Griffin draws on two threads: a Welsh surname meaning something like "strong lord," and the mythical creature -- part eagle, part lion -- long used as a symbol of vigilant guardianship. Together they give the name a watchful, protective quality, strength kept in reserve rather than displayed.
When the Sun in the daytime, and the Moon in the night, in the beginning of any sickness, is impedited, the person is to be feared. - William Lilly (1602.-1681.)