The Hunger Games: Names and references

The Hunger Games is full of imagery, character development, and symbolism. Names are especially significant, and so are some historical references. We'll examine some of those things today. Make sure you jot down some notes in your journal.

First, let's take a look at the name of the country: Panem. Skim this article to find the reference--where did the name of the country come from? What does it mean?

Now, let's look at some character names: Katniss, Gale, Rue, Cato (check out information here about a couple different Roman guys named Cato), Primrose (or, Prim). Peeta is likely a variation on Peter--check out the etymology of the name Peter. Also, there are a lot of references in Roman history to people named Cinna. One of them was killed for his role in conspiring against Caesar; another was a poet who was killed because he was mistaken for the guy who helped assassinate Caesar. In fact, a lot of the names of the folks from the Capitol are from Roman history.

Think about this question: How do the origins of the characters' names help us understand the characters better?

Next, check out this link, to the Greek mythology story of Theseus and the Minotaur. Interesting, eh? Think about the ways that this story and The Hunger Games are similar.