The Lexicon Blog


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Chapter nineteen starts on a high note: Harry felt as though he were carrying some kind of talisman inside his chest over the following two weeks, a glowing secret that supported him through Umbridge’s classes and even made it possible for him to smile… Read More

Posted
by Abby Koop
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Hermione Granger’s birthday is September 19th. Happy Birthday, Hermione! Hermione is a Virgo, like me, but I think she would deem astrology a “very woolly” subject. When Firenze begins teaching Divination, he calls astrology “human nonsense.” Parvati attempts to explain what Professor Trelawney has taught the… Read More


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
I thoroughly enjoyed chapter 18 of Order of the Phoenix, so much so that I had trouble picking out one thing to talk about in this podcast. The text is just so rich with wonderful conversations and characterizations — just read through that marvelous scene with Peeves throwing… Read More

Posted
by Abby Koop
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
So, if you’re like me, and I assume you are, you’ve got some questions about wizard plumbing. We know Hogwarts has bathrooms, and that those bathrooms have toilets, and that the halls of Hogwarts are lined with pipes. This is all spelled out for us in Chamber of Secrets,… Read More

Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Did Moaning Myrtle ever find out that it was Hagrid that was accused of being responsible for her murder? I know she was intent on haunting Olive Hornby for a while after her death. But, it was 50 years before Hagrid’s name was cleared. Did Myrtle ever wonder how… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
So as you know, I’ve been reading through Order of the Phoenix for the, I don’t know, maybe fortieth time, and that doesn’t include the dozen times I’ve listened to the audio version. The sentences feel wonderfully familiar and honestly, it’s like spending time with a dear friend. I guess… Read More

Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
In Chapter 33, “The Prince’s Tale,” of Deathly Hallows we see a previous conversation that Dumbledore and Snape had at the end of the Yule Ball. They are talking about the Dark Mark and discussing whether Snape will flee if summoned by Voldemort, as Karkaroff plans… Read More

Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
In Chapter 6 of Chamber of Secrets, titled “Gilderoy Lockhart,” we are introduced to two new magical items. Ron has the unfortunate privilege of allowing us to witness a Howler’s ability to deafeningly put someone in their place. And in the first Herbology class of the term we learn… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
We’ve been exploring chapters from the fifth book in the Harry Potter series, The Order of the Phoenix. In several of these podcasts, I’ve marveled at the way Rowling can really bring us into the magical places in her books. The creaky, dusty old house in Grimmauld Place is… Read More



Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
In this chapter, things really start heading downhill. Umbridge is appointed to be Hogwarts High Inquisitor — a name reminiscent of the horrors of the Spanish Inquisition. She begins harassing and demeaning the rest of the teaching staff immediately. These scenes where she stalks the classrooms of various… Read More


Posted
by Susan
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
“They prefer the woman’s touch, unicorns,“ says professor Grubbly-Plank in chapter 24 of Goblet of Fire. Rowling uses existing myths in her wizarding world often. The unicorn is a great example of that. Unicorns have been noted as mythical creatures in both Eastern and Western mythology since antiquity. Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Welcome to chapter fourteen. The sun is shining! As we’ve been noting the relationship between the weather and Harry’s experiences and mood, that means today should be a great day. And sure enough, Harry’s Saturday starts out spectacularly well. He wakes up to the sun… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Website news
In celebration of Harry’s first visit to Diagon Alley on July 31, we’re very excited to present the Wizarding World Currency Exchange to help all you Muggles in your magical shopping. Hagrid may think that seventeen Sickles to the Galleon is “easy enough,” but we Muggles find it complicated. Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Canon discussion
MuggleNet just posted a really cool video calling out Ten Amazing Facts you can research on the Lexicon. If you’re looking for a quick way to find them, here’s our Ten Facts Guide: Galleon to Muggle Money converter You can find the exchange rate for Galleons to… Read More

Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Has this ever happened to you? Recently, I was playing a Harry Potter Trivia game with my friends. The question was: How was the Diadem of Ravenclaw Horcrux destroyed? I definitely know this answer, my favorite book is Deathly Hallows, and I’m a Ravenclaw, this question hits my sweet spot… Read More

Posted
by Abby Koop
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Chapter 34 of Deathly Hallows is one of the most poignant, if not the most poignant chapter in the Harry Potter series. Harry realizes that he must die in order to kill the part of Voldemort that resides in him, so he leaves the castle to confront Voldemort… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Fandom News
With that headline, you’d probably be thinking that this is about Snape. But you’d be wrong. Snape was only mysterious while we were reading the books. Now that we’re finished, we have Snape pretty much figured out. Rowling did one of her classic “here’s all the answers, you’re welcome” chapters… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
The thirteenth chapter of Order of the Phoenix is called “Detention with Dolores,” and I think it’s fair to say that those detention scenes dominate our reading. I don’t know if there’s a more disturbing passage in any of the Potter books than the last half of this… Read More


Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
In Chamber of Secrets Harry goes from living in one extreme to being brought to the opposite extreme. The first sentences of Chapter 4, At Flourish and Blotts, describes it perfectly: ‘Life at the Burrow was as different as possible from everything on Privet Drive. The Dursleys liked everything… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Chapter twelve of Order of the Phoenix starts with Harry and Ron racing downstairs for the Great Hall on the first day of classes. It’s the start of the 1995-1996 school year and, as I mentioned in previous podcasts, Harry is already feeling separated and alone. To add to… Read More

Posted
by Bridget Bartlett
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
We never learn the name of the Muggle Prime Minister who meets with Fudge and Scrimgeour in Chapter 1 of Half-Blood Prince, but we do know that that meeting occurred in 1996. In real life at least, the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom was John… Read More


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
The theme of separation is in full swing in this chapter. Harry himself notes that things are not as rosy and cheerful as he’d hoped upon returning to Hogwarts. He thinks: Between the absence of Hagrid and the presence of those dragonish horses, he had… Read More

Posted
by Nick Moline
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Hey, everyone, welcome to your Harry Potter Lexicon Minute. I’m Nick Moline, The Harry Potter Lexicon’s resident tech wizard, and this is the story of how my adventure in J.K. Rowling’s wizarding world began. It was somewhere around late 2000 or early 2001 that I first… Read More


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
As I mentioned when talking about chapter one, the whole point of book five is the transformation of Harry Potter. All the things that are most important to him, the things that he sees as his strengths, will be taken away from him. At the end of this book, he… Read More

Posted
by Bridget Bartlett
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Have you ever wondered why an all-wizard rock band would call itself The Weird Sisters? Shakespeare fans may recognize the term “weird sisters” as a name applied to the witches in Macbeth. You might know that all roles in Shakespeare’s plays were played by male… Read More


Posted
by Selena Gallagher
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
In China the number four is considered unlucky, presumably because the Chinese word for four is very similar to the word for death. This association with bad luck seems to have followed the number four into the wizarding world. Four is sometimes seen as a source… Read More

Posted
by Ashmita Shanthakumar
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
With Solo: A Star Wars Story now playing in theatres, I thought it may be interesting to visit the similarities between two beloved franchises: Harry Potter and Star Wars. The protagonists Harry Potter and Luke Skywalker share many familiarities. They both live with their aunt… Read More


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Rowling said in an interview in 2005 (TLC) that since she doesn’t re-read her own books, “there are thousands of fans who know the books much better than I do.” I suppose that’s why she admitted to using the Harry Potter Lexicon as a reference while writing… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Website news
You know you’re going to buy the book, right? Use this link for your order on Amazon and you’ll be supporting the Lexicon with your purchase. We would certainly appreciate it. And while you’re at it, use this link every time you visit Amazon and a small portion of… Read More


Posted
by Rosie Payne
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
I wrote an essay recently about the timing of the attack on Neville’s parents, talking about how he must have been around five years old when it happened (give or take a year or two). This means he has an awareness of what happened and remembers his parents… Read More


Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
So why is the Order of the Phoenix my favorite Harry Potter novel? The rich, imaginative descriptions of new places in the Wizarding World are part of it, sure, but it’s more. It’s the delicious, immensely satisfying way that evil gets its comeuppance by the end of the book. Read More

Posted
by Eileen Jones
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Today I’ll be discussing chapter 2 of Chamber of Secrets, “Dobby’s Warning.” ‘There is a plot, Harry Potter. A plot to make most terrible things happen at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry this year.’ This year. Why this year? Why did Lucius… Read More


Posted
by Selena Gallagher
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Previously we talked about how often prime numbers feature in the Harry Potter books. Another number that crops up a lot is the number 12. 12 Grimmauld Place might be the first one that springs to mind, but we also have 12 uses of dragon’s blood;… Read More

Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Harry’s first-hand knowledge of the Wizarding world was pretty limited up to this time. Basically, he had spent all of his life in three places: Diagon Alley in London (and Little Whinging is part of greater London, being in the vicinity of Heathrow Airport), the Burrow which… Read More



Posted
by Steve VanderArk
in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
Let’s just take a moment to talk about the richness of Rowling’s imagination. In chapter six of Order of the Phoenix, we’re introduced to the weird and wonderful drawing room of number twelve Grimmauld Place, with it’s curtains filled with Doxies, the nest of dead Puffskeins… Read More