On Monday, a new character named Sirona Ryan was introduced in the Harry Potter series Hogwarts Legacy game. She would be the first transgender character to appear in the popular show. Though this may be cause for celebration, netizens were outraged because the name had masculine overtones.
Sirona Ryan works at the Three Broomsticks bar in Wizarding, London, in the Hogwarts Legacy game. She is essential to all goblin-related missions. Sirona interacts with her goblin friend Lodgok, according to Game Revolution.
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It appears that the transphobic character was introduced in the Hogwarts Legacy game to diverge from J.K. Rowling’s anti-transphobic views. However, the author has a history of giving problematic names to characters, including Cho Chang and Kingsley Shacklebolt, both of whom are people of color. Many people complained that the names were racist and that there were numerous cultural and linguistic errors.
What does Sirona Ryan mean?
The name is one-of-a-kind. Sirona is a Celtic goddess of healing who is associated with snakes and eggs. Her name has been spelled in a variety of ways, including Thirona, Sirona, and Dirona. Those in Western Europe’s east-central Gaul mostly pray to the goddess. She frequently dresses in long gowns and wields a libation bow and scepter.
The character’s second name, “Ryan,” is also a traditionally masculine name, which only fueled the fire.
The Sydney Morning Herald also reported that the character appears to be spoken by a cis-male voice actor despite being a woman in the game.
It is safe to assume, however, that J.K. Rowling did not initiate the action. It was recently revealed that the persona was only created to “turn the conversation away” from the discredited author. Hogwarts Legacy’s creator, Portkey Games, revealed in an interview with IGN that Sirona Ryan was added for the following reasons: “The team felt that it was very important to create a game that is representative of the rich and diverse world of Harry Potter as well as the groups of people who play games, which includes the LGBTQIA+ community.”
The Hogwarts Legacy has already received criticism. Many people believed that purchasing anything from the Harry Potter franchise implies support for the author’s political views. At the time this article was written, the game’s creator had not commented on the Sirona Ryan name debate.
