• Character Sam was a MACUSA Obliviator at the time of Newt Scamander’s visit to New York. Sam dated a fellow MACUSA worker named Ruby and was apparently involved with another witch, named Cecily, at the same time. Queenie’s knowledge of this secret (through Legilimency) allowed her to use blackmail to rescue Jacob… Read More
• Common items • Hogwarts academics Students typically carry bags filled with books, parchment, quills, homework,  wands, potions ingredients and ink. Read More
• Broomsticks Broomsticks and broom sports hold a special place in the hearts of Hogwarts students. Quidditch matches are routinely attended by nearly every student and teacher in the school, and star fliers have near-celebrity status among the student body. Read More
• Occupations Security Trolls and Security Warlocks (wizards and/or witches) provide protection services in the Wizarding world. Security Trolls After the Fat Lady’s portrait was slashed by Sirius Black (who later was let into Gryffindor Tower by Sir Cadogan upon producing the passwords), she agreed to return if she… Read More
• Magical objects Shrinking keys are an example of a mundane object enchanted by unscrupulous wizards for “muggle-baiting.” The keys are sold to unsuspecting Muggles, who then can’t find them anywhere (CS3). Read More
• Broomsticks The Silver Arrow was a popular broom produced by Leonard Jewkes, developed sometime after the Moontrimmer of 1901 and before the advent of the Cleansweep One in 1926. The good-looking Silver Arrow broom achieved higher speeds than either the Moontrimmer or the Oakshaft 79. Its maximum… Read More
• Magical artifacts In Dumbledore’s day (although not in Armando Dippet’s), the office contained a number of spindly-legged tables supporting various frail “curious silver instruments” (CS12), the function of which Harry did not know. They usually whirred and emitted little puffs of smoke. Read More
• Spells The Slowing Charm was an invisible spell which decreases the speed of a traveling object (CG). Read More
• Event Because Slytherin did not beat the Ravenclaw team by a large margin in their Quidditch match, Oliver Wood tells Harry Potter that it means that Gryffindor will be in second place for the Quidditch Cup if they also beat Ravenclaw in the next match (PA12). Read More
• Character A duelling competition held on Dartmoor in 1379 was won by the English witch Elizabeth Smudgling, who cleverly used a simple Disarming Charm against her wizard opponent in the final. For this achievement, she became the “Supreme Dueller”. (BoS)… Read More
• Event Death Eater Severus Snape sent a message to Albus Dumbledore to meet him on a lonely windswept hilltop in late 1980 so he could warn him that Lily Evans Potter and her child were in danger of being attacked by Voldemort (DH33). When the Headmaster arrived he found a… Read More
• Character Severus Snape was Potions Master, Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher, and Head of Slytherin House at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry; he succeeded Albus Dumbledore as Headmaster. He was personally killed by Lord Voldemort and his snake, Nagini. Snape… Read More
• Character Spangle was a renowned researcher of Charms in the eighteenth century, notable for his work on Patronuses (and, specifically, the forms which Patronuses take).  The book Charms of Defence and Deterrence is considered his masterwork. Read More
• Article
Posted by in Essays
Note: This piece is not about the class Charms, and I’ve left aside the vexing question of the difference between Charms and Transfiguration (e.g., why are winged keys a Charm and giant moving chess pieces are a Transfiguration?). Rather, I’m looking at Charms in the general sense, as a synonym for spells, that is,… Read More
• Spells The spells on this page may or may not be considered canon. Some of them, such as those from the video games, were apparently created or at least approved by Rowling. Those from the films, however, were probably created by the scriptwriter, Steve Kloves. Many of them don’t really fit… Read More
• Character In 1927, Auror Rudolph Spielman arrived at MACUSA Headquarters in New York City to take charge of prisoner Gellert Grindelwald so he could be brought back to Europe to answer for his crimes there. As Spielman and other Aurors were escorting the prisoner in a Thestral-drawn carriage across… Read More
• Character Alicia Spinnet was a Gryffindor girl two years (CS7) ahead of Harry Potter, in the same year as Angelina Johnson, Fred and George Weasley and Lee Jordan. She played Chaser on the Gryffindor Quidditch team with Harry (PS11). She was made a full member… Read More
• Character Able Spudmore was one of the founders and owners of Ellerby and Spudmore, makers of racing brooms in the mid-twentieth century. Able’s son Randolph Spudmore was the designer of the famous Firebolt racing broom (c. 1993) (Pm). Read More
• Character Randolph Spudmore is the innovative designer of the popular Firebolt broom. He is the son of Able Spudmore of Ellerby & Spudmore, broom manufacturers of the Swiftstick and Tinderblast models (MagSp). The design and manufacture of the Firebolt broom was his secret project, released in 1993. Even now… Read More
• Creature A stag is a male deer with antlers. The stag is the Animagus form of James Potter, and the Patronus form of Harry Potter. Read More
• Books and Literature The Standard Book of Spells is a multi-volume reference work used as a textbook at Hogwarts. The series is divided into “Grades,” with each successive grade containing more difficult and complex spells. The series was written by Miranda Goshawk in the 1900s, probably based on the seminal work… Read More
• Character Young, pimply conductor of the Knight Bus. He wears a purple uniform, has large protruding ears, and a Cockney accent. Stan is only about 5 years older than Harry (PA3). He was the first wizard to tell Harry the history of Sirius Black’s arrest for murder and his escape… Read More
• Headlines and advertisements The Star Letter is the best letter of the day sent in by readers and published in the Daily Prophet (DP1). In this issue, Ethelbald Mordaunt’s letter complains about the antics of his neighbour, Elladora Guffy, who thinks it fun to torment him by putting “amusing” spells… Read More
• Event Harry and the others in his Year sit their Ordinary Wizarding Level (O.W.L.) examinations. The first day is Charms, with a written exam in the morning and a practical exam in the afternoon. O.W.L.s occurs over the span of two weeks. Here’s the full schedule. First week of O.W.L.s: Monday… Read More
• Spells A commonly-used spell which hurls a bolt of red light, rendering the target of the spell unconscious. Alternate names “Stunner” “Stunning Spell” “Stupefying Charm” The reverse of this spell is “Rennervate”  … Read More
• Spells The Summoning Charm causes an object to fly to the caster, even over quite some distance; the target object is said to have been Summoned. It would seem that the caster must know at least the general location of the object Summoned. Read More
• Article
Posted by in Harry Potter Lexicon Minute
I’ve been doing some thinking about Summoning Charms, which, given the option, I would perform at least a dozen times a day, because where are my car keys and is my phone in my purse or did I leave it in the car again? (For those two reasons alone,… Read More
• Broomsticks The Swiftstick was a broom produced by Ellerby and Spudmore in Germany, who had earlier released the Tinderblast, in 1952. It was never used for Quidditch because of its inability to ascend powerfully (QA9). Read More