Name origins and meanings of all the DS and DST characters revealed until now

[E-17 Ghora]

Well, as I am a very rational person and I like to find the meaning behind names and stuff, I thought it would be fun if I tried to find some possible meanings behind Don't Starve character’s names. This is the result. Enjoy.

From the base game

Wilson: "Son of the protector". It also refers to his final fate in Don't Starve, where he becomes Maxwell/William Carter's successor by taking his place on the Nightmare Throne. But other than that, we all know why this name was chosen. 

Percival: It has many meanings: according to various sources, it could mean "hero" (in reference to the Arthurian Percival), "he who pierces the valley", "hard steel" or "destroyer". Wilson Percival Higgsbury is the main character of Don't Starve and therefore the "hero", he wants to change the world with the power of his mind (he wants to "pierce the valley"), he is determined (his will is made of "hard steel"), but his attempts end in tragedy, making him a "destroyer" in a sense. 10/10

Higgsbury: It doesn't exist outside Don't Starve world, but we can try to understand the underlying meaning behind it. Higgs is an early diminutive of the name Richard (Old English is that odd), which means "powerful ruler"; it is also a reference to the "Higgs mechanism", a Standard Model of particle physics to explain the generation mechanism of the property “mass” for gauge bosons. "Bury" is a common suffix in English surnames meaning "fortified place". Therefore, "Higgsbury" means "fortified place of the powerful ruler" with a pinch of physics thrown in. That is a sum of all we already said about this character.

Willow: This name reflects the qualities of the willow tree, meaning “slender, graceful and lithe (flexible and resilient)”; according to other references, it can also mean "freedom", "resolute" or "peaceful". Other than that, in the past the name Wilhelmina was sometimes misspelled as "Willow Mina", which gives it the meaning of "willing protector".

Willow is my favorite character in Don't Starve, and one of the reasons is that, banally, I love the name "Willow" ever since I heard it for the first time in "Buffy the Vampire Slayer". This name has no apparent correlation with her character, as it is usually associated with water, calm and peace and Willow is nothing like that. However, the willow tree is also flexible, resilient and it can thrive in harsh and hostile environments and our Willow reflects these qualities even if she is not using fire. The misspelling of "Wilhelmina" can also be a possible origin of her name, as it was pretty common to spell words and names in a wrong way in the past (creating interesting variations from the original name, just like "Richard becomes ****, and **** becomes Higg" like seen above). And if you are still not satisfied, there is the meaning of Willow among Bach Flowers, a brand of homeopathic remedies used to positively affect emotions. Willow Bach Flower is used to help the bitterness caused by adversity, which often leads to destructive behaviors if left untreated, which is a perfect description of Willow's mental state at the beginning of Don't Starve. (And I found out about them just because I was looking for natural remedies to keep my pets calm during a long car drive. Life is amazing, eh?)

Wolfgang: "Travelling or advancing wolf". It is just appropriate for the strongest character in the game.

Wendy: This name became popular thanks to the novel "Peter Pan" with the meaning of "friend"; it is also common as a pet name for Gwendolyn, which means "fair-skinned" or "blessed". Wendy is a blonde, fair-skinned girl blessed by having the power to summon her late twin’s ghost to protect her from harm.

Abigail: "Father's joy", or "she who gives joy". Abigail is one of the few people able to make Wendy feel some joy after her own demise. It could also be a clue of the fact that Abigail was the older twin and the original cause of joy for her parents, and that Wendy's birth immediately after was unexpected (at the time it was impossible to determine if a woman was pregnant with twins). Another possible meaning of the name is "a lady's maid" because it was the name of a maid in the play The Scornful Lady by Beaumont and Fletcher. Just like Abigail became Wendy's protector/minion after her own death.

WX-78: It follows the name convention of Wagstaff's main inventions (radio PR-76, gramophone MD-77). According to the serial number they were among his last creations before Wagstaff reached the Constant.

Wickerbottom: It's her last name and it doesn't seem to exist outside of Don't Starve world. However, a possible meaning can be found by looking for the etymology of "Bottom", which gives her surname the meaning "from the wicker valley". It is interesting to notice that wicker is usually made of willow, a tree commonly associated with witches, which is appropriate for one of the strongest magic users in the game.

Woodie: More commonly spelled Woody and a common diminutive for Woodrow, it means "from the cottages in the wood" or "row of houses by a wood". It is actually a pun about him being a woodcutter.

Lucy: "Shining light". Wait a minute… 

Wes: Also a diminutive for Wesley, it means "from the west meadow". (…)

Maxwell: It can mean "from Maccus's pool/Magnus' spring/Mac's well"; it can also mean "capable". The name was chosen as a reference to the thought experiment of the "Maxwell's Demon" created by James Clerk Maxwell in 1867 as a hypothetical violation of the second law of thermodynamics.

William: It means "vehement protector". It was possibly chosen to further Maxwell's connection to Wilson.

Carter: "Cart maker" or "transporter of goods by cart". Maxwell made the Constant livable again thanks to his experiments and then he transported in there new people to use them for his plans.

Robert: "Famed, bright, shining". He was a famous inventor before he went missing.

Wagstaff: "He who brandish the staff". It was usually used as a reference to a law officer during the Middle Ages and his quotes in the game seem to suggest that he would be more than happy to follow Their will, no matter how evil or dangerous it could be.

Charlie: "Free person", "strong and vigorous", "free thinker". She shows it in DST.

 

From RoG

Wigfrid: It is clearly a stage name. It could have two possible meanings: the first one is that it is just the name Sigfrid spelled with a "W", which would give the name the meaning of "victorious peace"; even if it is usually used as a male name, it can be used as a feminine name too in some countries of Northern Europe. The second possible meaning is that the name was chosen for some assonance with the original name of the actress, and taking into account the theory that "Wigfrid and the unused character Winnie are one and the same", it could mean that the real name behind "Wigfrid" might actually be Winifred, which means "peaceful" or "blessed peacemaking". And I am weirded out to associate "Wigfrid" to "peace" as much as you are, but like Latins said, "If you want peace, prepare for war". Her character just took it a bit too literally.

Webber: It is probably his surname, which means "weaver". But we all know why this name was chosen, so let's move on.

 

From Shipwrecked

Walani: I could not find its direct meaning online, so I tried to recreate it by searching for its parts. It could either mean "heavenly canoe" (and then it is a reference to her surfing ability) or "heavenly sound (of chord instrument)" (and then it is a possible reference to her being voiced by an ukulele). Walani is also an African word meaning "shining". Or it could be a diminutive of the name Walanika or Walanyka, the Hawaiian form of the name Veronica, which means "true image".

Warly: Normally spelled Warleigh, it means "from the weir meadow". And it makes another French-speaking character associated with meadows for some reason.

Wilbur: It seems to have various meanings. It could mean either "dearly loved stronghold", "willful and bright" or even "wild boar". Which is ironic for a poop-throwing monkey, but it makes sense for a king with a higher intelligence compared to the other monkeys.

Woodlegs: I refuse to explain this one.

 

From Hamlet

Warbucks: Despite this surname is pretty common with the alternative spelling Warbuck, its original meaning was impossible to find (that probably is "from the buck's weir" by the fact that it begins with the prefix "War" which seems to mean "from the weir"). Thanks to the "Daddy Warbucks" cultural reference, it could just be meant as "rich benefactor", and he saw himself as one for the pig society for sure.

Wilba: It is a not so used anymore name with a lot of meanings, which includes "little bear", "winsdom and knowledge", "understanding" and "from the wine country". It is also used as a feminine form of Wilbur. Her name's many meanings refer to her being the pig princess (and therefore "the future wise and benevolent queen") of the opulent kingdom of Hamlet and her being affected by Lycanthropy.

Wormwood: He owes his name to Artemisia Absinthium, an ornamental plant which is also used as an ingredient in some alcoholic beverages.

Maybelle: Variation of the name Mabel, it means "lovable".

Dorothea: "Gift of God"

Wheeler: "Wheel maker"; other sources list its meanings as "lucky warrior" or "prosperous hero". For sure luck has an important part during her survival adventures, and her Navigadget can make her prosperous pretty quickly in Hamlet's world…

 

From Don't Starve Together

Bernie: Diminutive of Bernard, it means "bear". He is a teddy bear and his name sounds similar to "burning" in a reference to the fire-related abilities of his owner Willow.

Ashley: "Lives in the ash tree meadow". Her name contains the word "ash", referring to Willow's fire powers.

Winona: "Firstborn/eldest daughter". She is Charlie's older sister. Are any other information needed?

Wortox: Wortox is a totally original name (if you ignore the existence of a Swedish Death Metal band from the late 80s) which seems to have its root in the word "wort". "Wort" can have three different meanings: the most common of them is "unfermented beer". Beer is a beverage associated with demons because of its intoxicating effects. The second meaning derives from "St. John's wort", a flower known for its antidepressant effects and considered a magical plant able to repel witches and demons in the Middle Ages as a result. The third one comes from the Old High German, according to which "wort" means "word/verb", which is a callback to the concept of "Logos". "Logos" is a recurring theme in western philosophy, with so many meanings it would take a lot of time to explain every single one of them, so let us all thank Wikipedia for existing (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Logos). The various metaphysical meaning of the term can be roughly summed up as "Logos is what exists in between the physical world and the metaphysical world". The word "logos" can be found in the Bible too, translated as "word" in English… and as "wort" in German. This kinda makes one of the possible translations of this word appropriate (and ironic) to name a demon who follows a metaphysical theme: one word, two meanings with more or less direct references to demons and one meaning with a metaphysics reference, add a final "-ox" and you got a cool name. GG Klei.

(Now let me go put my head under some iced water because my brain is overheating thanks to my attempt to explain the last point about Wortox…)

Wurt: Its meaning changes according to the sources. As an alternative spelling of the name "Wurth", it means "worthy", possibly referring to her being a Mermguard. As a variation of "Wirth", it means "innkeeper" or "head of the family", and her purpose is to bring back the Merm King as the ruler of the Constant. As for the possible meanings of the word "wurt" itself, in Old High German it was "fate, destiny", in Old Saxon it was "plant", while in Low German it was "man-made hill or elevation", referring to a construction system designed to protect structures and buildings from flooding (just like the stilt houses that inspired the constructions Wurt is able to create for her fellow Merms).

 

[Pluschi-Cal]

53 minutes ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Maybelle: Variation of the name Mabel, it means "lovable".

Dorothea: "Gift of God"

 

Yeah that sounds about right.

[Zeklo]

2 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Woodlegs: I refuse to explain this one.

I'm sorry I don't quite understand.

Please inform me.

This is knowledge which I crave.

I must learn that which is forbidden.

Tell me now.

[minespatch]

3 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Thanks to the "Daddy Warbucks" cultural reference, it could just be meant as "rich benefactor",

[Raspberry Shake]

4 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Wilson: "Son of the protector". It also refers to his final fate in Don't Starve, where he becomes Maxwell/William Carter's successor by taking his place on the Nightmare Throne. But other than that, we all know why this name was chosen. 

Percival

Higgsbury:

It's a pun. A very, very bad pun. If we look at his initials, we get this.

Wilson P.H.

As in PH scale, which is used to determine the acidic and basic qualities of a substance.

[Maxposting]

44 minutes ago, Raspberry Shake said:

 

As in PH scale, which is used to determine the acidic and basic qualities of a substance.

One time i went on a random pub and I met some toxic wilson noob, guess that joke applies to the players too?

[Raspberry Shake]

2 hours ago, __IvoCZE__ said:

One time i went on a random pub and I met some toxic wilson noob, guess that joke applies to the players too?

I thought you said you went TO a random pub. I was very confused why some drunkard would be flaunting their DST main.

[Viktor234]

8 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

WX-78:

0x78 = 120, but every character starts with a 'W' (except Waxwell).

8 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Lucy: "Shining light". Wait a minute… 

It's most likely that Woodie was the first character who found the Moonstone. As a result, he got the powers of the Werepigs (with the exception that he turns into a Werebeaver instead) and his favourite axe got powers similar to the Carrats. And Woodie named his axe after the event.

[AnitaCoffee]

10 hours ago, E-17 Ghora said:

Wendy: This name became popular thanks to the novel "Peter Pan" with the meaning of "friend"; it is also common as a pet name for Gwendolyn, which means "fair-skinned" or "blessed". Wendy is a blonde, fair-skinned girl blessed by having the power to summon her late twin’s ghost to protect her from harm.

Funny enough as someone with a family variation of the name, we all have dark features. 

[Be2014]

Wicker is a technique for making products woven from any one of a variety of pliable plant materials, a generic name for the materials used in such manufacture, and a term for the items so produced. The word wicker is believed to be of Scandinavian origin: vika which means to bend in Swedish, and vikker meaning willow.^[1] Wicker is traditionally made of material of plant origin, such as willow, rattan, reed, and bamboo, but synthetic fibers are now also used (from Wikipedia)

Spoiler

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[BeliarBAD]

On 6.8.2019 at 1:44 AM, E-17 Ghora said:

And I am weirded out to associate "Wigfrid" to "peace" as much as you are, but like Latins said, "If you want peace, prepare for war". Her character just took it a bit too literally.

the name sigfried are the 2 german words "sieg" and "frieden" and they mean victorious peace like you mentioned.

it makes very much sense shes called this way cause its a name from germanics. they were fighter. but they didnt fight to kill. they fight cause they had to. fighting brings peace cause you kill your enemies and this way you can live in peace without fear. so long they are strong enough to kill their enemies they will have peace

[Cyberboy2000]

Siegfried is a hero from folklore who slayed a dragon and bathed in its blood to become nearly invulnerable.

Also I looked it up and 0x78 in ascii is x which is a bummer. If it had been 57 or 77 (or 87, if it was decimal) it would have been a w.

[BeliarBAD]

9 minutes ago, Cyberboy2000 said:

Siegfried is a hero from folklore who slayed a dragon and bathed in its blood to become nearly invulnerable.

Also I looked it up and 0x78 in ascii is x which is a bummer. If it had been 57 or 77 (or 87, if it was decimal) it would have been a w.

thats true but siegfried isnt only his name. for example there is only 1 hercules. but hes not called siegfried. hes called siegfried the dragonslayer

[minespatch]

2 hours ago, Cyberboy2000 said:

Siegfried is a hero from folklore who slayed a dragon and bathed in its blood to become nearly invulnerable.

Also I looked it up and 0x78 in ascii is x which is a bummer. If it had been 57 or 77 (or 87, if it was decimal) it would have been a w.

He's also my character.

[Be2014]

What is Wickerbottoms first name?   other than Webber is she the only one that uses a last name?

[E-17 Ghora]

3 hours ago, Bee2017 said:

What is Wickerbottoms first name?   other than Webber is she the only one that uses a last name?

Wickerbottom's name is still unknown or I would have inserted it into the list as I did with all the character whose full names are revealed; Webber might be a surname used as a first name (it is not unusual in the English language - for example "Wilson" is more popular as a surname than a first name), his actual surname or a nickname he chose for himself after that he got fused with the spider. The truth is that all possibilities are open until we found out more about who this character was before the accident that turned him into the creature we see in the game.

The other characters who are referred with their last name are Wagstaff (Robert), Warbucks (whose first name is unknown) and Wheeler (Maybelle Dorothea).

[Canis]

5 hours ago, Bee2017 said:

What is Wickerbottoms first name?   other than Webber is she the only one that uses a last name?

I personally believe that Webber's name isn't actually Webber, but he has pretty much adopted the name because spider.

 

 

Well, now that I think of it, Maxwell could've doomed a poor child to death by a spider just because his name had "Webber" in it. I wouldn't put it past max.