Hershel Layton


 * "Professor Layton" redirects here. For the game series, see Professor Layton (series).

"Hershel Layton"

- I have an idea... Please, leave this to me.

Professor Hershel Layton is a famous archaeology professor fascinated with puzzles. His love of puzzles has solved numerous mysteries and put his name in the papers many times. He travels with his apprentice Luke Triton.

Under mysterious circumstances, both Triton and himself were transported to Labyrinthia, as were Phoenix Wright and Maya Fey.

Adventures in Labyrinthia

 * Main article: Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney

Personality
Layton is a calm, logical, and intelligent man with a love of puzzles and tea (his favorite brew being Belle Classic), although he has also been known to drink red wine. He is able to fence and to play the piano at a high skill level and appears to have past experience riding a horse. Although he is known for his distinctive top hat, he had an afro in when he was a teenager.

Name

 * "Hershel" may come from the German surname "Herschel", which in turn possibly comes from "hirsch", meaning deer. It was normally given to hunters or those "nimble like a deer", perhaps referencing Layton's hunt for puzzles or his nimble mind. It may have been chosen in reference to John Herschel, an English astronomer who wrote to William Lassell after Neptune's discovery to suggest that he search for possible moons. Lassell did so and discovered Triton. If so, this would link his name with that of his assistant Luke Triton.


 * Layton is a surname derived from various place names in England, possibly coming from "settlement by the watercourse", from Old English "lād" ("watercourse") + "tūn" ("enclosure"). Presumably it was chosen for its "English-ness". It could also possibly be a play on "Latin", as a reference to his intellectualism.

Development
After the announcement of Professor Layton vs. Phoenix Wright: Ace Attorney, Level-5 CEO Akihiro Hino stated that Layton was partly based on Phoenix Wright. He explained that he had researched the good and bad aspects of the Phoenix Wright character and applied the good aspects to Layton.