The latest episode of Doctor Who featured some major tie-ins from last season, including the appearance of another world-changing spoon, a God, and the return of the Harbingers. Because last season featured multiple H. Arbinger characters, I have been paying special attention to naming conventions... which brought me to a critical realization.
Ruby Sunday and Belinda Chandra are being set up as opposing forces, whose names literally mark them as the Doctor's sun and moon. Below, I'll break down how the names brought me to that conclusion, what elements of their personalities fit these characterizations, and what that might mean for the future of these characters.
How naming conventions lead to the sun and moon
Let's start with the obvious. Ruby Sunday was the Doctor's companion throughout Season 1 and will return a few episodes into Season 2. Her name, in-world, is based on the road where she was left as a child and the last name of the woman who adopted her. It's all relatively by chance, although the finale made it clear that her birth mother intended her to be named Ruby.
Overall, it's a very straight-forward name. Ruby simply refers to the gem, or to the color red, and Sunday is likely referring to the day of the week. But it's worth pointing out that Sunday is literally considered "the day of the Sun," and thus her full name could be understood as "the day of the Red Sun." Earth's sun is not a red star, but there are plenty of solar systems that do revolve around a red star, and Gallifrey's may be one of them.
Belinda Chandra's name is much less straight-forward, but that doesn't make it any less important. The first name has a few possible meanings, with the simplest being a derivation of Belle or Bella, meaning "beautiful." However, some etymology sites point out different meanings, including a Babylonian goddess of the heavens whose name comes from the root word Bêl, which means master, or the combination of the "beautiful" prefix with the German word lind, which means "serpent" or "dragon."
There are a lot of different ways that her first name could go, although any Doctor Who fan has good reason to be suspicious of a character whose name could be tied to the title Master. But what's most important in this context is her last name: Chandra. The name comes from the Sanskrit chand, which means "shining" or "moonlight." It is also one name for the Hindu god of the moon.
The various implications of "Chandra" are incredibly significant, especially after the episode "Lux" gave such a focus to moonlight. But there is also another connection between the character and the moon. Before playing Belinda, actress Varada Sethu first played a character named Mundy Flynn. The similarities between Mundy and Monday were highlighted in that episode, and the day of the week Monday is etymologically "the day of the Moon," just as Sunday is the day of the sun. But the name Flynn also has ties to "red," like Ruby's, though it is generally focused on red hair.
How Ruby fits the Sun
On a general level, the sun is considered to be a nurturing force. It brings warmth and light to the world, and is associated with goodness. While it is impossible to get too close to the sun, the entire solar system benefits from its proximity and strength.
Similarly, the Doctor thrives in Ruby's presence. While there were many heartbreaking moments in her time with him, they generally had fun together, enjoying their adventures with a symbiotic relationship. The Doctor gave Ruby new experiences, and she brought him a fresh perspective and a sense of family or friendship.
If we look at the Sun symbolically through tarot, it has implications of optimism, innocence, and truth. While I don't think that Ruby had enough time to be fully developed as a character, these were ideals she clearly embodied and was able to bring to the Doctor during their travels. Though she decided to leave the TARDIS to learn more about her family, her time with the Doctor was ultimately positive.
How Belinda fits the Moon
We don't have nearly as much information about Belinda as we do about Ruby yet, but it's obvious that she is a very different person. She might enjoy some aspects of traveling with the Doctor, but she initially views him negatively, seeing him as a dangerous figure who takes people away from their families and lives.
This ties in well with popular understandings of the moon. Though it can be a source of light and inspiration, it is only seen in the dark. It is far more changeable than the sun, and it can expose darker elements that were present but hidden before. Thus far, this ties in well to a companion who has no desire to travel with the Doctor and insists on illuminating his darker habits.
In tarot, the moon is a much more complex card than the Sun. It highlights dualism and possibilities, showing the potential for both good and evil in ourselves and our journeys. It is often connected with illusions, where we can easily be led into believing things that are not true. We must do our best to follow the light, but we must also be aware of the darkness both within and beyond ourselves.
What this might mean moving forward
As we move farther into Season 2, fans will have the opportunity to see the Doctor interact with both Belinda and Ruby, and it seems likely that we will see the vastly different ways that they perceive him and the different ways they influence him.
Ruby is positive and trusting, which is better for the Doctor in the short-term but might allow him to give into darker impulses because she's unlikely to call him out on them. Meanwhile, Belinda is much more likely to be harsh in her criticisms. This will be less enjoyable for the Doctor, but it is an important part of the companion's role in the TARDIS—pulling the Doctor back from his darkest impulses.
If it remains symbolic, then this season will likely do a lot of work looking at which perspective is more important in a companion. We'll see situations where Belinda's perspective makes everything worse, but we'll also see times when her nuance saves the day over Ruby's more reckless optimism. They will frequently be put at odds, and the Doctor will have to find the right balance between them.
However, there's also the possibility that something bigger is going on here. Mrs. Flood has been present at both companions' homes, waving them on as they began their adventures. It seems entirely possible that these companions were hand-selected, and the fact that both have ties to celestial bodies could be a major plotline.
Perhaps the characters are not as human as we have been led to believe, and they are truly avatars of the gods of the sun and moon. Perhaps there is something vital about the "red" part of the character names. It's simply too early to know for sure. But it seems obvious that Davies created these different companions for a reason, and their names and associations will hopefully become clear in time.