Number Four, イボタノキ, プライベート Drive
J.K. Rowling's thoughts
The name of the 通り, ストリート where the Dursleys live is a reference to that most suburban plant, the イボタノキ, プライベート bush, which makes neat hedges around many English gardens. I liked the associations with both suburbia and enclosure, the Dursleys being so smugly middle class, and so determinedly separate from the wizarding world. The name of their area is 'Little Whinging', which again sounds appropriately parochial and sniffy, 'whinging' being a colloquial term for 'complaining または whining' in British English.
Although I describe the Dursleys' house as big and...
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