It has been about 23 years since the first Harry Potter movie was released. And it still has one of the biggest fanbases; no one can beat the power of magic. So, for all the Potterheads out there, we have some Harry Potter facts that one must know.
Here are the top 15 Harry Potter facts:
1. How did J K Rowling come up with Harry Potter?
During an interview, Rowling revealed that the idea of harry potter came into her mind during a four-hour rain delay when she was traveling back to London on her own from Manchester. The boy who doesn’t know he’s a wizard goes to wizarding school; this was literally the first-ever thought that crossed her mind regarding this incredible universe. Later, she worked on the details and created our world of magic.
2. The mystery behind Weasley’s car.
How can we ever forget the epic scene from Chambers of Secret, when Harry and Ron fly to Hogwarts in Weasley’s car? The car model used for this scene is a Ford Anglia. Rowling used this specific model because she has fond memories of driving around in it when she was younger with her best friend from school.
3. Why the name Hogwarts?
Hogwarts is probably our dream destination; all of us, at some point in our lives, actually have waited for a Hogwarts letter to arrive. You might believe that there is some big ass mystery about how Rowling came up with this name, but let me tell you are completely wrong. The school derived its name from the hogwort plant, which Rowling came across in New York’s Kew Gardens.
4. The Dementors’ mystery.
Being a Harry Potter fan myself, I have always wondered why did Rowling insert Dementors into the story. If you, too, thought about this – I have finally resolved this mystery. Rowling has faced extremely unfortunate circumstances in her life. She has gone through depression which was a very haunting period for her. The Dementors represent the evil happenings that took place in her life and how they tried to take away her emotions. So, she used them to symbolize the evils in life that try to take away what we have.
5. Not telling characters the entire story.
Rowling is a perfectionist when it comes to the wizarding world; she wants the emotions to be expressed on the screen very precisely. Therefore, she didn’t ever tell Alan Rickman and Daniel Radcliff the entire story about their characters, i.e., Harry’s fate and Snape’s true motivation. This injected a lot more depth and emotions into the characters, and she successfully created the most epic film series ever.
6. The scar
What we see is a few hours-long movie, but what we don’t realize is that it took years of hard work to make. The smallest detail needed a lot of work and dedication. The famous lightning bolt scar was applied 5,800 times throughout eight films. It was applied 2,000 times on Harry’s face, and the rest were applied to the stunt doubles. And Radcliff went through 160 pairs of Harry’s round-frame glasses throughout the series.
7. Why are James and Lily soulmates?
Being someone’s love of life is in our hands, but soulmates are created by force above mankind. Patronus Charm is a physical representation of one’s soul – James Patronus is a Stag, whereas Lily’s Patronus is a Doe. Therefore, both of them fit perfectly. Interestingly, after Lily’s death, Snape’s Patronus changes into a doe, symbolizing Snape’s pure love for her.
8. 1998
The year 1998 is very special for all the Potterheads because that is the year when the epic battle of Hogwarts was fought. Rowling decided to launch her first Harry Potter book in the same year because she wanted to ‘open at the close.’ Later, the phrase was used in the deathly hallows movies, making it even more symbolic.
9. In the end, Harry loses his ability to speak in Parseltongue.
In the Chambers of Secrets movie, we discover Harry’s ability to speak Parseltongue. The reason behind it is not revealed until the last movie when the mystery is resolved. Harry can speak Parseltongue because a part of Voldemort lives inside him as a Horcrux. When Harry gets killed, the Horcrux inside him gets destroyed, so he then loses his ability to speak Parseltongue.
10. What happened to Dolores Umbridge?
We thought that Voldemort was the worst character, but then we were introduced to Dolores Umbridge in the Order of the Phoenix. And she is the most hated character in the entire series. But we didn’t actually know what had happened to her. Was she killed? Did she escape? Well, Umbridge actually ended up in Azkaban for torturing, imprisoning, and even ordering the deaths of innocent wizards and witches in the Second Wizarding War.
11. The story of Minerva McGonagall.
What we know about McGonagall is that she was forward-thinking and resourceful, brilliant and occasionally brooding. But that’s not everything; she had a tragic life. Her love was a muggle, and she left the wizarding world for him. He was later murdered by Voldemort. His second love worked in Hogwarts, but he, too, lost his life due to some dark wizards. The reason why she lives in Hogwarts is that her house is destroyed too. Despite such unfortunate events, she still made the best out of every situation.
12. Hogwarts is not visible to the muggles.
Hogwarts is actually unplottable. For those who don’t know what unplottable is, it is hiding in plain sight. If a muggle ever finds its way to Hogwarts, they will see the castle but not the way the wizards can see. It will look completely in ruin and is barred by a sign warning any potential explorers away. Also, it has powerful spells protecting the castle from all the dark forces out there.
13. Rowling is afraid of this question.
Even years after the release of the series, fans flood Rowling with various Harry Potter theories and questions. Rowling has an answer for every question except a specific one, what was Dumbledore’s wand made out of? So Dumbledore’s wand is the strongest wand in the wizarding world, the elder wand. Rowling thinks that it will take things a bit too far if she said that the wand was made out of the dead tree.
14. Dumbledore’s full name.
Our Dumbledore is actually Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore. I know the name is long, but each word has a specific meaning. Albus means white in Latin, symbolizing goodness. Percival is one of King Arthur’s Knights of the Round Table; the knight went in search of the lost grail. The lost grail is a reference to the deathly hallows. Wulfric is a 12th-century British figure Wulfric of Haselbury, known as a miracle worker. Brian is derived from an Old Celtic word that means noble. Lastly, Dumbledore is an old English word for bumblebee. Rowling always jokes about how Albus Dumbledore is very fond of music, and she always imagined him humming to himself a lot.
15. Hagrid’s Hut
Hagrid’s hut was actually a real place created at the shooting location. But since it was a special place for the fans, there were Potterheads who would always flock around the location. Therefore the creators decided to tear it down immediately after they finished shooting for The Sorcerer’s Stone. Later, for the rest of the movies, Hagrid’s hut was digitally created.
So these were the top 15 astonishing Harry Potter facts. Rowling is truly a gem for creating a magical world for us Potterheads!
