Character Analysis: Rubeus Hagrid

Hagrid... he's Hogwarts Groundskeeper, Keeper of the Keys, (now) Care of Magical Creatures Professor, and Order of the Phoenix member.

In PS/SS:CH1:MEANINGS OF PROPER NAMES, part two I mentioned the "regular" definitions of his name -- wild, untamed, heavy-drinker -- but how else can we ponder the meaning of hagrid?

Well, lets break it into "hag" and "rid"...he rids the place of hags? I suppose he could, with the services he provides at Hogwarts, sure, why not? Too simplistic for you? Me, too. Let's build on "hag" and "rid", shall we? Maybe the Futhark Runes can help us out.

Hagal + Rad?

Hagal is a symbol for protection and luck. Hagal comes from HeimdalR's Aett; HeimdalR is a guardian. Hagal means "fire and ice polarity, hail, destruction, balance". Rad, from Freya's Aett, is a symbol for travel. Freya is a godess of good weather, harvest, and fertility. Basically, rad means "wheels, journey, spiritual reunion". Protection, luck, and travel.... How has he filled these roles? He:

Travel 1: is sent to Godric's Hollow to retrieve baby Harry,
Luck 1: arrives at 4 Privet Drive riding Sirius' flying motorcycle (getting to borrow bike = luck),
Protect 1: protects Harry during that trip to the Dursley's.
Travel 2: is sent to the Dursley's to retrieve Harry, this time to attend Hogwarts, and rides the London Underground with him.
Protect 2: shows Harry around Diagon Alley and keeps him safe there. Update: Duh.... He also has Harry's key for the vault at Gringott's!
Travel 3: buys Hedwig for Harry. What's Hedwig's main purpose? Traveling to deliver messages! Actually, Hedwig also protects the messages she's trying to deliver, but we won't count this as a separate deed.
Travel 4: always takes the first years across the lake at Hogwarts.
Protect 3: is Groundskeeper and Keeper of the Keys at Hogwarts!
Protect 4: gives Harry a flute/recorder. This provides a lullaby for Fluffy.
Protect 5: is perhaps obsessed with the more dangerous animals, but if it weren't for him, we wouldn't have Buckbeak's (oh, yes, it's Witherwings now) help.... Buckbeak/Witherwings is also a source of transportation, not only for Harry, but also for Sirius.
Luck2: ...nor would we have the info Harry and Ron gained from Aragog.
Travel 5: along with Olympe, goes to visit and gain the allegiance of the giants. Though it hasn't quite worked as hoped, we still might see something good come of it in the long run.... This could lend itself to future protection.
Protect 6: indirectly protects Harry & co. by having Grawp around. Grawp gets the centaurs running away after they decide these kids aren't "foals" anymore.
Travel 6: tells Harry's class about thestrals. Just like Buckbeak -- oops, Witherwings -- the thestrals provide reliable transportation.
Luck 3: is a major part of Harry's experience with Felix Felicis. If it weren't for Aragog's funeral and Hagrid's state of mourning -- well, who knows? Let's not forget that Hagrid helps even more by giving Slughorn the unicorn hairs he just happens to have hanging in the cabin....

What could Hagrid provide (by way of travel, luck, or protection) in Book 7?
Projected Travel: Hagrid returns the flying motorcycle to Sirius after dropping baby Harry off to the Dursleys, right? We assume he was able to return the bike sometime before Sirius' run-in with Wormtail and Sirius' subsequent arrest. Whether Hagrid returned it might not matter -- Hagrid should know where it is! Hopefully it's at the residence Sirius bought with Uncle Alphard's money. So, Hagrid could tell Harry where the flying motorcycle is, once again providing Harry with a new form of transportation. Also take into consideration that rad also has to do with a journey, not just in the sense of getting from point A to point B but also in a spiritual sense, and spritual reunion. Where will Hagrid's help get him in this respect? The retrieval of Sirius' motorcycle could help ease Harry's pain of loss -- it's another connection he can have to his late godfather. Also, a return to Godric's Hollow could give him some closure regarding his parents' deaths (perhaps exceeded only by his final victory over Voldemort). The motorcycle and anything Harry finds at the ruins in Godric's Hollow might come to represent the spritual reunion of Harry to his departed family.

Projected Protection: Well, there's Hagrid himself, as well as Grawp. They are formidable in their own right. Then there are the full-blooded giants who oppose their Gurg (whoever it is this week), and they might turn against their brethren who have joined Voldemort's army.

Projected Luck: This is more difficult. Luck is supposed to be something completely unexpected. Hagrid's help in the luck department will most-likely be in whom or what he brings on board at the "crucial moment". We could see the felicitous return of Olympe Maxime or other Beauxbatons alumni due to Olympe's blossoming relationship with Hagrid. His gifts to Harry tend to be particularly useful and well-timed (Hedwig, flute, biting book), so perhaps Harry should pay extra attention to his upcoming birthday and Christmas presents.

I need to do some book-diving, then I might add more to this post later.... :)