Alexey Sklyarenko: Vasiliy
Ivanovich Rukavishnikov's nickname was Ruka, not
"Rukka."...Russian for "hand," "arm." The surname
Rukavishnikov comes from rukavishnik, "the person who makes
рукавицы, mittens." ...Otherwise, I don't see any
connection between dracunculi, uncle Ruka and orchids in
Ada.
JM:
Dear Alexey,
Your are certainly a non-Russian-reader' s eyes and
ears with your sensitivity for words and wide reading and
scholarship.
After you described uncle Ruka's surname, one loose sentence in ADA
started to make a little more sense to me ( "Mr Plunkett considered the use of all mechanical media, mirrors
and vulgar ‘sleeve rakes’ as leading inevitably to exposure, just as jellies,
muslin, rubber hands, and so on sully and shorten a professional medium’s
career.") Sleeve rakes and rubber hands..gaunlets and
mittens?
Now
I must figure out "rakes" and "racks" and "burka"and "Karakul caps",
even Dan as a foolish red Durak, and Tartary's Kurland....
Would
any of these, indirectly, suggest Ruka and Rukavishnikov? In Mr.Plunkett's
example there were no "sonorous" or punning clues, only the extensive
ennumeration of, to me, senseless
items.
In
relation to your hedgehog associations, iron rods and Stalin...aren't Russian
thistles and artemisia flowers weeds, ie "Unkraut"?
Weren't
the German soldiers nicknamed "Kraut" and the Russians "Iwan"?(the latter I got
from wiki, I hope without distorting it
too much)