Here's my take about O!Ciel's real name - P.I
Disclaimer - I probably rambled a lot on this. It became longer than I wanted, but it's finally here!
After much thought, rethinking, and research, my conclusion regarding O!Ciel's real name is: Caelum (pronounced "KAY-lum"). Therefore, the twins would be Ciel & Caelum Phantomhive.
And I'd like to delve a little deeper into that.
Let's start by comparing both names:
- The name Ciel is of French origin and means "sky" or "heaven". It is also linked to the Latin word for "heaven" (caelum). The name evokes a sense of infinity, ethereal beauty, and purity. It also represents a sense of freedom, elevation, and celestial beauty.
- The name Caelum is of Latin origin and (like the previous name) means "sky" or "heaven." It also has the specific meaning of "engraver's chisel," which comes from the faint southern constellation called Caelum Sculptoris ("Engraver's Chisel"). Therefore, in addition to a celestial meaning, it is also related to a tool.
(Seen as “Cela Sculptoris” in the lower right of this 1825 star chart from Urania's Mirror)
Caelum is a faint constellation in the southern sky, introduced in the 1750s by Nicolas Louis de Lacaille and counted among the 88 modern constellations. Its name means "chisel" in Latin, and it was formerly known as Caelum Sculptorium ("Engraver's Chisel"); it is a rare word, unrelated to the much more common Latin caelum, meaning "sky," "paradise," or "atmosphere."
It is the eighth smallest constellation and subtends a solid angle of about 0.038 steradians, slightly smaller than that of Corona Australis.
Due to its small size and location far from the plane of the Milky Way, Caelum is a rather barren constellation, with few objects of interest - Wikipedia
This is a chisel. It is used to cut, carve, and shape hard materials such as wood, stone, and metal. It is a tool with a sharp blade that can be used manually with hand strength or by striking with a hammer, or mechanically, as in pneumatic hammers. There are also specific surgical chisels for dental procedures, used to remove bone or to assist in tooth extraction by severing periodontal ligaments.
I would like you to keep this information about the chisel in mind, because I will be referring to it again later.
2. The Birth and Childhood of the Phantomhive Twins
Well, Vincent Phantomhive mentioned that the name chosen for the twins was met with strangeness by the family, due to how unusual they were for that time. And, between us, it's a good thing they were named the way they were, because otherwise we would probably be following the story of James & John Phantomhive – which, although beautiful names, don't have the same appeal as the ones we know.
But, back to the subject:
I'm assuming that Rachel and Vincent had already discussed possible names for the baby if it was a boy; and one of the chosen names ended up being Ciel. As mentioned above, this is a name that evokes the qualities of infinity, ethereal and/or celestial beauty, purity, freedom, and elevation. A different name, but with a certain refinement, ideal for a future earl, especially one from the Phantomhive family.
Only now they had two. (Oh, yeah, O! Ciel teaching us from an early age to expect the unexpected). So a name with the same meaning would be a way to symbolize the bond between them. Something they both could have in common.
And here I'll pull some of the information we have from the manga:
"One twin is like a mirror image of the other, therefore, for those who don't know them well, it would be practically impossible to tell the difference."
Well, Ciel and Caelum share the same meaning, as we could see above ("heaven" or "sky"), but the pronunciation of the names is quite different from each other:
CIEL - pronounced "see-ELL"
CAELUM - pronounced "kay-LUM"
So, just by pronouncing the name, we can already notice a difference. However, even with different names and pronunciations, the meaning of something that refers to the ethereal and the celestial is something that both share; so we can say that here the order of things was "altered," but with its essence maintained:
"The twins were identical in a certain aspect, but completely different once you look from another point of view"
Another strong difference, once the twins were observed, was that one of them was more "extroverted" than the other. R!Ciel could converse with people, mingle, and take the lead without problems. O!Ciel, whether due to shyness or something already linked to his fragile health, was better at following, obeying, and letting others (mostly his older brother) take the lead.
It's worth remembering that, if nowadays people who communicate more easily seem to get "ahead," imagine what it was like in Victorian times, especially considering the Phantomhive family's position in society. Children of nobles were expected to communicate exceptionally well. To be strong, confident, and decisive. So for O!Ciel, who was the way he was in childhood, he was practically the same as "his" constellation:
Small. Distant. Uninteresting. Boring. Not as bright as others.
It's hard not to wonder how he would have fared if things hadn't taken the turn they did. How he would have lived if that tragedy on his tenth birthday hadn't happened. But unfortunately it did, and it changed everything in his life and his brother's.
And I'm going to end this post here and do a part two later; this ended up being longer than I imagined it would be...
Also, has that skull head always been in this image, or am I just imagining things?
titsay
gummygunk
janainaart
theartofmadeline
