Interesting tidbit about Guards! Guards!

[RathDarkblade]

Obvious warning is obvious: SPOILER, Don't read unless you've read "Guards! Guards!" ... but if you ignore this and read anyway, that's on you.



Anyway, in G!G!, we're told that Carrot's earliest "lady friend" is called Minty Rocksmacker.

For years and years, I thought this was simply a funny throwaway name ... until earlier today, I read that when Harriet Tubman was a slave, her "slave name" was Minty.

Is this just a crazy coincidence? Or does anyone else think Terry knew this and was secretly laughing at everyone?

 

[Tonyblack]

I always thought is was a reference to Rock Candy, a traditional British (and possibly elsewhere) seaside treat, that was, most commonly, minty flavoured.

Apart from the "slave name", I don't really see a connection to Tubman. But who knows what was going on in Terry's mind?

 

[raisindot]

I don't see the connection at all. To me, "Minty" seemed like a mining name, since dwarfs are are mining for gold which can be minted in coins or other objects.

 

[RathDarkblade]

I always thought is was a reference to Rock Candy, a traditional British (and possibly elsewhere) seaside treat, that was, most commonly, minty flavoured.

I don't see the connection at all. To me, "Minty" seemed like a mining name, since dwarfs are are mining for gold which can be minted in coins or other objects.

Oh, OK. As I said, I always thought that "Minty Rocksmacker" was just a funny name, because of the contrast with other names in traditional fantasy (and especially D&D), like Conan the Destroyer or Ancalagon the Black, and the like. "Minty", by contrast, has a homely sound.

Both these explanations make a lot more sense than my connection to Harriet Tubman, which seems like a coincidence. But when I saw that Tubman was called "Minty" in her youth, it immediately reminded me of "Guards! Guards!". Thanks!