Desaad

Marquis De Sade, for whom the term "sadism" is named. - Ben Herman

Orion

the mythic hunter, who has a constellation named after him. - Ben Herman

Takion

Tachyon - a theoretical faster-than-light particle. - Mario

Dr. Bedlam

Named after the infamous London insane asylum. - Ben Herman

Metron

Metronome - an instrument designed to mark exact time by a regularly repeated tick - Sean

Metatron, the most powerful of God's angels in rabbinical lore. - Mario

Serifan

Seraphim - an angelic creature of the Bible who purifies with fire. - Ben Herman

Izaya

phonetic spelling of Isaiah, prophet of the Old Testament - Ben Herman & Walt Simonson

Kanto

"A Canto is a division into which a long poem may be sectioned. The best example I know is Dante's Divine Comedy which is (I think) divided into Cantos. I assume, given the apparently Italiante interests of Kanto, Jack picked the name for its Medieval associations." - Walt Simonson

Kanto *does* look like one of the old ministrels common to Shakespeare's plays. - Sean

Kalibak

possibly Caliban, the monster from Shakespeare's Tempest. - Walt Simonson

Justeen

Named after the novel by De Sade. - Ben Herman

Mortalla

"Mortality/Mortal/Mordant all figured in the name. A feminine ending was tacked on." - Walt Simonson

Steppenwolf

possibly derived from the title of Hermann Hesse's 1927 novel, which found a fan base in the late 60's. - Walt Simonson & "Stcantave"

Esak

possibly derived from Issac, of the Old Testament. - Walt Simonson

Echoes Esau from Genesis (who gave up his birthright). - Jack Kirby Collector

Deep Six

"the idiom either refers to the depth of a grave (six feet) or sailor lore, which basically said that if you were six fathoms under water, you were going to drown no matter what" - Mario Di Giacomo - Mario

Jaffar - Possibly from the Arabian Nights. - Mario

Trog - Troglodyte - a being that dwelled underground - Mario

Slig - Slug? - Walt Simonson

Shaligo - there is the Shaliko Theatre Company in NY - perhaps Kirby was a fan? - Mario

Pyron - pyro - fire - Mario

Gole - The legendary Golem of Prague, a giant walking statue. - Mario

Lonar

Loner - This particular New God found solice on the surface of New Genesis by himself, with his horse Thunderer. - Mario

Lightray

A class to represent rays that originate from a point and head for a light source. - Sean

Virman Vundabar

The closest thing I can find is "Verwundbar," which is German for "vulnerable."
Virman is probably a twist on "vermin," mocking Vundabar's toadying and less-than moral alignments. - Sean

"Wunderbar" means "marvelously" in German. - Mario

Infinity Man

this could have symbolized a scene of Jews calling on their Infinite Being (God) (with his unexplained, unimaginable powers) to help them. - Jack Kirby Collector

Bekka

Possibly derived from Rebekah, Isaac’s wife/ Esau and Jacob's mother in the Old Testament. - Jack Kirby Collector

Ramses (unused character created by Kirby)

Symbolized the oppressor of the Jews: Ramses I, pharoah of Egypt (Ramses even wore Egyptian-ish garb) - Jack Kirby Collector

Armagetto

Derived from the New Testament’s Armageddon (in Revelation 16:16, the place of the final battle between good and evil). - Jack Kirby Collector

The word "ghetto" which is the term used for the Jewish quarters of the city in Europe. - Mario

Funky Flashman & Houseroy

Believed to be mockeries of Stan Lee and Roy Thomas. Funky's name is probably a take on the wealth and glamour that Stan Lee enjoyed as publisher of Marvel, and Houseroy is probably a name of a loyal butler, which Kirby could've seen as the role Roy Thomas played as Marvel's Editor-in-chief. - Sean

"Houseroy" = Houseboy + Roy. (a houseboy is basically a valet, like Kato in the Green Hornet.) - Mario

Credits: Walt Simonson, Mario Di Giacomo, Ben Herman (the originator of this idea on the Orion Message Board), "DONAR," "Stcantave" and the Jack Kirby Collector.