Hermione's surname was originally Puckle, but Jo decided it didn't "suit her." Her first name came from the Shakespeare play, A Winter's Tale. Jo stated, though, that "my Hermione bears very little relation to *that* Hermione, but it just seemed the sort of name that a pair of professional dentists, who liked to prove how clever they were ... do you know what I mean ... gave their daughter a nice, unusual name that no-one could pronounce!"

Apparently, Jo received many inquiries concerning how the name was pronounced. She snuck that into Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, when Hermione's talking to Krum during the Yule Ball - she tells him to pronounce it "her-my-oh-nee." Krum continues to say "herm-own-ninny", however, but at least we know how it's pronounced now!