This is continuing my series explaining how I came up with the weird (and not so weird) names of my characters in Prelude for a Lord . Bayard’s stepfather, Sir Hermes Morrish Sir Hermes was one of the easiest characters to name. He’s a bit foolish, and very easy going. The Greek god Hermes is sometimes portrayed as the Fool, with abstract knowledge and child-like innocence. When I looked up the meaning of the word, “moron,” it mentioned the Latin word morus which means “foolish.” I tweaked “morus” into Morrish for Sir Hermes’ surname. Sir Hermes is very carefree, with a boundless enthusiasm for life that makes Bayard’s mother feel young and carefree herself. Sir Hermes is a considerable contrast to the personality of her late husband, Bayard’s father, which might be why she remarried to a man like Sir Hermes Morrish. Sir Hermes is rather self-absorbed. He charmed Bayard’s widowed mother despite the fact he is slightly lower in social status and has less money than Bayard’...
