Happy birthday, J.K. Rowling and Harry Potter!
The author of the beloved fantasy novel series turns 52 on July 31. She shares her birthday with her most famous character, The Boy Who Lived.
If you haven’t read the Harry Potter series since the first time your child picked it up, it’s easy to miss many of the references J.K. Rowling packed into her books. One of the joys of revisiting the series as an adult is finding all the mythological, allegorical and historical references she scattered throughout the pages.
First, there are the more obvious references. Most people are familiar with the sphinx, for example. "Minerva" was the Roman goddess of wisdom. And Fluffy looks an awful lot like Cerberus, the three-headed dog who guarded the Ancient Greek underworld.
But below are some tidbits you are more likely to have missed.
The author of the beloved fantasy novel series turns 52 on July 31. She shares her birthday with her most famous character, The Boy Who Lived.
If you haven’t read the Harry Potter series since the first time your child picked it up, it’s easy to miss many of the references J.K. Rowling packed into her books. One of the joys of revisiting the series as an adult is finding all the mythological, allegorical and historical references she scattered throughout the pages.
First, there are the more obvious references. Most people are familiar with the sphinx, for example. "Minerva" was the Roman goddess of wisdom. And Fluffy looks an awful lot like Cerberus, the three-headed dog who guarded the Ancient Greek underworld.
But below are some tidbits you are more likely to have missed.
Snape’s Hidden Message
Rowling is a master of subtext: the meaning beneath the dialogue; what the speaker really means, even though he’s not saying it directly.
Rowling is a master of subtext: the meaning beneath the dialogue; what the speaker really means, even though he’s not saying it directly.
Photo by Annie Leibowitz
Consider, for example, this conversation between Severus Snape and Harry Potter during their first Potions class. Snape asked Harry a series of questions, including this clue: “Mr. Potter. Tell me, what would I get if I added powered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?” Of course, Harry, being new to the wizarding world, had no idea.
According to the Victorian language of flowers, asphodel is a type of lily meaning “my regrets follow you to the grave” and wormwood means “absence” and symbolizes bitter sorrow. If we combine the meanings of those two plants, we could interpret the truth behind Snape’s question as, “I bitterly regret Lily’s death.”
Cold-hearted as Severus Snape might have been, readers eventually discover that he’s been in love with Lilly Potter for all of his adult life. In fact, this failed love story is the catalyst of Snape’s entire character arc, and it’s the painful seed that grows the complicated relationship between Harry Potter and himself.
Rowling gives us the first clue early on. Of course, deciphering it requires a working knowledge of Victorian flower meanings.
Along that same line…
Consider, for example, this conversation between Severus Snape and Harry Potter during their first Potions class. Snape asked Harry a series of questions, including this clue: “Mr. Potter. Tell me, what would I get if I added powered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?” Of course, Harry, being new to the wizarding world, had no idea.
According to the Victorian language of flowers, asphodel is a type of lily meaning “my regrets follow you to the grave” and wormwood means “absence” and symbolizes bitter sorrow. If we combine the meanings of those two plants, we could interpret the truth behind Snape’s question as, “I bitterly regret Lily’s death.”
Cold-hearted as Severus Snape might have been, readers eventually discover that he’s been in love with Lilly Potter for all of his adult life. In fact, this failed love story is the catalyst of Snape’s entire character arc, and it’s the painful seed that grows the complicated relationship between Harry Potter and himself.
Rowling gives us the first clue early on. Of course, deciphering it requires a working knowledge of Victorian flower meanings.
Along that same line…
The Wizarding World Plants Come from a Real Book
“I used to collect names of plants that sounded witchy,” Rowling told 60 Minutes, “and then I found Culpeper’s Complete Herbal, the answer to my prayer.
First published over 350 years ago during the reign of Elizabeth I, Culpeper's Herbal remains one of the most complete listings of herbs and their uses in existence. From Adder's Tongue to Yarrow, the book contains plant descriptions and old-time uses.
To give a few examples:
“I used to collect names of plants that sounded witchy,” Rowling told 60 Minutes, “and then I found Culpeper’s Complete Herbal, the answer to my prayer.
First published over 350 years ago during the reign of Elizabeth I, Culpeper's Herbal remains one of the most complete listings of herbs and their uses in existence. From Adder's Tongue to Yarrow, the book contains plant descriptions and old-time uses.
To give a few examples:
Dragon’s blood. While truly the bright red described in Half-Blood Prince, it’s not from dragons. It’s the resin exuded from the wounded trunk of the Dracaena draco tree, found in Morocco. The resin’s exquisite scent is often used in soaps and such.
Wormwood. One of the ingredients Harry Potter students use to make the Draught of Living Death, wormwood is used to make the alcoholic spirit Absinthe.
Absinthe has been portrayed through the years as a dangerously addictive psychoactive and hallucinogen, and it was banned in the 1900s. More recent studies have shown Absinthe’s psychoactive properties have been exaggerated, and it has enjoyed a revival since the 1990s.
Absinthe has been portrayed through the years as a dangerously addictive psychoactive and hallucinogen, and it was banned in the 1900s. More recent studies have shown Absinthe’s psychoactive properties have been exaggerated, and it has enjoyed a revival since the 1990s.
Severus Snape used Wolfsbane to treat Remus Lupin when that character turned into a werewolf.
That’s the folk-remedy name for the real-life herb Aconite. Folklore says this virulently poisonous herb could be added to sachets to guard against vampires and werewolves.
That’s the folk-remedy name for the real-life herb Aconite. Folklore says this virulently poisonous herb could be added to sachets to guard against vampires and werewolves.
The screaming Mandrakes who made their appearance in the Chamber of Secrets, really do make a scream-like noise when uprooted.
And yes, the dried roots do often look like people. They have long been used as magical poppets for home protection.
And yes, the dried roots do often look like people. They have long been used as magical poppets for home protection.
Wand Maker Ollivander Chose Carefully
The main threesomes’ wands are actually connected to the Celtic Tree Calendar. The Druidic calendar assigns letters in the Celtic Ogham alphabet to correspond to a specific tree each month.
The main threesomes’ wands are actually connected to the Celtic Tree Calendar. The Druidic calendar assigns letters in the Celtic Ogham alphabet to correspond to a specific tree each month.
First, we have Harry, whose birthday is July 31, which corresponds to Holly, his wand wood.
This evergreen plant is protective and reminds us of the immortality of nature. People born under Holly are natural-born leaders.
Ron’s wand is Ash, which matches his wand and March 1 Birthday
Hermione’s birthday of Sept. 19 corresponds to her vine wood wand.
This evergreen plant is protective and reminds us of the immortality of nature. People born under Holly are natural-born leaders.
Ron’s wand is Ash, which matches his wand and March 1 Birthday
Hermione’s birthday of Sept. 19 corresponds to her vine wood wand.
For whatever reason, Rowling did not choose to have Voldemort’s Yew wand match his birth date of December 31.
Personally, I think she wanted the Yew associations of death. Yew is poisonous. Every part of the tree contains alkaloids that are fatal to humans. And Yew remains poisonous after the tree has died. Similarly, Voldemort’s Horcruxes and Death Eaters lingered on after his demise at Godric’s Hollow, poisoning minds and destroying lives.
Personally, I think she wanted the Yew associations of death. Yew is poisonous. Every part of the tree contains alkaloids that are fatal to humans. And Yew remains poisonous after the tree has died. Similarly, Voldemort’s Horcruxes and Death Eaters lingered on after his demise at Godric’s Hollow, poisoning minds and destroying lives.
The Author Put her Classics Degree to Use
Almost all of the spells in her wizarding world play around with Latin, and pretty much every creature and character name has some hidden significance. Here are some of the historical and mythological references in the Harry Potter books I found clever:
Expelliarmus, the spell to knock a weapon from an enemy’s hand, combines expellere, meaning “drive out” or “expel,” with arma, meaning “weapon.” Incendio, which lights a fire, comes from incendiaries, or “fire-raising.”
Likewise, the curse to kill Harry’s parents, “Avada Kedavra,” is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and the origin of abracadabra, which “let the thing be destroyed.”
And Hogwart’s motto is Draco Dormiens Numquam Titilandus—“Never Tickle a Sleeping Dragon.”
Almost all of the spells in her wizarding world play around with Latin, and pretty much every creature and character name has some hidden significance. Here are some of the historical and mythological references in the Harry Potter books I found clever:
Expelliarmus, the spell to knock a weapon from an enemy’s hand, combines expellere, meaning “drive out” or “expel,” with arma, meaning “weapon.” Incendio, which lights a fire, comes from incendiaries, or “fire-raising.”
Likewise, the curse to kill Harry’s parents, “Avada Kedavra,” is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and the origin of abracadabra, which “let the thing be destroyed.”
And Hogwart’s motto is Draco Dormiens Numquam Titilandus—“Never Tickle a Sleeping Dragon.”
The Death Eaters were originally known as the Knights of Walpurgis, which is a reversal of “Walpurgis Night,” the name of an old witch’s holiday on April 30th celebrating the rites of spring—exactly six months from Samhain (Halloween). On both nights, spirits were free to arise from their graves and roam.
Hermione’s unique name comes from a Shakespeare play, The Winter’s Tale, but Rowling says the etymology was her inspiration. The name is a female derivative of Hermes, best known as the messenger of the Greek Gods. Hermes was also the god of eloquence, wit and quick-thinking, traits Hermione has in spades.
Hermione’s unique name comes from a Shakespeare play, The Winter’s Tale, but Rowling says the etymology was her inspiration. The name is a female derivative of Hermes, best known as the messenger of the Greek Gods. Hermes was also the god of eloquence, wit and quick-thinking, traits Hermione has in spades.
Rowling said her favorite beast in the series is the phoenix, a mythical sacred bird who ignites into flames when it reaches 1,000 years old, only to emerge from the flames as a new, young version.
My favorite is the Thestral, a breed of winged horse with a skeletal body, reptilian face, and wide, leathery wings like a bat.
Thestrals got a bad rap in the books, and became known as omens of misfortune and death because they are visible only to those who have witnessed death. What I found most interesting was how Rowling used the Thestrals to distinguish people who have witnessed the process of dying, as opposed to those who have only seen the resulting death. Those who have witnessed life ending will forever see life differently.
Behind the Scenes
Daniel Radcliffe has been very open in the past about his struggles with alcohol. He admitted to Playboy Magazine that he drank heavily between the ages of 18 and 20. He said his life went off the rails for a while when he turned 18 and was filming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
“People with problems like that are very adept at hiding it,” he said. “I can honestly say I never drank at work on Harry Potter. But I went into work still drunk. I can point to many scenes where I’m just gone. Dead behind the eyes.
Realizing he had to change his ways, Radcliffe quite drinking a month after filming the final Potter film, and still doesn’t drink.
Behind the Scenes
Daniel Radcliffe has been very open in the past about his struggles with alcohol. He admitted to Playboy Magazine that he drank heavily between the ages of 18 and 20. He said his life went off the rails for a while when he turned 18 and was filming Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince.
“People with problems like that are very adept at hiding it,” he said. “I can honestly say I never drank at work on Harry Potter. But I went into work still drunk. I can point to many scenes where I’m just gone. Dead behind the eyes.
Realizing he had to change his ways, Radcliffe quite drinking a month after filming the final Potter film, and still doesn’t drink.
Dame Maggie Smith, the actress who played Professor McGonagall, filmed Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince while undergoing radiotherapy for breast cancer. “I was hairless. I had no problem getting the wig on,” she said. “I was like a boiled egg.”
Despite the jokes, filming the last HP films were a struggle for the actress, who has since been cancer-free.
On a lighter note, Daniel Radcliffe broke about 80 wands during the filming of the Harry Potter movies because he used them as drumsticks.
Despite the jokes, filming the last HP films were a struggle for the actress, who has since been cancer-free.
On a lighter note, Daniel Radcliffe broke about 80 wands during the filming of the Harry Potter movies because he used them as drumsticks.
Lastly, J.K. Rowling says one of the creatures in the books are based on her own struggles with depression after her mother’s death from multiple sclerosis in 1990.
She used her experience to create Dementors, creepy creatures that feed on human emotion. “It's so difficult to describe [depression] to someone who's never been there, because it's not sadness," Rowling told Oprah Winfrey. “I know sadness. Sadness is to cry and to feel. But it's that cold absence of feeling—that really hollowed-out feeling. That's what Dementors are.”
If you could ask J.K. Rowling one question, what would it be? Do you have a little-known Harry Potter fact I didn’t mention? I'd love to hear about them.
Until next week, here's an idea: go back and re-read the whole Harry Potter series. Let me know what revelations they bring you!
She used her experience to create Dementors, creepy creatures that feed on human emotion. “It's so difficult to describe [depression] to someone who's never been there, because it's not sadness," Rowling told Oprah Winfrey. “I know sadness. Sadness is to cry and to feel. But it's that cold absence of feeling—that really hollowed-out feeling. That's what Dementors are.”
If you could ask J.K. Rowling one question, what would it be? Do you have a little-known Harry Potter fact I didn’t mention? I'd love to hear about them.
Until next week, here's an idea: go back and re-read the whole Harry Potter series. Let me know what revelations they bring you!
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