I was looking up some name meanings for a story I'm reading, and I thought, "You know, while I'm at it, I may as well look up the meanings for the Animorph's names. Anyways, this is what I got from the site, and I found some of them to be interesting.
Jake (Jacob) Comes from the latin Iacobus. Means "holder of heel", or "supplanter", as Jacob was said to have carried his twin's heel upon leaving his mother's womb. It's a biblical name.
Cassie: (Cassandra) Means "shining upon man". In greece, Cassandra was a prophet, who made predictions people often dismissed as her seeking attention. I found this interesting, because, while Cassie wasn't a Prophet, she was an anomoly. And we all sort of dismiss Cassie
David: Means "Beloved", but also applies to the first king of Israel. This does not apply to our David, though.
Tobias: Means "God is Good." He was a hero in the book of Tobit, and is said to have expelled demons from his future wife, Sarah.
James: Comes from the latin Iacomus. It's associated with two apostles in the Christian Bible, and various kings. But what I found interesting about James/Iacomus, was that it is related/derrived to the word Jacob/Iacomus. I'd like to think that this is more than a coincidence on Applegate's part, having the leader of the Auxiliaries be named James. It seemed like Jake and James were being compared in terms of leadership.
Rachel: Means "ewe"...Whatever that is...Apparently it means "Innocent Lamb", which I find ironic in this instance.
Melissa: Means "Bee". It's also the name of a Nympth who loved the greek god Zeus.
Tom: (Thomas): Means "Twin". Thomas was also the apostle who denied the resurrection of Christ.
