Sinister meaning behind The Testaments Aunt names explained

Fans of The Testaments have likely overlooked the sinister significance behind the Aunts' names.

Disney Plus has finally begun streaming The Handmaid's Tale sequel, with five episodes now available to watch. The series follows a new generation of women living beneath Gilead's oppressive regime.

The narrative centres on Agnes (portrayed by Chase Infiniti), the biological daughter of The Handmaid's Tale protagonist June Osborne (Elisabeth Moss). She is raised in Gilead entirely accepting of the brutal system, but her world is upended when newcomer Daisy (Lucy Halliday) arrives at Aunt Lydia's (Ann Dowd) school for wives.

While she appears to be merely another pupil, Daisy is in fact a spy collaborating with June and Mayday agents to dismantle Gilead, reports the Mirror.

Audiences have also been introduced to the Aunts tasked with instructing the young women. But what lies behind their peculiar names?

How did Aunts in The Testaments get their names?

The Aunts in The Testaments are named after commercial products that were widely used by women in the pre-Gilead period.

Margaret Atwood's novels reveal that the founding commanders established this practice in a bid to facilitate the transition into Gilead.

Each Aunt selects her name from a catalogue of product names deemed "familiar and reassuring" to them. These encompass the "names of cosmetic lines, cake mixes, frozen desserts, and even medicinal remedies".

This explains why the Aunts possess distinctive names such as Aunt Estee (Eva Foote), apparently inspired by Estee Lauder, or Aunt Gabbana (Zarrin Darnell-Martin), taken from Dolce and Gabbana.

*Warning: Mild spoilers ahead for The Testaments novel.*

However, these brand names carry significance only for the older generations residing in Gilead. In The Testaments novel, principal character Becka (Mattea Conforti) becomes an Aunt.

She subsequently discovers the "approved list" of names from which she may select for her new position.

Atwood writes: "Becka said the names were made from the names of products women had liked once and would be reassured by, but she herself did not know what those products were. Nobody our age knew, she said."

Given that Becka and Agnes were brought up in Gilead, they lack the same association with the gender-specific brand names.

The Testaments airs Wednesdays on Disney Plus.