is the late king of Denmark, the prince's father. He was napping in the garden when his brother, Claudius, poured poison in his ear. He comes back as a ghost to command his adolescent son to murder Claudius.
*Tobea (Cornwall's mother): Possibly a pun on To-be-a Dane.
*Gertrude (Cornwall's paternal grandmother): Gertrude is the wife of Hamlet Sr. in the play "Hamlet". She marries the dead King's brother Claudius shortly after his murder. The length of time between the king's funeral and the queen's wedding is very short, indicating that Gertrude and Claudius might have been having an affair prior to the murder.
Scott Family: A Scott is someone from Scotland.
*Macduff (Cornwall's maternal grandfather): Macduff is the antagonist of "MacBeth".
*Lady (Cornwall's maternal grandmother): A reference to his wife, Lady Macduff.
Norman Family: The Normans were the people who gave their names to Normandy, a region in northern France
*William (Albany's father): William Norman is the son of Joseph Norman and Joseph's first wife, and Frances Courtney of Virginia. William of Normandy invaded England in 1066 and became King William I after the Battle of Hastings.
*Anne (Albany's mother): Anne became Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland as Queen Consort and wife of Richard in "Richard III".
*Mathilde (Albany's paternal grandmother): Mathilde is a cast in "Hamlet: The Drama of Revenge".
*Richard (Albany's paternal grandfather): Richard was King of England from 6 July 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy. Richard is also the name of the main character in Shakespeare's "Richard III", as King of England from 1483-1485. He was married to Anne, who ruled as Queen Consort with him.
Anjou Family: Anjou is a former county and province centered on the city of Angers and was conquered by Julius Caesar, also the title of Margaret of Anjou (1430-1482), Queen Consort to Henry VI.
*Henry (Albany's maternal grandfather): Henry II, called Curtmantle, ruled as King of England
*Eleanor (Albany's maternal grandmother): Eleanor of Anjou was the Queen consort of Frederick III of Sicily
== The Summerdream family ==
Summerdream: "A Midsummer Night's Dream" is a romantic comedy by William Shakespeare.
*Puck: Puck is a clever and mischievous fairy and personifies the trickster or the wise knave. He appears in "A Midsummer Night's Dream" as the one who causes the romantic confusion for the four lovers.
*Bottom (Puck's adopted sister): Nick Bottom is a weaver in "A Midsummer Night's Dream"; he plays Pyramus in the troupe's production of "Pyramus and Thisbe".
*Oberon (Puck's adopted father): Also Auberon, Oberon is the King of Shadows and Fairies. He appears in "A Midsummer Night's Dream".
*Titania (Puck's adopted mother): Titania is the queen of the fairies.
*Fae (Titania's mother): Fae refers to fairies or elves in Greek mythology.
*Elvin (Titania's father): The Elvin (Elven or Elf) is a creature of Germanic mythology; they were originally thought of as a race of minor nature and fertility gods.
*Brillante (Titania's maternal grandmother): Brillante is one of the sylphs in "The Rape of the Lock". It is her job to guard the diamonds.
*Pistol (Titania's maternal grandfather): Pistol is a hot-headed commoner in "Henry V". He was known for being a bit of a lush, and often challenged people to fights for little reason.
Featherlight Family: "Extremely light".
*Sylph (Titania's paternal grandmother): The Sylph is a mythological creature in the West.
*Damon (Titania's paternal grandfather): Damon's are good or benevolent "supernatural beings between mortals and gods">
Gossamer Family:
*Zephyretta (Oberon's mother): Zephyretta is one of the sylphs in "The Rape of the Lock". It is her job to guard the fan.
*Sprite (Oberon's father): Sprite's are elf-like creatures, including fairies, dwarves, and the likes of it.
*Nym (Oberon's maternal grandmother): Nym is a Corporal in "Henry V".
*Shock (Oberon's maternal grandfather): (Referring to Shylock) Shylock is a Jewish usurer who lends money to his Christian rival, Antonio, in "The Merchant of Venice". Shock is also Belinda's dog in "The Rape of the Lock".
Bramble Family: Thorny plants of the genus.
*Bob (Oberon's paternal grandfather): Bob is an eponymous main character of the sprite comic.
*Momentilla (Oberon's paternal grandmother): Momentilla is one of the sylphs in "The Rape of the Lock". It is her job to guard Belinda's watch.
Onomatology