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{{DISPLAYTITLE:Magic in ''Harry Potter''}}
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In the fictional universe of ''[[Fictional universe of Harry Potter|Harry Potter]]'', [[Magic in fiction|magic]] is depicted as a supernatural force that overrides the [[Physical law|laws of nature]]. In humans, magical ability is inborn and is usually inherited. Most children of magical parents are magical themselves. Some children of "[[Muggle]]" (non-magical) parents also display magical ability. Children who are born to wizard parents but are unable to perform magic are known as [[Blood purity (Harry Potter)#Squibs|Squibs]].<ref>{{cite web |title=FAQ |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/extrastuff_view.cfm?id=19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110721042840/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/extrastuff_view.cfm?id=19 |archive-date=21 July 2011 |website= jkrowling.com| publisher= J. K. Rowling |access-date=8 May 2017}}</ref>

[[J. K. Rowling]], the creator of ''Harry Potter'', based many magical elements in her fictional universe on [[Harry Potter influences and analogues|real-world mythology and folklore]]. She has described this derivation as "a way of giving texture to the world".<ref>{{cite episode |series=Harry Potter: A History of Magic |network=[[BBC]] |date=28 October 2017}}</ref> The magic of ''Harry Potter'' was the subject of a 2017 [[British Library]] exhibition and an accompanying documentary. The exhibition, entitled ''Harry Potter: A History of Magic'', was the first at the British Library to be based on a single series by a living author.<ref>{{cite news |last=Flood |first=Alison |date=8 August 2016 |title=Harry Potter's 20th birthday to be marked with British Library show |newspaper=The Guardian |url= https://www.theguardian.com/books/2016/aug/08/harry-potters-20th-birthday-to-be-marked-with-british-library-show |access-date= 30 November 2017}}</ref>

==Using magic==
Wizards must learn how to control their magic. In young and untrained children, magical effects will occur spontaneously during moments of strong emotion.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rowling |first=J. K. |title=Harry is a metamorphmagus |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/rumours_view.cfm?id=41 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110926035344/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/rumours_view.cfm?id=41 |archive-date=26 September 2011 |website= jkrowling.com| publisher= J. K. Rowling |access-date=27 February 2008}}</ref> For example, [[Harry Potter (character)|Harry Potter]] liberates a boa constrictor at the London Zoo and inflates his [[Dursley family#Marge Dursley|Aunt Marge]] to an enormous size. Although young children usually cannot control their magic, the young [[Voldemort]] could intentionally cause magical things to happen to other people.<ref>{{HPref|book=6|chapter=13}}</ref> In the novels, almost all intentional magic is performed with a [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Wand|wand]].

Spells are the every-purpose tools of a wizard. They are generally short bursts of magic used to accomplish a specialised task, such as creating fire or unlocking a door. Casting a spell usually requires the movement of a wand and the uttering of an incantation. The language of the incantations in the ''Harry Potter'' novels has been described as [[Dog Latin|modified Latin]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=Renfro |first=Kim |date=29 September 2020 |title=The real scientific meaning behind 13 'Harry Potter' spells |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/harry-potter-spells-latin-roots-meaning-2017-4 |access-date=2024-08-30 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |last=Romano |first=Andrea |date=2016-06-02 |title=The not-so-magical Latin origins of 'Harry Potter' spells |url=https://mashable.com/article/harry-potter-spells-latin |access-date=2024-08-30 |website=Mashable |language=en}}</ref> Although wizards in the novels almost always use a wand for casting spells, Rowling has used the [[Wizarding World Digital|''Wizarding World'']] website to describe certain wizarding cultures that practise magic without a wand.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Rowling |first=J. K. |date=29 January 2016 |title=Uagadou |url=https://www.wizardingworld.com/writing-by-jk-rowling/uagadou |access-date=2024-08-30 |website=Wizarding World |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Rowling |first=J. K. |date=8 March 2016 |title=Fourteenth Century – Seventeenth Century |url=https://www.pottermore.com/collection-episodic/history-of-magic-in-north-america-en |access-date=28 August 2024 |website=Wizarding World}}</ref> While most spells depicted in the books require the caster to use their voice, some do not. For example, Albus Dumbledore has been known to do impressive feats of magic without speaking. In ''Order of the Phoenix'', Harry performs ''lumos'' to light his wand when he is not holding it.<ref name="HP5">{{HPref|book=5}}</ref>

== The limits of magic ==
Before publishing the first ''Harry Potter'' novel, Rowling spent five years establishing the limitations of magic – determining what it can and cannot do. "The most important thing to decide when you're creating a fantasy world," she said in 2000, "is what the characters ''can't'' do." In the novels, the character [[Hermione Granger]] explains that food cannot be conjured out of thin air. Wizards can prepare it using magic and even multiply it, but they cannot create it. According to Rowling, money also cannot be conjured from nothing.<ref name="swns">{{cite interview |title=World exclusive interview with J.K. Rowling |publisher=[[South West News Service]] |date=8 July 2000}}</ref>

===Death===
In ''Goblet of Fire'', Albus Dumbledore tells Harry that magic cannot truly and permanently bring dead individuals back to life. However, there are methods of communicating with the dead in a limited way. For example, all Hogwarts headmasters appear in a magical portrait when they die, which allows future generations to consult with them. However, the portrait is a reflection of who the wizard was, and is not a link to their spirit. The [[Deathly Hallows (objects)#Resurrection Stone|Resurrection Stone]] allows the bearer to speak with the dead, but it cannot bring the dead back into the living world.

Likewise, it is not possible to make oneself immortal unless one uses an object of great power to sustain life, such as the [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Philosopher's stone|Philosopher's Stone]] or a [[Horcrux]]. If one were to possess the three [[Deathly Hallows (objects)|Deathly Hallows]], it is fabled that they would possess the tools to become the "master of death". Other methods of extending life include drinking unicorn blood, which will keep a person alive even if death is imminent, but at the price of being cursed forever. Being magical can contribute to one's longevity, as there are several characters in the series who are unusually long-lived. It is revealed by [[Nearly Headless Nick]] in the fifth novel that all wizards have the choice of becoming [[Ghosts (Harry Potter)|ghosts]] upon dying; however, it is described as "a pale imitation of life". Rowling has stated that death is the most important theme in the novels.<ref>{{cite episode |title=Harry Potter and Me |series=BBC Christmas Specials |network=[[BBC]] |date=28 December 2001}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last1=Anelli |first1=Melissa |title=More About that Veil |url=http://www.harryahistory.com/2008/09/more-about-that-veil.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20081120023032/http://www.harryahistory.com/2008/09/more-about-that-veil.html |archive-date=20 November 2008 |access-date=8 May 2017 |website=Harry, A History}}</ref>

===Emotion===
As explained earlier, young untrained wizards can trigger uncontrolled magic when they are in a state of intense emotion. But emotions also affect trained witches and wizards and their magical abilities. For instance, in ''Half-Blood Prince'', a heartbroken [[Nymphadora Tonks]] temporarily loses her power as a [[Metamorphmagus]] when [[Remus Lupin]] starts distancing himself from her; the form of her [[Patronus Charm|Patronus]] changes to reflect her depression. Another example is [[The House of Gaunt|Merope Gaunt]], who only demonstrated any magical ability when removed from her father's oppression, but then lost it again when her husband abandoned her.

Several magical spells require the use of certain emotions when casting them. The Patronus charm, for example, requires the caster to concentrate on a happy memory.

Love is depicted as a particularly powerful form of magic.<ref name="HP5"/> Lily Potter's voluntary self-sacrifice on Harry's behalf grants him a magical protection that saves him from Voldemort as a baby, and Harry makes a similar sacrifice to save his friends at the end of ''Deathly Hallows''.<ref>{{HPref|book=7}}</ref> A certain key prophecy in the series describes Harry as having "power the Dark Lord knows not", referencing his capacity for love.<ref name="HP5"/>

True love is impossible to create magically, although love potions can create intense infatuation.

==Magical abilities==
=== Animagus ===
An animagus is a wizard who can turn into a particular animal at will. This ability is acquired by magical means. By law, all British animagi must register with the Ministry of Magic. During the course of the series, several unregistered animagi are depicted, including James Potter, [[Sirius Black]], [[Death Eater#Peter Pettigrew|Peter Pettigrew]], and [[Rita Skeeter]]. [[Minerva McGonagall]] is a registered animagus who takes the form of a domestic cat. A wizard's animagus form is determined by their personality.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Rowling |first1=J.K. |date=6 September 2016 |title=Short stories from Hogwarts of heroism, hardship, and dangerous hobbies |series=Pottermore Presents |publisher=Pottermore |isbn=978-1-78110-628-0}}</ref>

===Apparition===
Apparition is a magical form of [[teleportation]], by which a wizard can disappear ("disapparate") from one location and reappear ("apparate") in another. According to Harry, Apparition feels like being squeezed through a tight rubber tube, and Dumbledore explains to him that most students vomit their first time apparating.<ref>{{HPref|book=6|chapter=4}}</ref> A wizard must be at least 17 years old to apparate, and students at Hogwarts may take Apparition lessons during their sixth year, akin to Muggles taking driving lessons around the same age. Wizards without an Apparition licence can use "side-along apparition" to travel with someone who does.

Learning to apparate is difficult, and students run the risk of ''splinching''—being physically split between the origin and destination. Splinching is quite common during lessons and can be uncomfortable or very painful, but is ultimately harmless if properly reversed. To remedy a splinch requires the assistance of the Ministry's [[Accidental Magic Reversal Squad]] or essence of [[origanum dictamnus|dittany]].

Apparition is considered unreliable over long distances, and even experienced practitioners sometimes prefer other means of transport. Rowling has stated that cross-continental apparition "would almost certainly result in severe injury or death."<ref>{{cite web |last1=Rowling |first1=J.K. |date=20 December 2016 |title=Welcome to my new website! |url= https://www.jkrowling.com/welcome-to-my-new-website/ |access-date=5 May 2017 |website=jkrowling.com}}</ref> For reasons of security, Hogwarts is protected by anti-apparition spells, which prevent most humans from apparating on the school grounds. However, Dumbledore can apparate in and out of Hogwarts at his discretion, because as he tells Harry, being Headmaster "has its privileges."<ref>{{HPref|book=6}}</ref>

Magical devices such as the [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Floo Powder|Floo Network]], [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Portkeys|Portkeys]] and [[Magical objects in Harry Potter#Vanishing Cabinet|Vanishing Cabinets]] also provide forms of teleportation.

=== Gubraithian fire ===
Gubraithian Fire is an everlasting magical fire that can only be created by extremely skilled wizards. Hagrid and [[Madame Maxime]] gave a bundle of Gubraithian fire, conjured by Dumbledore, to the leader of the [[Magical creatures (Harry Potter)#Giants|giants]]. The gift was part of an attempt to sway the giants to Dumbledore's side in the struggle against Voldemort.<ref name="HP53">{{HPref|book=5}}</ref>

===Legilimency and Occlumency<span class="anchor" id="Legilimency and occlumency"></span>===
Legilimency is the practice of extracting feelings and memories from another person's mind – a form of magical [[telepathy]]. It also allows the practitioner to convey visions or memories to another person. A wizard possessing this skill is called a Legilimens, and can, for example, detect deceit in another person, witness their memories, or plant visions in their mind. The counter-skill to Legilimency is Occlumency, which is practised by an Occlumens. It can be used to prevent a Legilimens from discovering the practitioner's thoughts or memories. Voldemort, [[Severus Snape]], Albus Dumbledore, and Gellert Grindelwald are all skilled in Legilimency and Occlumency.

===Metamorphmagus===
A metamorphmagus is a wizard who can change their appearance at will.<ref>{{cite news |title=Rumour section |url= http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/rumours_view.cfm?id=41 |url-status=dead <!-- presumed --> |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20110926035344/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/rumours_view.cfm?id=41 |archive-date=2011-09-26 |website= jkrowling.com| publisher= J. K. Rowling}}</ref> [[Nymphadora Tonks]] and her son, [[Teddy Lupin]], are the only living metamorphmagi mentioned in the novels. At various points, Tonks changes her hair colour and style according to her mood. She is a relatively young woman, but she occasionally chooses to appear elderly.

===Parselmouth<span class="anchor" id="Parseltongue"></span>===
Parseltongue is the language of snakes. Those who can speak parseltongue are called parselmouths. The ability is rare, and the only parselmouths mentioned in the novels are Harry Potter, Salazar Slytherin, and Slytherin's descendants (which includes Voldemort). Rowling said she derived the term "parselmouth" from "an old word for someone who has a problem with the mouth, like a [[cleft lip and palate|hare lip]]".<ref>{{cite web |date=26 June 2003 |title=Harry Potter and the Magic of the Internet |url= http://www.msn.co.uk/liveevents/harrypotter/transcript/Default.asp?Ath=f |url-status=dead |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20061112072736/http://www.msn.co.uk/liveevents/harrypotter/transcript/Default.asp?Ath=f |archive-date= 12 November 2006 |access-date=12 May 2022 |publisher=MSN}}</ref>

===Seer===
A seer is a wizard with the [[clairvoyant]] ability to foresee future events. The predictions given through this ability can sometimes be [[self-fulfilling prophecies]], and Dumbledore states in ''Order of the Phoenix'' that not all of them come true, depending on the choices made by those involved. According to Minerva McGonagall, true seers are extremely rare. [[Sybill Trelawney]] is the only seer portrayed in the novel. She has twice made true prophecies – both significant to Harry Potter – but had no recollection of either prediction afterward. Another notable seer is [[Gellert Grindelwald]], an infamous dark wizard, who acquired the ability of [[precognition]] from an enchantment incorporating the sacrifice of a [[qilin]].

==Spell-like effects==

===Unbreakable vow===
The unbreakable vow is a voluntary agreement made between two wizards. It must be performed with the assistance of a witness, known as a "bonder". The vow is not literally unbreakable, but breaking it will cause death.

===Priori incantatem===
Priori incantatem is a spell-like effect used to reveal the spells cast by a [[Magical objects in Harry Potter|wand]]. The spells emerge from the wand as ghost-like replicas in reverse order, with the latest spell cast emerging first. Forcing two wands that share the source of their cores to battle can unintentionally cause a potent form of priori incantatem. The loser's wand will regurgitate shadows of spells that it has cast, in reverse chronological order. This side effect occurs during the duel between Harry and Voldemort at the end of ''Goblet of Fire''. Their simultaneous, contrary spells trigger the threads, and as Voldemort loses the battle of wills, his wand regurgitates, in reverse order, echoes of the people his wand had most recently murdered.

==Dark Arts==
The Dark Arts are magical spells and practices that are usually used for malicious purposes. Practitioners of the Dark Arts are referred to as Dark wizards. The most prominent Dark wizard is Voldemort (having previously been Grindelwald until his defeat to Dumbledore in 1945), who has followers called [[Death Eater]]s. The type of spells characteristic of Dark Arts are known as ''curses'', which usually cause harm to the target.<ref>{{cite web |last=Rowling |first=J. K. |title=Spell Definitions |url=http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/extrastuff_view.cfm?id=24 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20080124192524/http://www.jkrowling.com/textonly/en/extrastuff_view.cfm?id=24 |archive-date= 24 January 2008 |website= jkrowling.com| publisher= J. K. Rowling}}</ref>

Use of Dark Magic can corrupt the soul and body; Voldemort has used such magic in his quest to prolong his life and obtain great power. The Dark Arts also cause Voldemort to look deformed and inhuman, a side effect of splitting his soul into Horcruxes.

In the wizarding world, use of the Dark Arts is strongly stigmatised, and certain spells are illegal. Hogwarts and other schools instruct students in Defence Against the Dark Arts. Some schools, such as [[Durmstrang]], teach Dark magic. While Hogwarts is under Death Eater control, a Dark Arts class is taught.<ref>{{HPref|book=7|chapter=29}}"Amycus, the bloke, he teaches what used to be Defence Against the Dark Arts, except now it's just the Dark Arts. We're supposed to {{sic?|practice}} the Cruciatus Curse on people who’ve earned detention..."</ref>

===Unforgivable Curses===
The Unforgivable Curses are the three worst known spells of the Dark Arts. Their use is punishable by a life sentence in [[Azkaban]] prison.

* The '''Killing Curse''' causes immediate death. It has no cure and cannot be blocked by most magical means. Harry Potter is the only person known to have survived this curse. The incantation for this curse is ''avada kedavra''.
* The '''Cruciatus Curse''' causes the victim intense pain and is used for torture. The strength of the curse is determined by the motivations of who casts the curse. For example, a sadistic desire to inflict pain will produce a more effective curse than righteous anger. The curse has been used to torture victims to the point of death or insanity. The incantation for the Cruciatus Curse is ''crucio'', which is Latin for "I torture".
* The '''Imperius Curse''' is used for mind control or hypnosis. It can force the victim to do things they normally would be unwilling or unable to do. The incantation for the Imperius Curse is ''imperio''.

=== Dark Mark ===
The '''Dark Mark''' is the symbol of Voldemort and the [[Death Eater|Death Eaters]]. It appears as a skull with a snake for a tongue, and it is cast into the sky whenever a Death Eater commits a murder. Every Death Eater has the Dark Mark branded on their left forearm. This brand allows the Death Eaters and Voldemort to summon each other.

===Inferius===
An '''inferius''' (plural: '''inferi'''){{efn|The Latin word ''inferus'' (plural: ''inferi'') means "those below", often referring in the plural to "the gods below" (see ''[[di inferi]])'' or the spirits of the dead (q.v. ''[[lemures]]'' and ''[[manes]]'').<ref name="lexicon">{{cite book |last1=Lewis |first1=Charlton T. |last2=Short |first2=Charles |title=A Latin Dictionary |publisher=Clarendon Press |year=1879 |place=Oxford, UK |chapter=q.v., ''inferus'', as positive noun I.{{sc|B}}, as comparative adjective II.{{sc|A}} |chapter-url=https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus%3Atext%3A1999.04.0059%3Aentry%3Dinferus }}</ref> ''Inferius'' is a neuter singular form of ''inferior'', a [[comparative adjective]] meaning "lower".<ref name="lexicon"/><ref>{{cite web |url= https://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/morph?l=inferius&la=la |title=Morphology of ''inferius'' |website=The Perseus Project |publisher=[[Tufts University]]}}</ref>}} is a corpse that is animated and manipulated by a Dark wizard. An inferius is not alive, but has been bewitched to perform a specific duty. An inferius carries out its assigned task mindlessly and cannot think for itself. In the novels, the Ministry of Magic fears that Voldemort is killing enough people to make an army of ''inferi''.

Inferi appear in ''Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince'', in the cave where one of Voldemort's Horcruxes (the locket of Salazar Slytherin) is kept. They inhabit the lake surrounding the island where the locket is; if the water is disturbed through means other than the enchanted boat, they will attack the intruder, killing them if they have consumed the emerald potion in the locket's cauldron.

===Horcrux===
{{See also|Magical objects in Harry Potter#Horcruxes}}
A Horcrux is an object created using dark magic to attain a type of immortality. The concept is first introduced in the sixth novel, ''[[Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince]]'', although Horcruxes are present in earlier novels without being explained or identified as such.

To create a Horcrux, a witch or wizard must first prepare the chosen object<ref>{{cite podcast |title=The one with J.K. Rowling |series=PotterCast |date=17 December 2007 |url=https://open.spotify.com/episode/2NYzGwi0Hye4qHwOUwDcgX?si=43_yp50yQD-Ch-5KAEUHsQ}}</ref> in a ritual which Rowling described only as "too horrible to go into detail about". Following the preparation of the object, the witch or wizard must then take a life, an act which splits the soul. Following that, further dark rituals are required in order to remove the soul shard from the maker and place it into the prepared object. Once this is done, the Horcrux becomes magically protected from almost all forms of destruction, requiring extremely powerful magic or especially destructive substances to do so.

Ordinarily, when one's body is killed, the soul departs for the next world. If, however, the body of a Horcrux maker is killed, that portion of his soul which was still in his body will not pass on to the next world, but will rather exist in a non-corporeal form capable of being resurrected by another wizard. If all of someone's Horcruxes are destroyed, then his soul's only anchor in the material world would be his body, the destruction of which would then cause his final death. To destroy the Horcrux, the destroyer must destroy it in such a way that it is put beyond magical repair.

==Magic at Hogwarts==

At [[Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry]], students must study certain core subjects for the first two years. These compulsory subjects are [[Hogwarts#Astronomy|Astronomy]], [[Hogwarts#Charms|Charms]], [[Defence Against the Dark Arts]], [[Herbology (Harry Potter)|Herbology]], [[History of Magic (Harry Potter)|History of Magic]], [[Hogwarts#Potions|Potions]] and [[Hogwarts#Transfiguration|Transfiguration]]. Flying lessons are also required during the first year. At the start of their third year, students are required to add at least two elective subjects. The five choices are Ancient Runes, Arithmancy, Care of Magical Creatures, Divination and Muggle Studies.

==Portraits==
In the ''Harry Potter'' series, characters depicted in painted portraits can move, interact with living observers, speak and demonstrate emotion and personality. Some can travel to other portraits. The headmaster's office at Hogwarts contains portraits of past headmasters, which advise the current headmaster.<ref name="portraits">{{cite web |last=Rowling |first=J.K. |title=Hogwarts Portraits |url=https://www.pottermore.com/writing-by-jk-rowling/hogwarts-portraits |access-date=9 May 2017 |website=Wizarding World}}</ref> In wizarding photographs, individuals cannot speak, but they can move around and leave the frame if they choose.

== See also ==

* [[Magical creatures in Harry Potter|Magical creatures in ''Harry Potter'']]
* [[Magical objects in Harry Potter|Magical objects in ''Harry Potter'']]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{Cite journal |author=Black, Sharon |year=2003 |title=The Magic of Harry Potter: Symbols and Heroes of Fantasy |journal=Children's Literature in Education |volume=34 |issue=3 |pages=237–247 |doi=10.1023/A:1025314919836 |s2cid=162551714 |issn=0045-6713}}
* {{Cite book|author=Highfield, Roger|year=2002|title=The Science of Harry Potter: How magic really works|publisher=Viking|location=New York|isbn=978-0-670-03153-5|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/scienceofharrypo00high}}
* {{cite news |last=Rowling |first=J. K. |date=July 2007 |title=J.K. Rowling Interview – The Deathly Hallows Web Chat |url=http://www.mugglenet.com/jkr/interviews/dh-webchat.shtml |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120708002822/http://www.mugglenet.com/jkr/interviews/dh-webchat.shtml |archive-date=8 July 2012 |website=MuggleNet}}
* {{Cite book |author=Teare |first=Elizabeth |year=2002 |chapter=Harry Potter and the technology of magic |editor=Whited, Lana A. |title=The Ivory Tower and Harry Potter: Perspectives on a literary phenomenon |publisher=University of Missouri Press |location=Columbia, Missouri |pages=342 |isbn=978-0-8262-1549-9}}
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[[Category:Fictional elements introduced in 1997]]
[[Category:Fictional universe of Harry Potter]]
[[Category:Magic systems|Harry Potter]]

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