Wandmaking
Herbology Magic and magical theory Magical Devices and Items

English oak

"Wands of English oak demand partners of strength, courage and fidelity."
-- Mr. Ollivander

English oak

A wand wood (Pm).

  • Owners of English oak wands are close to nature (Pm).
  • Merlin's wand is said to have been made of English oak, but his grave is unknown so it cannot be proven (Pm)
  • Mr. Ollivander remembered that Hagrid's wand was  "Oak, sixteen
    inches, rather bendy," but also that it had been broken when Hagrid was expelled from Hogwarts. Hagrid kept the pieces inside his pink umbrella (or perhaps Dumbledore had repaired it for him) (PS5)
  • According to the Celtic wand wood calendar (see here), Hagrid should have had an elder wand to coincide with his birthday on December 6, but the author decided to give him English Oak instead:

    Hagrid, for instance, has an oak wand though by this Celtic system he should have a wand made of elder; in Britain, the oak is ‘King of the Forest’ and symbolises strength, protection and fecundity; what other wood could ‘choose’ Hagrid?(JKR)

Commentary

Notes

The ancient druids of Britain worshiped trees, especially the English oak. The name "druid" comes from the Greek noun δρύς (drus), meaning "oak-tree", so druid literally means "oak knower" or "oak seer." But these tree-loving wizards were not just interested in plants. According to Julius Caesar, they studied "the stars and their movements, the size of the cosmos and the earth, the world of nature, and the powers of deities." source: Wikipedia

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