Harry Potter follows an orphaned boy who learns on his eleventh birthday that he's a wizard, and famous: as a baby he survived the killing curse that destroyed the dark wizard Lord Voldemort's body. Over seven books, one per school year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, Harry grows up, makes friends for life, and discovers that Voldemort isn't really gone.
The novels by J.K. Rowling were published between 1997 and 2007 and adapted into eight Warner Bros. films between 2001 and 2011. There are hundreds of named characters. This guide groups the important ones by Hogwarts house, the way the books themselves sort people, and then covers the adults fighting the war on each side.
- Author
- J.K. Rowling
- Books
- 7 novels, 1997–2007
- Films
- 8 films, 2001–2011 (Warner Bros.)
- Setting
- Hogwarts and wizarding Britain, 1991–1998
- Follow-ups
- Cursed Child (stage play), Fantastic Beasts films, HBO series
Harry, Ron and Hermione
The three friends are all sorted into Gryffindor in their first year, and the series is as much about their friendship as about Voldemort. Each one covers the others' weaknesses.
Harry Potter
The Boy Who Lived · Gryffindor
Harry was raised in a cupboard under the stairs by his aunt and uncle, who hid the truth about his parents. At Hogwarts he discovers a gift for flying, makes the Quidditch team as a first-year, and finds himself drawn again and again into confrontations with Voldemort. He's brave, loyal and quick-tempered, not especially studious, and often furious at being kept in the dark. His willingness to die for the people he loves is what finally defeats Voldemort.
- Film
- Daniel Radcliffe
Hermione Granger
Brightest witch of her age · Gryffindor
Hermione is a Muggle-born witch who arrives at Hogwarts having memorised her textbooks. At first she's insufferable to the boys; after they save her from a troll, she's their best friend. Her research, planning and nerve get the trio out of trouble in every book, and she campaigns for house-elf rights while the rest of the wizarding world shrugs. In the final book she's the reason the Horcrux hunt survives at all.
- Film
- Emma Watson
Ron Weasley
Harry's best friend · Gryffindor
Ron is the sixth of seven Weasley children, used to hand-me-downs and to living in the shadow of his older brothers. He's funny, loyal and a gifted chess player, and also insecure and prone to jealousy, which makes him walk out on Harry and Hermione during the Horcrux hunt. His return, and what he does when he gets back, is one of the most satisfying moments of the last book.
- Film
- Rupert Grint
Gryffindor
Gryffindor values courage. Its students can be reckless, but most of the series' heroes come from here, including two generations of Weasleys and the Marauders who were at school with Harry's parents.
Neville Longbottom
Herbology prodigy · Gryffindor
Neville starts out forgetful, clumsy and frightened of nearly everything. His parents were tortured into insanity by Death Eaters, and the prophecy about Voldemort could have pointed to him instead of Harry. By the final book he's leading the resistance inside Hogwarts, and he destroys the last Horcrux, the snake Nagini, with the Sword of Gryffindor.
- Film
- Matthew Lewis
Ginny Weasley
Youngest Weasley · Gryffindor
Ginny is the only Weasley daughter. She's tongue-tied around Harry as a child and is possessed by Tom Riddle's diary in her first year. She grows into a confident, funny, formidable witch and Quidditch player. She and Harry eventually marry.
- Film
- Bonnie Wright
Fred and George Weasley
The twins · Gryffindor
The Weasley twins are pranksters and entrepreneurs who leave Hogwarts in spectacular style to open Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes in Diagon Alley. They're the comic heart of the early books and braver than they let on. Fred is killed in the Battle of Hogwarts.
- Film
- James and Oliver Phelps
Percy Weasley
Prefect · Ministry official
Percy is the rule-loving, ambitious brother who sides with the Ministry against his family when it refuses to admit Voldemort is back. He comes home, sheepishly, just in time for the final battle.
Sirius Black
Harry's godfather · Gryffindor
Sirius spent twelve years in Azkaban for betraying Harry's parents, a crime he didn't commit. He escapes in Prisoner of Azkaban and becomes the closest thing Harry has to a parent, though prison has left him restless and reckless. An Animagus, he can turn into a large black dog, and his nickname was Padfoot. He's killed by Bellatrix Lestrange at the Ministry of Magic in Order of the Phoenix.
- Film
- Gary Oldman
Remus Lupin
Defence teacher · Werewolf · Gryffindor
Lupin is the best Defence Against the Dark Arts teacher Harry has, and a werewolf, which means he's shunned by most of wizarding society. One of the four Marauders with James Potter, Sirius and Peter Pettigrew, he teaches Harry the Patronus charm. He marries Tonks and is killed in the Battle of Hogwarts.
- Film
- David Thewlis
Minerva McGonagall
Transfiguration professor · Head of Gryffindor
McGonagall is strict, fair and fiercely protective of her students. She can turn into a tabby cat and never awards points she thinks undeserved, even to her own house. When she finally takes charge at Hogwarts in the last book, it's one of the series' most cheered moments.
- Film
- Maggie Smith
Rubeus Hagrid
Keeper of Keys · Care of Magical Creatures
Hagrid is the half-giant gamekeeper who delivers Harry's Hogwarts letter and becomes his first friend in the wizarding world. Expelled as a student after being framed by Tom Riddle, he's devoted to Dumbledore and to dangerous creatures he insists are harmless. He's loyal and big-hearted, and he can't keep a secret.
- Film
- Robbie Coltrane
Albus Dumbledore
Headmaster of Hogwarts
Dumbledore is the only wizard Voldemort ever feared: brilliant, kind, eccentric and very good at keeping secrets. He guides Harry from a distance and, in the later books, prepares him for a fate he doesn't fully explain. The final book reveals a younger Dumbledore drawn to ideas of wizard supremacy alongside Gellert Grindelwald, and a family tragedy he never forgave himself for. That complicates, but doesn't erase, his goodness.
- Film
- Richard Harris (films 1–2), Michael Gambon (films 3–8)
Peter Pettigrew
Wormtail · Traitor
Pettigrew was the weakest of the Marauders and the one who actually betrayed the Potters. He faked his own death and hid for twelve years as Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. Back in Voldemort's service, he helps restore his master's body in Goblet of Fire.
- Film
- Timothy Spall
Seamus, Dean, Lavender and Parvati
Harry's classmates · Gryffindor
Seamus Finnigan has a habit of blowing things up, Dean Thomas is a football-loving artist who dates Ginny for a while, Lavender Brown dates Ron in book six, and Parvati Patil goes to the Yule Ball with Harry. They fill out the Gryffindor common room and fight in the final battle.
James and Lily Potter
Harry's parents
James was a talented, arrogant student who grew up; Lily was a gifted Muggle-born witch and Snape's childhood friend. They were murdered by Voldemort when Harry was a year old, and Lily's sacrifice gave Harry the protection that rebounded the curse. Their story is told in pieces through memories, mirrors and ghosts.
Slytherin
Slytherin values ambition and cunning, and in Harry's day it is dominated by pure-blood families. The books are hard on the house, but its most important characters are also some of the series' most complicated.
Severus Snape
Potions master · Double agent
Snape is the greasy-haired, sneering Potions teacher who loathes Harry from his first lesson, partly because Harry looks like James Potter, Snape's school tormentor. A former Death Eater, he is trusted by Dumbledore for reasons no one else understands. The final book reveals that he loved Lily Potter all his life and spent years protecting her son while appearing to serve Voldemort. He is one of fiction's most argued-over characters, a man whose bravery and pettiness are both entirely real.
- Film
- Alan Rickman
Lord Voldemort
Tom Marvolo Riddle · The Dark Lord
Voldemort is the most feared dark wizard in history: an orphan who grew up despising his Muggle father and became obsessed with power, blood purity and, above all, not dying. To make himself immortal he split his soul into pieces and hid them in objects called Horcruxes. He can't understand love or loyalty, and that blindness is what destroys him. Most of wizarding Britain is too frightened even to say his name.
- Film
- Ralph Fiennes
Draco Malfoy
Harry's school rival
Draco is the spoilt, sneering son of a wealthy pure-blood family who offers Harry his friendship on the first day and holds a grudge when Harry refuses. For five books he's a bully. In Half-Blood Prince he's given a mission by Voldemort to kill Dumbledore, and the frightened, cornered boy under the swagger finally shows. He doesn't become a hero, but he chooses not to become a murderer.
- Film
- Tom Felton
Bellatrix Lestrange
Voldemort's most devoted Death Eater
Bellatrix is a pure-blood witch from the Black family, Sirius's cousin and Narcissa Malfoy's sister. She was imprisoned in Azkaban for torturing Neville's parents, escapes in Order of the Phoenix and kills Sirius. Fanatically loyal to Voldemort, she's one of the most frightening figures in the books. Molly Weasley duels her in the final battle.
- Film
- Helena Bonham Carter
Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy
Draco's parents
Lucius is a rich, snobbish Death Eater with influence at the Ministry; he slips Tom Riddle's diary into Ginny's cauldron in Chamber of Secrets. Narcissa is colder in public and more devoted to her son than to any cause. Her lie to Voldemort in the Forbidden Forest is one of the turning points of the final book.
- Film
- Jason Isaacs, Helen McCrory
Horace Slughorn
Potions professor · Book six
Slughorn is a jolly, vain collector of talented students who returns to teach in Half-Blood Prince. He's hiding a memory of the conversation in which he told a young Tom Riddle about Horcruxes, and Harry's task is to get it out of him.
- Film
- Jim Broadbent
Dolores Umbridge
Ministry official · Defence teacher
Umbridge dresses in pink, decorates her office with kitten plates and is one of the series' most hated villains. Sent to Hogwarts by the Ministry in Order of the Phoenix, she bans practical magic, makes students carve lines into their hands with a cursed quill and takes over the school. She serves Voldemort's regime willingly later on without ever being a Death Eater.
- Film
- Imelda Staunton
Regulus Black
Sirius's younger brother
Regulus joined the Death Eaters as a teenager, then turned against Voldemort after learning about the Horcruxes. He died trying to destroy one. His initials on a note, R.A.B., are a mystery Harry solves in the last book.
Crabbe, Goyle and Pansy Parkinson
Draco's circle
Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle are Draco's hulking, slow-witted bodyguards, and Pansy Parkinson is his sharp-tongued friend. They're mostly there to sneer. Crabbe dies in the fire he conjures in the Room of Requirement.
Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff
Ravenclaw values wit and learning; Hufflepuff values loyalty, fairness and hard work. The books spend less time in these houses, but several favourite characters come from them.
Luna Lovegood
Ravenclaw · Dumbledore's Army
Luna is dreamy, honest and completely unbothered by what people think of her. She wears radish earrings, believes in creatures nobody else has seen, and reads her father's magazine, The Quibbler, upside down. She can see Thestrals because she watched her mother die. She's also one of the most emotionally perceptive characters in the series, and a loyal friend when Harry has few.
- Film
- Evanna Lynch
Cho Chang
Ravenclaw Seeker
Cho is Harry's first crush, a popular Quidditch player who was dating Cedric Diggory when he was killed. Her relationship with Harry in book five is awkward and shadowed by grief.
- Film
- Katie Leung
Filius Flitwick
Charms professor · Head of Ravenclaw
Flitwick is a tiny, cheerful Charms teacher and a former duelling champion. He's mostly a background presence until the Battle of Hogwarts, where he fights alongside McGonagall.
- Film
- Warwick Davis
Cedric Diggory
Hufflepuff · Triwizard champion
Cedric is the decent, popular Hogwarts champion in the Triwizard Tournament. He and Harry help each other through the tasks and take the cup together, which is a trap. Voldemort's servant kills him in the graveyard, and his death marks the moment the series turns dark.
- Film
- Robert Pattinson
Nymphadora Tonks
Auror · Metamorphmagus
Tonks is a young, clumsy Auror who can change her appearance at will and hates her first name. She joins the Order, marries Lupin and has a son, Teddy. She dies in the Battle of Hogwarts.
- Film
- Natalia Tena
Pomona Sprout
Herbology professor · Head of Hufflepuff
Sprout is the warm, practical Herbology teacher whose greenhouses supply Mandrakes, and Neville's favourite. She fights in the final battle with her students.
- Film
- Miriam Margolyes
Other Hogwarts staff
Quirinus Quirrell
Defence teacher · Book one
A stammering, nervous teacher who turns out to be sharing his body with Voldemort and is trying to steal the Philosopher's Stone.
Gilderoy Lockhart
Defence teacher · Book two
A vain celebrity author who has taken credit for other wizards' deeds and wiped their memories. His own memory charm backfires on him.
- Film
- Kenneth Branagh
Alastor "Mad-Eye" Moody
Auror · Defence teacher in book four
A scarred, paranoid ex-Auror with a magical eye. The man teaching as Moody in Goblet of Fire is actually Barty Crouch Jr. in disguise; the real Moody later fights with the Order.
- Film
- Brendan Gleeson
Sybill Trelawney
Divination professor
A misty, melodramatic seer who predicts Harry's death every lesson, yet made the real prophecy that started everything.
- Film
- Emma Thompson
Argus Filch
Caretaker
A bitter Squib caretaker who patrols the corridors with his cat, Mrs Norris, hoping to catch students out of bed.
- Film
- David Bradley
Firenze
Centaur · Divination teacher
A centaur who saves Harry in the Forbidden Forest in book one and is exiled by his herd for later teaching at Hogwarts.
The Order of the Phoenix and allies
The Order is Dumbledore's secret society of witches and wizards fighting Voldemort. Many of its members are covered above; these are the rest of its key figures and allies.
Molly and Arthur Weasley
Ron's parents
Molly is a warm, fierce mother who treats Harry as one of her own; Arthur works in the Ministry's Misuse of Muggle Artefacts office and is fascinated by plugs and rubber ducks. The Burrow, their crooked home, is the first place Harry feels part of a family.
- Film
- Julie Walters, Mark Williams
Bill Weasley and Fleur Delacour
Curse-breaker and Triwizard champion
Bill is the cool eldest Weasley brother; Fleur is the Beauxbatons champion from the Triwizard Tournament. They marry in Deathly Hallows, and their cottage becomes a refuge.
Kingsley Shacklebolt
Auror
A calm, capable Auror who works inside the Ministry for the Order. He becomes Minister for Magic after Voldemort's defeat.
Aberforth Dumbledore
Albus's brother
The gruff barman of the Hog's Head in Hogsmeade, who has watched over Harry without saying so and holds bitter truths about his brother.
Dobby
Free house-elf
Dobby is the Malfoys' house-elf, who tries to protect Harry in the most dangerous ways possible. Harry tricks Lucius into freeing him, and Dobby's devotion ends in a rescue that costs him his life.
- Film
- Toby Jones (voice)
Kreacher
The Black family's house-elf
A muttering, resentful elf whose loyalty to Regulus holds the key to a Horcrux. His change of heart when Harry treats him kindly is a small, telling redemption.
Death Eaters and other villains
Barty Crouch Jr.
Death Eater in disguise
A Death Eater thought dead in Azkaban who spends book four impersonating Mad-Eye Moody to deliver Harry to Voldemort.
- Film
- David Tennant
Fenrir Greyback
Werewolf
A savage werewolf who deliberately attacks children. He bit Lupin as a boy and later scars Bill Weasley.
Nagini
Voldemort's snake · Horcrux
Voldemort's giant snake and constant companion, and one of his Horcruxes. Neville kills her in the final battle.
Gellert Grindelwald
Dark wizard of the previous generation
A dark wizard who once dreamed of ruling over Muggles with the young Albus Dumbledore. Defeated by Dumbledore in 1945, he's imprisoned when Harry's story takes place.
Cornelius Fudge
Minister for Magic
A blustering politician who refuses to believe Voldemort has returned and discredits Harry and Dumbledore to protect his job.
Antonin Dolohov and Yaxley
Death Eaters
Two of Voldemort's more dangerous followers, who fight at the Ministry and in the final books' battles.
The Dursleys and other characters
The Dursleys
Vernon, Petunia and Dudley
Harry's aunt Petunia (Lily's sister), her husband Vernon and their son Dudley raise Harry grudgingly and cruelly. Dudley has a small moment of grace in the final book.
- Film
- Richard Griffiths, Fiona Shaw, Harry Melling
Viktor Krum
Durmstrang champion
A famous Bulgarian Seeker and Triwizard champion who takes Hermione to the Yule Ball.
Hogwarts ghosts
Nearly Headless Nick, Moaning Myrtle and others
Each house has a ghost, and Moaning Myrtle haunts a girls' bathroom. Myrtle was killed by the Basilisk Tom Riddle set loose fifty years before Harry's second year.
Hedwig, Buckbeak and Fawkes
Animal companions
Harry's snowy owl, the Hippogriff Hagrid adores, and Dumbledore's phoenix, whose tail feathers are the cores of both Harry's and Voldemort's wands.
Harry Potter film cast
| Character | Actor (2001–2011 films) | House or group |
|---|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Daniel Radcliffe | Gryffindor |
| Hermione Granger | Emma Watson | Gryffindor |
| Ron Weasley | Rupert Grint | Gryffindor |
| Albus Dumbledore | Richard Harris / Michael Gambon | Gryffindor |
| Severus Snape | Alan Rickman | Slytherin |
| Minerva McGonagall | Maggie Smith | Gryffindor |
| Rubeus Hagrid | Robbie Coltrane | Gryffindor |
| Lord Voldemort | Ralph Fiennes | Slytherin |
| Draco Malfoy | Tom Felton | Slytherin |
| Sirius Black | Gary Oldman | Gryffindor |
| Remus Lupin | David Thewlis | Gryffindor |
| Bellatrix Lestrange | Helena Bonham Carter | Slytherin |
| Luna Lovegood | Evanna Lynch | Ravenclaw |
| Neville Longbottom | Matthew Lewis | Gryffindor |
| Ginny Weasley | Bonnie Wright | Gryffindor |
| Cedric Diggory | Robert Pattinson | Hufflepuff |
| Dolores Umbridge | Imelda Staunton | Slytherin |
| Lucius Malfoy | Jason Isaacs | Slytherin |
HBO's television adaptation has recast every role, with Dominic McLaughlin, Arabella Stanton and Alastair Stout as the trio, John Lithgow as Dumbledore, Paapa Essiedu as Snape, Janet McTeer as McGonagall and Nick Frost as Hagrid.
Themes and where to start
The series grows up with its readers. The first books are school mysteries with a fairy-tale tone; from Goblet of Fire on, the stories deal with grief, propaganda, prejudice and war. The characters reflect that shift. Several of the most memorable arcs belong to people who start out as jokes or villains: Neville, Kreacher, Draco and, above all, Snape. Snape's is one of the most debated redemption arcs in popular fiction.
Rowling's names are full of clues, such as Remus Lupin's wolfish name and the star names of the Black family; our guide to character naming conventions digs into how that works. Harry himself is a textbook Chosen One, covered in character archetypes. If you love large ensemble fantasy, Star Wars and Game of Thrones are natural next stops, and our literature hub covers other book casts.
- Read or watch in order — Philosopher's (Sorcerer's) Stone, Chamber of Secrets, Prisoner of Azkaban, Goblet of Fire, Order of the Phoenix, Half-Blood Prince, Deathly Hallows (two films).
- Then the extras — Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (a stage play set 19 years later) and the Fantastic Beasts prequel films.
All Harry Potter character names A–Z
A–B
- Aberforth Dumbledore — Order
- Albus Dumbledore — Headmaster
- Antonin Dolohov — Death Eater
- Argus Filch — Caretaker
- Arthur Weasley — Order
- Barty Crouch Jr. — Death Eater
- Bellatrix Lestrange — Death Eater
- Bill Weasley — Order
C–D
- Cedric Diggory — Hufflepuff
- Cho Chang — Ravenclaw
- Cornelius Fudge — Ministry
- Dean Thomas — Gryffindor
- Dobby — House-elf
- Dolores Umbridge — Ministry
- Draco Malfoy — Slytherin
- Dudley Dursley — Muggle
F–G
- Fenrir Greyback — Werewolf
- Filius Flitwick — Ravenclaw
- Firenze — Centaur
- Fleur Delacour — Beauxbatons
- Fred and George Weasley — Gryffindor
- Gellert Grindelwald — Dark wizard
- Gilderoy Lockhart — Teacher
- Ginny Weasley — Gryffindor
- Gregory Goyle — Slytherin
H–K
- Harry Potter — Gryffindor
- Hermione Granger — Gryffindor
- Horace Slughorn — Slytherin
- James Potter — Gryffindor
- Kingsley Shacklebolt — Order
- Kreacher — House-elf
L–M
- Lavender Brown — Gryffindor
- Lily Potter — Gryffindor
- Lord Voldemort — Slytherin
- Lucius Malfoy — Death Eater
- Luna Lovegood — Ravenclaw
- Minerva McGonagall — Gryffindor
- Moaning Myrtle — Ghost
- Molly Weasley — Order
N–P
- Nagini — Horcrux
- Narcissa Malfoy — Slytherin
- Neville Longbottom — Gryffindor
- Nymphadora Tonks — Hufflepuff
- Pansy Parkinson — Slytherin
- Parvati Patil — Gryffindor
- Percy Weasley — Gryffindor
- Peter Pettigrew — Death Eater
- Petunia Dursley — Muggle
- Pomona Sprout — Hufflepuff
Q–R
- Quirinus Quirrell — Teacher
- Regulus Black — Slytherin
- Remus Lupin — Gryffindor
- Ron Weasley — Gryffindor
- Rubeus Hagrid — Gryffindor
S–T
- Seamus Finnigan — Gryffindor
- Severus Snape — Slytherin
- Sirius Black — Gryffindor
- Sybill Trelawney — Teacher
- Tom Riddle — see Voldemort
V–Y
- Vernon Dursley — Muggle
- Viktor Krum — Durmstrang
- Vincent Crabbe — Slytherin
- Yaxley — Death Eater
Frequently asked questions
Who are the main characters in Harry Potter?
Harry Potter, Hermione Granger and Ron Weasley, three Gryffindor students who become best friends in their first year at Hogwarts. Around them are the headmaster Albus Dumbledore, the Potions master Severus Snape, the gamekeeper Rubeus Hagrid, Harry's rival Draco Malfoy and the dark wizard Lord Voldemort.
What house is Snape in?
Slytherin. He was a Slytherin student in the same year as Harry's parents and became Head of Slytherin House as a teacher. Voldemort, the Malfoys and Bellatrix Lestrange were also Slytherins.
Was Snape good or bad?
Both, which is why readers still argue about it. Snape was a bitter, often cruel teacher and a former Death Eater, but he spent most of the series as Dumbledore's double agent, protecting Harry because of his love for Harry's mother, Lily. His memories in the final book reframe everything he did.
What is Voldemort's real name?
Tom Marvolo Riddle. He was born to a witch, Merope Gaunt, and a Muggle father, and raised in a London orphanage. "I am Lord Voldemort" is an anagram of his full name, which he reveals to Harry in Chamber of Secrets.
Who killed Dumbledore?
Severus Snape, at the end of Half-Blood Prince. The final book reveals that Dumbledore, already dying from a cursed ring, had asked Snape to do it, both to spare Draco Malfoy from becoming a killer and to cement Snape's cover with Voldemort.
Who is the Half-Blood Prince?
Severus Snape. The nickname comes from his mother's maiden name, Prince; his father was a Muggle. Harry finds the old Potions textbook Snape annotated as a student and only learns at the end of the sixth book whose it was.
Is there a new Harry Potter TV series?
Yes. HBO is making a television adaptation that plans to cover each book in depth, with a new young cast led by Dominic McLaughlin as Harry, Arabella Stanton as Hermione and Alastair Stout as Ron, and John Lithgow as Dumbledore. Check HBO for current release details.