"Order of the Phoenix" Nominated for People's Choice at European Film Awards

The “Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix” film has been included on a list of nominees for the People’s Choice Award at the 21st Annual European Film Awards. According to the Hollywood Reporter, the fifth Potter film faces such films as “Welcome to the Sticks,” “Arn,” “Rabbit Without Ears”, “The Orphanage,” “[REC],” and “Atonement” in this category. Voting will open up for this award on Monday, September 1st via this link. The 2008 European Film Awards will be held this year in Copenhagen, Denmark on December 6th. Congratulations to all at OotP!

"Half Blood Prince" most anticipated movie of 2009

Movie and entertainment site Fandangoopens in new window, the nations leading provider of movie tickets, conducted a surveyopens in new window of 3,000 respondents this month and a whopping 43% picked the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince movie as the most anticipated movie of 2009.

Rounding out the top 5 was Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (16%), Night at the Museum 2 (7%), Watchmen (7%) and Star Trek (6%).

Meanwhile, Twilight has taken Half-Blood Prince's spot as the most anticipated film this fall.

India's "Hari Puttar" caught in Harry Potter spell

MUMBAI, India (Reuters) - Hollywood's Warner Bros., which owns the rights to the Harry Potter movies, is suing an Indian production company whose new film is called "Hari Puttar: A Comedy of Terrors," the studio said on Wednesday.

The studio had started proceedings against the makers of "Hari Puttar" over similarities to the international film and literary phenomenon, said Warner Bros. spokeswoman Deborah Lincoln.

"We confirm that we have recently commenced proceedings against parties involved in the production and distribution of a movie entitled 'Hari Puttar'," Lincoln told Reuters in an e-mail.

"Warner Bros. values and protects intellectual property rights," she said.

The producers of "Hari Puttar" said they had registered the title more than two years ago and the film bore no resemblance to the "Harry Potter" franchise.

"All I can say is that the title is not at all similar to Harry Potter and nor is our story line," said Munish Purii, chief operating officer of the film's producers, Mirchi Movies.

Purii said the Delhi High Court began hearing the case on Monday.

"Hari Puttar", slated to open in cinemas on September 12, is the story of a young boy fighting two criminals who are trying to steal a secret formula devised by the boy's scientist father.

In October last year, an Indian court allowed a community group in the eastern state of West Bengal to create a replica of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, rejecting a petition from author J.K. Rowling for copyright breach.

The British creator of the boy wizard Harry Potter and Warner Bros., which controls the rights to the series in India, had sought 2 million rupees ($50,000) in compensation from the group, which had erected the structure for a Hindu festival.

Warner Bros. is a unit of Time Warner Inc.

Spells - M/N

Meteolojinx Recanto

Pronunciation: mee-tee-OH-loh-jincks reh-CAN-toh.

Description: Causes weather effects caused by incantations to cease.
Seen/Mentioned: Suggested in Deathly Hallows by Arthur Weasley to Ron (disguised by the Polyjuice Potion as Reginald 'Reg' Cattermole from Magical Maintenance) as the best way to clear up the incessant rain in Yaxley's office at the Ministry.
Suggested Etymology: Greek meteôrologia meaning "meteorology"[15], English jinx meaning "to bring bad luck to"[23], and Latin recanto meaning "to charm away".

Mobiliarbus

Pronunciation: MO-bil-ee-AR-bus (IPA: [məʊ.ˌbɪl.i.'aɹ.bɪs])

Description: Lifts an object a few inches off the ground and levitates it to where the caster points their wand.
Seen/Mentioned: In Prisoner of Azkaban, Hermione uses the spell to move a Christmas Tree in The Three Broomsticks beside her table to hide Harry, who was in Hogsmeade illegally.
Suggested Etymology: Latin mobilito meaning "to set in motion" and Latin arbor/arbos meaning "a tree".

Mobilicorpus

Pronunciation: MO-bil-ee-COR-pus (IPA: /mo.ˌbɪl.i.ˈko˞.pɪs/)

Description: Lifts a body a few inches off the ground and levitates it where the caster points their wand[20]
Seen/Mentioned: Sirius uses it on Snape in Prisoner of Azkaban.
Suggested Etymology: Latin mobilito meaning "to set in motion" and Latin corpus meaning "a body".

Morsmordre (Dark Mark)

Pronunciation: morz-MOR-druh or morz-MOHR-dray (IPA: /mo˞z.ˈmo˞.dɹʌ/ or /mo˞z.ˈmo˞.dɹe/)

Description: Conjures the Dark Mark, Voldemort's mark. It is conjured when the Death Eaters had killed someone in a place.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Barty Crouch Jr in Goblet of Fire. Also seen in Half-Blood Prince over the castle to lure Dumbledore to his death. Voldemort apparently invented it. According to Mr Weasley, very few wizards know how to cast this spell.
Suggested Etymology: Latin mors meaning "death", and French mordre (from Latin mordere) meaning "to bite."


Muffliato

Pronunciation: muf-lee-AH-to (IPA: [mə.fli.'a.təʊ])

Description: Fills peoples' ears with an unidentifiable buzzing to keep them from hearing nearby conversations.[27] Created by Snape
Seen/Mentioned: It is used in Half-Blood Prince by Harry and Ron on various teachers and people such as Madam Pomfrey. Hermione also uses it in Deathly Hallows in protection of the campsite where she and Harry stayed in hiding.
Suggested Etymology: English muffle meaning "to make a sound less distinct by covering its source".


Nox

Pronunciation: Noks (IPA: ['naks])

Description: Ceases the Lumos spell on one's own wand.
Seen/Mentioned: In Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry and Hermione used this spell to turn off their wand-lights in the Shrieking Shack. Also used in Deathly Hallows when Harry was in the passage beneath the Whomping Willow which leads to the Shrieking Shack.
Suggested Etymology: Latin nox meaning "night".

Spells - L

Langlock

Pronunciation: LAN-glock (IPA: ['leɪŋ.lɔk])

Description: Glues the subject's tongue to the roof of their mouth. Created by Snape.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Harry in Half-Blood Prince on Peeves and on Argus Filch, to general applause.
Suggested Etymology: Latin lingua meaning "a tongue" or "a language"[13] and English lock meaning "to fasten".

Legilimens

Pronunciation: Le-JILL-ih-mens (IPA: [lɛ.'dʒɪl.ɪ.ˌmɛnz])

Description: Allows the caster to delve into the mind of the victim, allowing the caster to see the memories, thoughts, and emotions of the victim.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Snape on Harry during Occlumency lessons in Order of the Phoenix. Also used non-verbally by Snape on Harry in Half-Blood Prince to allow him to see where Harry had learned the Sectumsempra spell.
Suggested Etymology: Latin legere meaning "to read" and Latin mens meaning "mind".[13]
Notes: See also Legilimency for more information.

Levicorpus

Pronunciation: levi-COR-pus (nonverbal) (IPA: [lɛvɪ.'kɔɹ.pɪs])

Description: The victim is dangled upside-down by one of their ankles, sometimes accompanied by a flash of white light.[27] Created by Snape
Seen/Mentioned: It was originally shown to be a nonverbal-only spell, but by one of the mistakes in the Deathly Hallows, the text shows that Hermione whispers it to lift Harry so he can steal the Cup of Helga Hufflepuff. Harry learns it by reading the notes written by the Half-Blood Prince. He inadvertently uses it on Ron in Half-Blood Prince. In addition, in Order of Phoenix, Harry sees (through the Pensieve) his father, James Potter, use the spell against Snape. The counter curse is Liberacorpus.
Suggested Etymology: Latin levis meaning "light" and Latin corpus meaning "body".

Liberacorpus

Pronunciation: lib-er-ah-COR-pus (nonverbal) (IPA: [lɪˌb.ɛ.ɹæ.'kɔɹ.pɪs])
Description: The counter spell to Levicorpus. Created by Snape.
Seen/Mentioned: Harry uses the spell in Half-Blood Prince to counteract the Levicorpus spell he inadvertently casts on Ron. He also casts it on himself in Deathly Hallows after managing to retrieve the Horcrux from the shelf in the Lestranges vault.
Suggested Etymology: Latin liberare meaning "to free", and Latin corpus meaning "body"

Locomotor-

Pronunciation: loh-koh-MOH-tor (IPA: /ˌlo.ko.ˈmo.tɚ̩/)

Description: The spell is always used with the name of a target, at which the wand is pointed (e.g. "Locomotor Trunk!"). The spell causes the named object to rise in the air and move around at the will of the caster.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Tonks in Order of the Phoenix to move Harry's trunk from his room. Flitwick similarly uses it to move Sybill Trelawney's trunk after Umbridge sacks her. Parvati Patil and Lavender Brown use this spell to race their pencil cases around the edges of the table. A variation seen in Deathly Hallows is Piertotum Locomotor, which animated the suits of armour in Hogwarts.
Suggested Etymology: Latin loco meaning "to place" and Latin moto meaning "to move about".


Locomotor Mortis (Leg-Locker Curse)

Pronunciation: loh-koh-MOH-tor MOR-tis (IPA: /ˌlo.ko.ˈmo.tɚ̩ ˈmo˞.tɪs/

Description: Locks the legs together, preventing the victim from moving the legs in any fashion.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Draco on Neville Longbottom in Philosopher's Stone. Also mentioned further on in the book as Ron and Hermione prepare to use it on Snape during a Quidditch match. Used by Harry on Draco, who deflects it, in Half-Blood Prince.
Suggested Etymology: Latin loco meaning "to place", Latin moto meaning "to move about", and Latin mors/mortis meaning "death".


Lumos

Pronunciation: LOO-mos (IPA: ['lu.məʊs])

Description: Creates a narrow beam of light that shines from the wand's tip, like a torch. [20]
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in Chamber of Secrets and then constantly throughout the series.
Suggested Etymology: Latin lumen meaning "light".[13]
Notes: The counter spell, Nox, extinguishes the light. The caster of this spell can cast other spells while this spell is in effect.

Spells - I

Impedimenta (Impediment Jinx, Impediment Curse)

Pronunciation: im-ped-ih-MEN-tah (IPA: /ɪm.ˌpɛ.dɪ.'mɛn.ta/

Description: This hex is capable of tripping, freezing, binding, knocking back and generally impeding the target's progress towards the caster. The extent to which the spell's specific action can be controlled by the caster is not made clear. If this spell does bind it does eventually wear off as stated in Deathly Hallows.
Seen/Mentioned: Used in Goblet of Fire when Harry is practicing for the third task. Also used by Madam Hooch to shortly stop Harry from fighting with Draco. Also seen toward the end of Order of the Phoenix, when Harry is fighting the Death Eaters. Stronger uses of this spell seem capable of blowing targets away.
Suggested Etymology: Latin impedimentum (plural impedimenta) meaning "a hindrance" or "an impediment".

Imperio (Imperius Curse)

Pronunciation: im-PEER-ee-oh (IPA: [ɪm.'pi.ɹi.ˌəʊ]) (classical Latin: eem-PEHR-ee-oh (IPA: [im.ˈpɛɾ.i.ˌɔ])

Description: Causes the victim of the curse to obey the spoken/unspoken commands of the caster. The experience of being controlled by this curse is described as a complete, wonderful release from any sense of responsibility or worry over one's actions, at the price of one's free will. Resisting the effect of the curse is possible, however, and several individuals have been able to successfully overcome it, including Harry and both of the Crouchs, who learn to resist the curse after being subjected to its effects for an extended period. Harry describes the feeling of being the caster as controlling a marionette through a wand (although Harry's particular experience is suspect due to his lack of commitment to casting Unforgivable Curses). One of the three Unforgivable Curses.
Seen/Mentioned: first mentioned (not by name) in the first book when Ron told Harry that Lucius Malfoy claimed himself being jinxed during the first war, thus Lucius evaded capture. First seen in Goblet of Fire introduced by Barty Crouch Jr (acting as Moody) and used on a spider. Used by Harry in Deathly Hallows on a Gringotts goblin and a Death Eater.
Suggested Etymology: Imperare is Latin for "to order, command", and is the root of several modern English words. Imperium means "command" or "domain", and imperio means (among other things) "with authority". (Compare to impero, "I command", and to crucio above.) Imperius is not, however, a Latin word.

Impervius (Impervius Charm)

Pronunciation: im-PURR-vee-uss (IPA: [ɪm.'pɝ.vi.ˌɛs])

Description: This spell makes something repel (literally, become impervious to) substances and outside forces, including water.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Hermione in Prisoner of Azkaban on Harry's glasses while in a Quidditch match and also by the Gryffindor Quidditch team in Order of the Phoenix, both times to allow team members to see in a driving rain. Also used in Deathly Hallows, first by Ron to protect objects in Yaxley's office from rain, and then by Hermione in an attempt to protect Harry, Ron and Griphook from the burning treasure in the Lestranges' vault.
Suggested Etymology: Latin impervious meaning "impassable".

Incarcerous

Pronunciation: in-CAR-ser-us (IPA: [ɪn.'kaɹ.sɝ.ˌɪs])

Description: Ties someone or something up with ropes.
Seen/Mentioned: First heard in Order of the Phoenix, when Umbridge gets in a battle with the centaurs. Also used by Harry on the Inferi in Voldemort's Horcrux chamber, in Half-Blood Prince.
Suggested Etymology: English incarcerate meaning "to imprison" or "to confine".

Incendio

Pronunciation: in-SEN-dee-oh (IPA: [ɪn.'sɛn.di.ˌəʊ])

Description: Produces fire.[20]
Seen/Mentioned: It is first seen in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone when Hagrid (non-verbally) produces fire out of his umbrella in the little house the Dursleys took refuge in (from the Hogwarts letters). In Half-Blood Prince, this spell is used several times in battle, for instance when Hagrid's hut is set ablaze.
Suggested Etymology: Latin incendo meaning "to set fire"

Spells - G/H

Geminio

Pronunciation: jeh-MIH-nee-oh or geh-MIH-nee-oh (hard "g") (IPA: /dʒə.ˈmɪ.ni.əʊ/ or /ɡə.ˈmɪ.ni.əʊ/)

Description: Creates a duplicate of any object upon which it is cast. As revealed by the goblin Griphook, any copies created are worthless.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Hermione in Deathly Hallows to copy Salazar Slytherin's locket in order to hide their tracks from Umbridge.
Suggested Etymology: Latin gemino meaning "to double".

Glisseo

Pronunciation: GLISS-see-oh or gliss-SAY-oh (IPA: /ˈɡlɪs.si.əʊ/ or /ɡlɪs.ˈse.əʊ/)

Description: Causes the steps on a stairway to flatten and form a ramp or slide.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Hermione to escape from pursuing Death Eaters in Deathly Hallows. Used on the girls dormitory to ensure that boys cannot get in.
Suggested Etymology: French glisser meaning "slide".


Homenum Revelio

Pronunciation: HOM-eh-num reh-VEH-lee-oh (IPA: /ˈhɔ.mɛ.nʌm ɹə.ˈvɛ.li.əʊ/

Description: Reveals humans near the caster.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Dumbledore to detect Harry under his Invisibility Cloak, but first named when used multiple times by various characters in Deathly Hallows.[26].
Suggested Etymology: Latin homo/hominis meaning "person" and Latin revelo meaning "to unveil".

Spells - F

Ferula

Pronunciation: feh-ROO-lah (IPA: /fɛ.'ɹu.lə/)

Description: Creates a bandage and a splint.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Lupin in Prisoner of Azkaban to bind Ron's broken leg.
Suggested Etymology: Latin ferula meaning "a stick".

Finite Incantatem

Pronunciation: fi-NEE-tay in-can-TAH-tem (IPA: /fɪ.'ni.teɪ (ɪn.kn̩.'tæ.dm)̩/)

Description: Negates many spells or the effects of many spells.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Hermione in the Chamber of Secrets to stop a rogue bludger bewitched by Dobby. Snape uses it in Chamber of Secrets to restore order in the Duelling Club when Harry and Draco are duelling. Lupin uses the short form "Finite" in Order of the Phoenix. In Deathly Hallows, Hermione suggests to Ron to attempt to use this spell to stop it raining in Yaxley's office. Harry used Finite to counter Crabbe's Descendo attack on Ron in the same book.
Suggested Etymology: Latin finio meaning "to put an end to" and Latin cantio meaning "enchantment".


Flagrate

Pronunciation: fluh-GRAYT, FLAH-grayt, fluh-GRAH-tay (IPA: /flə.ˈɡɹæ.te/)

Description: With this spell, the caster's wand can leave fiery marks.
Seen/Mentioned: Cast by Tom Riddle in The Chamber of Secrets to spell out 'Tom Marvolo Riddle' and switch it to 'I am Lord Voldemort' also cast by Hermione in Order of the Phoenix to identify doors of the Department of Mysteries which members of Dumbledore's Army had already opened, by marking them with an 'X'.
Suggested Etymology: Latin flagro meaning "glowing"


Furnunculus (Furnunculus Curse)

Pronunciation: fer-NUN-kyoo-lus
Description: Causes the target to become covered in boils.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by Harry in Goblet of Fire on Draco, but was deflected onto Goyle instead. Also used later in the book when Draco tried to harass Harry on the Hogwarts Express and was hit with a couple of curses, including the Furnuculus Curse (which was cast by Harry).[GF Ch.37]
Suggested Etymology: Latin furunculus originally meaning "petty thief" but later used to mean "boil" in English.

Spells - E

Engorgio (Engorgement Charm)

Pronunciation: en-GOR-jee-oh (IPA: /ɪn.'gɔ˞.dʒi.əʊ/)

Description: Causes objects to swell in size.
Seen/Mentioned: A "Growth Charm" with the same effect is briefly mentioned. Hagrid is suspected of having performed the charm on his pumpkins in Chamber of Secrets. Then seen in Goblet of Fire when Barty Crouch Jr, impersonating Moody, casts it on a spider to enhance a demonstration of the effects of the Cruciatus Curse, and Ron suggested it might be the cause of Hagrid's abnormal size before learning that he is half-giant. Harry in Deathly Hallows also cast it on a spider.
Suggested Etymology: English word engorge meaning "to fill to excess".

Episkey

Pronunciation: eh-PIS-key (IPA: /ɛpɪ'ski/)

Description: Used to heal relatively minor injuries. When this spell is cast, the person feels their injured body part go very hot and then very cold.
Seen/Mentioned: Used in Goblet of Fire after the first task of the Triwizard Tournament. In Half-Blood Prince, Nymphadora Tonks uses this spell to fix Harry's broken nose; also used by Harry in the same book to fix Demelza Robins' mouth.
Suggested Etymology: Greek episkeu meaning "repair, restoration".[15]
Notes: Rowling writes in Half-Blood Prince that Harry's knowledge tells him this spell could belong to a family (or variety) of Healing Spells.

Erecto

Pronunciation: ee-RECK-toh or eh-RECK-toh (IPA: /ɪ.ˈɹɛk.təʊ/ or /ə.ˈɹɛk.təʊ/)

Description: Used to erect a tent or other structure.
Seen/Mentioned: Possibly used in Goblet of Fire by wizards at the campsites near the Quidditch World Cup. Used by Hermione and Harry to construct shelter for themselves and Ron in Deathly Hallows.
Suggested Etymology: Latin erectus meaning "to set up, to raise"

Evanesco (Vanishing Spell)

Pronunciation: ev-an-ES-koh (IPA: (IPA: /ɛ.vn̩.'ɛs.kəʊ/)
Description: Makes the target vanish.
Seen/Mentioned: Used in Order of the Phoenix by Snape to make Harry's potions disappear from his cauldron. In addition, when Fred and George were showing off their puking pastilles, Lee Jordan cleared the bucket of vomit with the Evanesco spell. During their stay at #12, Grimmauld Place, Bill uses this on a stack of documents. This suggests that Vanished objects can be recovered.
Suggested Etymology: Latin evanesco meaning "to vanish".[13]
Notes: According to Minerva McGonagall, in Deathly Hallows, Vanished objects and organisms go "into non-being, which is to say, everything." This was McGonagall's response to the question, "Where do Vanished objects go?" from the doorknocker at Ravenclaw Tower.

Expecto Patronum (Patronus Charm)

Pronunciation: ex-PEK-toh pa-TROH-num

Description: Conjures an incarnation of the caster's innermost positive feelings, such as joy, hope, or the desire to survive, known as a Patronus. A Patronus is conjured as a protector, and is a weapon rather than a predator of souls: Patronuses shield their conjurors from Dementors, and can even drive them away. A Patronus "cannot feel despair, as real humans can, so Dementors can't hurt it."[16] The conjured Patronus protects the witch or wizard that summoned it, obeys his or her commands, and fades away shortly after it is no longer required. When conjured, a Patronus appears silvery, ethereal, and semi-transparent. Improperly formed Patronuses range from momentary formless bursts of silvery mist, to poorly-defined forms which are easily defeated or quickly dissipate on their own. A full-fledged (or corporeal) Patronus takes on a fixed animal form that is often significant to the witch or wizard casting the charm. Patronuses summoned by a particular person have been known to change, such as Tonks' patronus. Rowling has said that Snape was the only Death Eater to be able to produce a Patronus. According to her this is 'because a Patronus is used against things that the Death Eaters generally generate, or fight alongside. They would not need Patronuses'.[17] According to Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them, the Charm is also the only known defensive spell against Lethifolds.
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in Prisoner of Azkaban when a Dementor appears in the Hogwarts Express, and Hermione says that Remus Lupin repelled the Dementor by casting a silvery object from his wand. Harry's corporeal Patronus first appears when Draco Malfoy & his friends dress up as Dementors in an attempt to sabotage Harry, he decides to ask Lupin to teach him how to defend himself against the dementors and takes classes where a boggart takes the form of a dementor. He then uses it again towards the end of the book while trying to repel hundreds of Dementors from Sirius and himself.
Notes: Dumbledore has devised a method of using Patronuses to deliver messages putting it into the exclusive use of the Order of the Phoenix. Members of the Order are the only wizards who know how to use their spirit guardians to send messages to one another. According to Rowling, the Patronus is "an immensely efficient messenger" as it is not hindered by physical obstructions or dark matters. Each Patronus has a special quality and appearance that is different and easy to recognise, which makes it clear which Order member has sent the message. In addition, since no one can conjure another person's Patronus, this method of communication does not carry the risk of passing fake messages.[18] It is noteworthy that in Deathly Hallows, McGonagall creates three Patronuses simultaneously to summon Professors Flitwick, Sprout, and Slughorn.
Suggested Etymology: Expecto Patronum is Latin for "I await a protector".[19] It is related to "pater" (father) and Harry's Patronus indeed takes the same form as that of his father's (a stag).

Expelliarmus (Disarming Charm, Disarming Spell)

Pronunciation: ex-pel-ee-AR-mus (IPA: /ɛks.ˌpɛ.li.'a˞.mɪs/)

Description: This spell is used to disarm another wizard, typically by causing the victim's wand to fly out of reach[20][21]. It can also throw the target backwards when enough power is put into it. As demonstrated in Prisoner of Azkaban, simultaneous use of this spell by multiple witches or wizards on a single person can throw the wizard back with much greater force.
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in Chamber of Secrets, when Snape disarms Gilderoy Lockhart in the Duelling Club; from then on it is commonly used throughout the rest of the series. Draco uses it to disarm Dumbledore and Harry uses the spell to not only disarm Gregory Goyle in the Room of Requirement, but also to reflect Voldemort's killing curse during the final battle. It is seen by the Death Eaters as Harry's signature spell, as he had used it to duel Voldemort in both Goblet of Fire and Deathly Hallows.
Suggested Etymology: Latin expello meaning "to expel, to thrust away" and Latin arma meaning "weapons of war".

Expulso

Pronunciation: ecks-PUL-soh (IPA: /ɛks.ˈpʊl.səʊ/)

Description: A spell which causes objects that it comes in contact with to violently explode.
Seen/Mentioned: Used by a Death Eater in an attempt to capture Harry in Deathly Hallows.
Suggested Etymology: Latin pulso meaning "to strike"

Spells - D

Defodio (Gouging Spell)

Pronunciation: deh-FOH-dee-oh (IPA: dɛ.ˈfəʊ.di.əʊ/)

Seen/Mentioned: Cast by Harry, Ron and Hermione in Deathly Hallows to help dig their way out of the Gringotts Tunnels.[DH Ch.26]
Suggested Etymology: Latin defodio, meaning, "to dig, dig out."

Deletrius

Pronunciation: deh-LEE-tree-us (IPA: /də.'li.tɹi.əs/)

Seen/Mentioned: Seen only in Goblet of Fire when Amos Diggory gets rid of the echo of the Dark Mark from Harry's wand.[GF Ch.9]
Suggested Etymology: English word delete meaning to remove.

Densaugeo

Pronunciation: den-SAW-jee-oh /dɛn.'sɔ.dʒi.əʊ/)

Description: Causes the teeth of the recipient to grow at an alarming rate.
Seen/Mentioned: Seen only in Goblet of Fire, cast by Draco on Harry, which is then deflected onto Hermione.[GF Ch.18]
Suggested Etymology: Latin dens meaning, "tooth" and augeo meaning to "enlarge".

Deprimo

Pronunciation: DEH-prih-moh.

Seen/Mentioned: Introduced in Deathly Hallows when Hermione casts this to blast a hole in the Lovegood's living room floor.[DH Ch.21]
Suggested Etymology: Latin deprimo which means to "dig deep".

Descendo

Pronunciation: deh-SEN-doh (IPA: /dɛ.ˈsɛn.dəʊ/)

Seen/Mentioned: Seen twice in Deathly Hallows, it is cast by Ron to magically cause the stairs in his room to descend,[DH Ch.6] and later by Crabbe in the Room of Requirement to lower the wall behind which Ron is hiding.[DH Ch.31]
Suggested Etymology: Latin descendo meaning, "to come down, to descend".

Diffindo (Severing Charm)

Pronunciation: dif-FIN-doh (IPA: /dɪ.'fɪn.dəʊ/)

Seen/Mentioned: In Goblet of Fire when Harry urgently wants to talk to Cedric he casts this spell to rip his bag, delaying him for class,[GF Ch.9] and in Half-Blood Prince to switch covers of his potion books. Also shown several times in Deathly Hallows, for cutting ropes,[DH Ch.9] chains,[DH Ch.13] etc.
Suggested Etymology: Latin diffindo, "I divide."

Dissendium

Pronunciation: dis-EN-dee-um (IPA: /dɪ.'sɛn.di.əm/)

Description: Causes the statue of the humpbacked witch hiding the secret passage to Honeydukes, as well as other hidden passageways, to open up.[PA Ch.10]
Seen/Mentioned: Seen only in Prisoner of Azkaban.
Suggested Etymology: Latin discedo meaning "I swerve".

Duro

Pronunciation: DOO-roh (IPA: })

Description: Turns its target to stone.
Seen/Mentioned: Seen in Deathly Hallows, cast by Hermione while escaping from Death Eaters in Hogwarts.[DH Ch.32]
Suggested Etymology Latin duro meaning "I make hard".

Spells - C

Cave Inimicum

Pronunciation: KAH-vay ih-NIH-mih-kum (IPA: /ˈkæ.ve ɪ.ˈnɪ.mɪ.kʌm/)

Description: Spell used to strengthen an enclosure from enemies.
Seen/Mentioned: Shown only in Deathly Hallows, cast by Hermione and Harry Potter to strengthen their campsites' defences.[DH Ch.22]
Etymology: Correct Classical Latin for "Beware the enemy", from the verb caveo and the noun inimicus.

Colloportus

Pronunciation: cul-loh-POR-tus (IPA: /kɔ.lo.ˈpɔ˞.təs/)

Description: Magically locks a door, preventing it from being opened by Muggle means.[10]
Seen/Mentioned: First in Order of the Phoenix, cast by Hermione in the Department of Mysteries.
Notes: This spell functions as the counter spell to Alohomora
Suggested Etymology: The Greek word kollao which means, "to join closely together, bind closely"[11] with the Latin word porta meaning "a gate"

Confringo (Blasting Curse)

Pronunciation: con-FRIN-goh (hard "g") or con-FRIN-joh (IPA: /kʌn.ˈfɹɪŋ.gəʊ/ or /kʌn.ˈfɹɪn.dʒəʊ/)

Description: Causes anything that the spell meets to explode.
Seen/Mentioned: Seen only in Deathly Hallows. In the opening chapters, it is cast by Harry to destroy the sidecar of the flying motorbike.[DH Ch.4] Later, it is used by Hermione in an attempt to kill Nagini and facilitate an escape from Bathilda Bagshot's house in Godric's Hollow.[DH Ch.17]
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word confringo which means, "to break in pieces, to bring to naught".

Confundo (Confundus Charm)

Pronunciation: con-FUN-doh (IPA: /kʌn.ˈfʌn.dəʊ/)

Description: Causes the victim to become confused and befuddled.
Seen/Mentioned: First mentioned in Prisoner of Azkaban, when Severus Snape suggests that Harry and Hermione had been Confunded to believe Sirius Black's claim to innocence.[PA Ch.21] In Goblet of Fire, it is suggested that a powerful Confundus Charm is responsible for the Goblet choosing a fourth Triwizard contestant.[GF Ch.17] It is first seen in action when Hermione uses it on Cormac McLaggen during Quidditch tryouts in Half-Blood Prince.[HBP Ch.11] Its vernacular name is first revealed when Harry uses it on security guards during the Gringotts break-in in Deathly Hallows.[DH Ch.26]
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word confundo which means, "to confuse, throw into disorder".

Crucio (Cruciatus Curse)

Pronunciation: KROO-see-oh/KROO-shee-OH (IPA: /ˈkɹu.si.əʊ/)

Description: Inflicts unbearable pain on the recipient of the curse. The effects of the curse depend upon the desires and emotions of the character - to produce the "excruciating" pain implied by the name, one must (according to Bellatrix Lestrange) desire to cause pain purely for its own sake. The extreme pain inflicted by the curse when cast so - without any apparent evidence of physical harm - makes it uniquely suited as a form of torture. One of the three Unforgivable Curses.
Seen/Mentioned: first seen in Goblet of Fire introduced by Barty Crouch Jr (acting as Moody) and used on a spider. Used regularly by the Death Eaters as torture, and by Voldemort as punishment, even against his servants. Used twice by Harry on Death Eaters.
Suggested Etymology: Crucio (Latin) means "I torture" originating from crux (genitive crucis), which means "torture platform or stake" or, more specifically "cross". The word excruciating is descended from the same root - crucifixion was a form of torturous execution. In the novels, the verbal form of the word is 'cruciate', as when Amycus Carrow says in the final book "I’ll Cruciate the lot of ’em."

Spells - A

Accio (Summoning Charm)

Pronunciation: Various suggestions have been made, including:

['ɑkkio] (AK-ee-o) - classical Latin (film, video game)
['ɑksio] (AK-see-o) - (audio book)
['æsio] (AH-see-o) - (Scholastic) English

Description: This charm summons an object to the caster, potentially over a significant distance.[2]
Seen/Mentioned: First mentioned in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, when it was briefly used by Molly Weasley on the Weasley twins to confiscate their Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes' products from their pockets, before they left for the Quidditch World Cup. Later on in the same book, Harry summons his broom to complete the First Task of the Triwizard Tournament.[GF Ch.20] Near the end of the book, Harry summons a Portkey he can't reach to escape from the Battle in the Graveyard. Also seen in Half-Blood Prince and Deathly Hallows to try to summon Horcruxes, and Harry even tries to summon a falling Rubeus Hagrid.
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word accio means "I call" or "I summon".[3]In the Hungarian translation, the spell is called "Invito", possibly from the word "to invite".

Aguamenti (Aguamenti Charm)

Pronunciation: AH-gwa-MEN-tee (IPA: /a.gwə.'mɛn.ti/)
Description: Produces a jet of water from the caster's wand.
Seen/Mentioned: First named in Half-Blood Prince, when Harry is being taught how to perform this specific charm in professor Flitwick's class. Later Harry casts this spell in an attempt to create water for Dumbledore to drink after taking Voldemort's potion[HBP Ch.26]and then to douse Hagrid's hut after it is set on fire later.[HBP Ch.28] Then in Deathly Hallows, Hermione Granger uses it to put out Mundungus' searing eyebrows after Harry accidentally set them on fire.[DH Ch.11] Later on, Harry uses it in a failed attempt to douse Vincent Crabbe's Fiendfyre curse in the Room of Requirement.[DH Ch.31]
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word aqua which has morphed into modern languages like Portuguese as água which means "water", combined with a form of the Latin verb mentio which means to "speak, mention, or proclaim".

Alohomora

Pronunciation: ah-LOH-huh-MOR-ah (IPA: /ə'lo.həˌmo.ɹə/)

Description: Used to open and unlock doors,[5] but doors may be bewitched so that this spell has no effect.
Seen/Mentioned: Used throughout the series, first use by Hermione in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Later unsuccessfully cast by Ron, on the door from the room with the winged keys in Hogwarts.[PS Ch.16] Loses use gradually in the series as the characters discover more and more doors, chests etc. with counter-charms on them (e.g. The doors into Professor Snape's and Professor Umbridge's offices are mentioned as being Alohomora-proof.)
Etymology: From the West African Sidiki dialect used in geomancy meaning: Friendly to thieves as stated by J.K. Rowling in testimony during the WB and JKR vs. RDR Books

Anapneo

Pronunciation: ah-NAP-nee-oh (IPA: /ə.'næp.ni.əʊ/)

Description: Clears the target's airway, if blocked.
Seen/Mentioned: Shown in Half-Blood Prince, Horace Slughorn casts this spell on Marcus Belby when the latter begins to choke.[HBP Ch.7]
Suggested Etymology: The Greek word anapneo which means "to draw breath or to revive"

Aparecium

Pronunciation: AH-par-EE-see-um (IPA: /æ.pə'ɹi.si.ʌm/)

Description: This spell makes invisible ink appear.
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when Hermione tries to make hidden writing appear in Tom Marvolo Riddle's diary.[CS Ch.13]
Notes: See also Specialis Revelio.
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word appareo which means "to become visible or to appear".

Avada Kedavra (Killing Curse)

Pronunciation: ah-VAH-dah kuh-DAHV-rah (IPA: /ə.'væ.də kə.'dæv.ɹə/)

Description: causes a bright green flash and a rushing noise; the curse causes instant death to the victim. There is no known counter-curse or blocking spell (with the exception of the curse striking another spell midflight, negating both), although the caster can be interrupted, the victim can dodge the green jet, hide behind solid objects (which burst into flame when hit by it), or, if the casting wizard is not sufficiently competent, the curse may be completely ineffective as described by Barty Crouch Jr (acting as Alastor Moody) in Goblet of Fire. Harry twice countered this spell by casting Expelliarmus. It is one of the three Unforgivable Curses; the use of this spell on another human being renders a life sentence in Azkaban.
The magical conditions have also been documented to defeat the curse, even on a direct hit:

* Harry Potter was given magical protection against Lord Voldemort's use of the curse, when his mother sacrificed herself to save him.
* Harry is saved by the twin cores effect between his wand and Voldemort's during a duel, as well as during a battle. During this battle, Harry's phoenix feather wand snaps the wand Voldemort borrowed from one of his servants, Lucius Malfoy. The reason for this is unknown. Dumbledore believes this feat to be due to the unique connections and relationships between the two duellists, which are complex and are "realms of magic hitherto unknown".
* In Deathly Hallows, Harry is saved twice. The first time because when Voldemort tried to kill Harry as a baby, a piece of Voldemort's soul flaked off and was trapped within Harry himself (giving Harry a connection to, and many of the powers of, Voldemort). When the killing curse hit Harry in the Forbidden Forest, it killed the piece of Voldemort's soul trapped in Harry, and sent Harry to a nether region where Voldemort's use of Harry's blood gave Harry a lifeline back to the world of the living, should he choose to use it, and he decided to return to life. The second time, Harry was able to deflect the curse back at Voldemort (who died from it) because of a special condition involving the Elder Wand. This had been 'won' by Draco when he disarmed Dumbledore of his wand, but none understood this at the time, and Draco did not use the Elder Wand. Harry had won Draco's wand in a life-or-death duel, thereby proving to the Elder Wand that Harry should be the wand's true master. Therefore, when Harry used Draco's wand to cast Expelliarmus against Voldemort's killing curse, the killing curse rebounded on Voldemort leaving Harry unharmed.

Seen/Mentioned: First said (not by name) at the beginning of the first book when Harry arrives to the Dursley's home. First seen in Goblet of Fire against Muggle Frank Bryce, and in every book following.
Suggested Etymology: During an audience interview at the Edinburgh Book Festival (15 April 2004) Rowling said: "Does anyone know where avada kedavra came from? It is an ancient spell in Aramaic, and it is the original of abracadabra, which means 'let the thing be destroyed.' Originally, it was used to cure illness and the 'thing' was the illness, but I decided to make it the 'thing' as in the person standing in front of me. I take a lot of liberties with things like that. I twist them round and make them mine."

Avis

Pronunciation: AH-vis (IPA: /a'vɪs/)

Description: This charm creates a flock of birds that pour forth from the caster's wand. When coupled with Oppugno, it can be used offensively.
Seen/Mentioned: Shown in Goblet of Fire, cast by Mr Ollivander to test Viktor Krum's wand.[GF Ch.18] In Half-blood Prince, it is cast by Hermione, followed by Oppugno which causes the birds to attack Ron Weasley.[HBP Ch.14]
Suggested Etymology: The Latin word avis which means, "bird"

Azkaban

Location : The North Sea

Owner : Ministry of Magic

Affiliation : British Ministry of Magic

Permanent residents : Dementors (until late 1997) and convicted wizard criminals

First appearance : Chamber of Secrets (first mentioned)

Order of the Phoenix film (actually seen).

Azkaban, is the fictional wizard prison in the Harry Potter series of books by J. K. Rowling. Wizards who violate the laws of the British wizarding world are sent there. Only one other such prison, Nurmengard, is known to exist. By the start of the series, Azkaban is guarded by the Dementors, working under the British Ministry of Magic. Generally, only very severe crimes are punished with a term in Azkaban. Many of the prisoners were supporters of Voldemort, though some misunderstandings have resulted in others' imprisonment. Hagrid, for example, was sent there in Harry Potter's second year at Hogwarts because of a crime he did not commit.

According to Half-Blood Prince, Azkaban is located "in the middle of the North Sea".

Azkaban has a reputation of evil and fear throughout the series. The large presence of Dementors renders the inmates incapable of happiness and forces them to relive their worst memories, as they become gradually helpless and often severely insane. According to Sirius, many inmates simply stop eating and eventually die of starvation. As Dementors are extremely difficult even to injure - the only spell effective against them is the Patronus Charm - Azkaban was long considered impossible to escape, until Sirius escaped (although Barty Crouch Jr had previously broken out with the help of his parents); however, Dumbledore claimed he could break out of Azkaban if he wished to do so.

Performing any of the Unforgivable Curses on a human is punishable by an automatic life sentence in Azkaban, although several characters throughout the series have performed the curses and not been punished accordingly. Other crimes which merit imprisonment here include assaulting the Ministry (for example, the Death Eaters detained in Order of the Phoenix), being an unregistered Animagus[HP5] and impersonating an Inferius.[HP6]

In Order of the Phoenix, ten of Voldemort's most dangerous and loyal followers escape, including Bellatrix. Dumbledore was always vocal in declaring that it was a mistake to guard Voldemort's greatest supporters with Dementors, who have the most to gain if Voldemort returned to power. He is proven right as the Dementors leave their posts at Azkaban and join ranks with Voldemort. The prison is still in use, but greatly weakened by the revolt of its wardens. Presumably, Aurors are the only ones who stand between the convicts and their freedom. By the start of Deathly Hallows, there had been another mass breakout from Azkaban, and several Death Eaters escaped.

Following Voldemort's ultimate demise, Kingsley Shacklebolt sees to the end of use of Dementors at Azkaban, their use having always been a mark of the underlying corruption of the Ministry.

Dementors

The Dementors are soulless creatures considered to be among the foulest beasts on Earth. They are soul-sucking fiends who guard the wizard prison, Azkaban, until after the fall of Voldemort. In the books, Dementors appear to have a generally human shape, approximately ten feet (3.05 meters) in height, but covered in dark, hooded cloaks that reveal only grey, decayed hands. The wraith-like creatures have no eyes, and there is a large hole where the mouth should be. According to the author, they grow like fungi in the darkest, dankest places, creating a dense, chilly fog. They appear to possess a few traits of magic, notably, their ability to glide (fly, in the film adaptations) unsupported in either world. A Dementor's gender is never hinted, but is heavily implied that they are genderless. The Dementor's intelligence is also seldom hinted, but they are presumed sentient as they have been seen leading revolts and know how to use their abilities. A Dementor's social life is debatable, as they are seen in large groups, in groups of two or three, or alone, they tend to choose one victim as their own or will share a victim. They almost work together, which implies that they are technically solitary. Dementors are invisible to Muggles, but affect them in the same way. While at least one Squib in the series has claimed to see a Dementor, Rowling has stated that this was a lie and she noticed it because of the effect it had on her.[ Rowling has likened the effect of a Dementor to the human ailment known as depression, which the author has herself experienced.[ She describes it as "that absence of being able to envisage that you will ever be cheerful again. The absence of hope. That very deadened feeling, which is so very different from feeling sad." Being blind, Dementors sense and feed on the positive emotions, happiness and good memories of human beings to move around, forcing them to relive their worst memories. The very presence of a Dementor makes the surrounding atmosphere grow cold and dark, and the effects are cumulative with the number of Dementors present. Despite their attachment to human emotion, Dementors seem to have difficulty distinguishing one human from another, as demonstrated by Barty Crouch Jr's escape from Azkaban, wherein they could detect no emotional/mental difference between the younger Crouch and his mother. In addition to feeding on positive emotions, Dementors can perform the Dementor's Kiss, where the Dementor latches its mouth onto a victim's and sucks out the person's soul. The victim is left as an empty shell, incapable of thought and with no possibility of recovery. It is believed that existing after a Dementor's Kiss is worse than death. The Ministry of Magic occasionally uses this as a punishment, such as on Barty Crouch, Jr. One way to shield oneself from Dementors is to use the Patronus Charm to drive them away. Chocolate is an effective first aid to mild cases of contact. Harry Potter first encountered Dementors during his third year of school, when they were sent to guard Hogwarts against Sirius Black, who had recently escaped Azkaban Prison. Harry, whenever he got near one, was forced to relive his worst memory: hearing the last moments of his parents' lives before they were murdered by Lord Voldemort, which begins with Harry hearing his mother screaming. To overcome the Dementors, Harry asked Remus Lupin for assistance. Lupin taught Harry the Patronus Charm, albeit with some difficulty. Harry's encounter with Dementors in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix was in an alley near his home on Privet Drive, when he and his cousin Dudley Dursley were ambushed by two Dementors sent secretly and illegally by Dolores Umbridge. At the end of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the Dementors of Azkaban stage a mass revolt against their employers to join Lord Voldemort, as he can provide them with more humans to feast upon. In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows the Ministry, under the control of Voldemort, used Dementors to punish those who were Muggle born for no other reason than because Voldemort hated Muggles and Muggle-borns. The Dementors also took part on Voldemort's side during the Battle of Hogwarts. After the appointment of Kingsley Shacklebolt to the position of Minister, Dementors are removed from Azkaban. Rowling said that after Voldemort's demise, Dementors will never be used by the Ministry of Magic again and the Ministry will contain them by limiting their numbers.

Harry Potter Half Blood Prince Cards being Auctioned

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JK Rowling's charity to publish 'Beedle the Bard'

Even though it's her and Harry's birthdays, JK Rowling is giving us and charity yet another gift. In a press release this morning, Scholastic announced that Jo's children's charity, the Children’s High Level Group (CHLG), will be publishing The Tales of Beedle the Bard.

You may recall last December, when Amazon.com bid $4 million to snag one of seven copies in existence at a Sotheby's auction in London. The books will be printed and distributed by Bloomsbury, Scholastic and Amazon.

Jo had this to say: "There was understandable disappointment among Harry Potter fans when only one copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard was offered to the public last December. I am therefore delighted to announce that, thanks to the generous support of Bloomsbury, Scholastic and Amazon (who bought the handwritten copy at auction) – and with the blessing of the wonderful people who own the other six original books - The Tales of Beedle the Bard will now be widely available to all Harry Potter fans. Royalties will be donated to the Children’s High Level Group, to benefit institutionalised children in desperate need of a voice. The new edition will include the Tales themselves, translated from the original runes by Hermione Granger, and with illustrations by me, but also notes by Professor Albus Dumbledore, which appear by generous permission of the Hogwarts Headmasters’ Archive."

Scholastic predicts the book will generate around $8 million in sales - all going to benefit the CHLG.

The Children’s High Level Group works to make life better for vulnerable children across Europe, where over a million children and teenagers are growing up in unacceptable conditions in large residential institutions.

Harry Potter Sorcerers Anniversary Edition

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone, the first book in J.K. Rowling's phenomenally best-selling series, will be released in a special anniversary edition on September 23, 2008. The book, published by Scholastic, will feature exclusive bonus material from J.K. Rowling as well as new cover art and a four-color frontispiece by Mary GrandPré.

The special anniversary cover of Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone depicts 11-year-old Harry looking into the Mirror of Erised, which Harry comes across in his first year at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, and learns that the mirror shows you what you most desire.

"It's a real treat for me to get another chance to visually bring Harry back to his fans in not only a new scene, but in a new light," said American illustrator of the Harry Potter books, Mary GrandPré. "Going back to draw the first cover for the anniversary edition was an opportunity for me to show another side of Harry . . . .a vulnerable side. Having come to know and love Harry the way we all have, after experiencing the whole series, I think we can appreciate him even more on an emotional level."

Release Date: September 23, 2008

Harry Potter Audio eBooks

Each book contains chapters which you can skip to any chapter within the book. The extension of the files are .m4b (Will be displayed in the Audiobook section of Apple iPods)

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Book 2 - The Chamber of Secrets


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Book 3 - The Prisoner of Azkaban


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Book 4 - The Goblet of Fire


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Poof! Next 'Harry Potter' Flick Moves To Summer

LOS ANGELES (AP) - It's summer school for Harry Potter. "Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince," the sixth installment in the blockbuster film franchise about boy wizard Harry, is moving from its planned Nov. 21 release to July 17, 2009, distributor Warner Bros. said Thursday.

The move was made to take advantage of an open weekend in Hollywood's busy summer season, said Alan Horn, Warner Bros. president and chief operating officer. The film had been on schedule, and the change was not due to any production snags, he said.

"The picture is completely, absolutely, 100 percent on schedule, on time. There were no delays," Horn told The Associated Press. "I've seen the movie. It is fabulous. We would have been perfectly able to have it out in November."

The switch will mean a two-year lag between the film adaptations of books five and six in J.K. Rowling's fantasy series. But it will shorten fans' wait between "Half-Blood Prince" and the final two installments, which are being shot simultaneously next year.

Based on book seven, "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows," the last two movies are due out in close order, in November 2010 and summer 2011. Horn said the later release of "Half-Blood Prince" will not affect the schedule for the final two movies.

Horn said the studio has had success with past summer "Harry Potter" releases, including the fifth movie, which was released in 2007 and became the second-highest grossing in the franchise.

The recent Writers Guild of America strike also had affected Hollywood's lineup in next summer, leaving a key date open for Warner to slot in "Half-Blood Prince," Horn said.

The July 17 release will be over the same weekend that Warner debuted this year's blockbuster "The Dark Knight," which had a record-breaking opening weekend and is on its way to $500 million domestically and the No. 2 spot on the all-time box-office charts behind "Titanic."

"Half-Blood Prince" finds Harry (Daniel Radcliffe) returning to his wizard classes with a clandestine assignment to root out dark secrets about the early years of his archenemy, the dark Lord Voldemort.

The film is directed by David Yates, who made the fifth movie and also is shooting the final two.

Last February, another big Hollywood film, Paramount's "Star Trek," was bumped from a December release to May 8, 2009. Paramount executives said that move also was intended to take advantage of an open weekend in the summer lineup.

'Harry Potter' star suffers from dyspraxia

Daniel Radcliffe, the 19-year-old British star of the “Harry Potter” movies, says he has dyspraxia, a brain disorder associated with clumsiness.

Radcliffe, preparing to make his Broadway debut in the play “Equus,” told the Daily Mail last weekend his disorder makes it hard from him to do simple things such as tie his shoelaces.

“I sometimes think, ‘Why, oh why, has Velcro not taken off?’” Radcliffe jokingly told the newspaper, adding that his condition was partly responsible for his decision to go into acting because it prevented him from becoming successful at other things in school.

The newspaper said the neurological problem is common and affects the organization of movement. It can touch many areas of development, including intellectual, physical and language, and can hurt normal learning processes.

The British newspaper said Radcliffe’s dyspraxia is at the mild end of the spectrum, but when severe cases strike it can make it difficult to perform such simple tasks as walking up and down stairs or running.

Rupert Grint says kissing Emma Watson would be like snogging his sister!

While most boys would give their right arm for a kiss with English actress Emma Watson, her co-star Rupert Grint has revealed that he is terrified of locking lips with her.

The reason that Grint is terrified is, he feels that kissing Watson will make him feel like he is snogging his own sister.

Both Grint and Watson have been acting together in the ‘Harry Potter’ series, with the first having been filmed seven years ago.

The kiss that they have to share is in the final flick of the series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

“The kiss will be quite uncomfortable,” the Sun quoted him as saying.

“Emma’s like a sister to me so it’s going to be, like, really, really weird,” he added.

‘Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1′ is not due for release until November 2010. (ANI)

Quidditch Through The Ages

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Horcrux

A Horcrux is a fictional magical object in the Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling. It is a Dark Magic device created for the purposes of attaining immortality. The concept is first introduced in the sixth novel, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, though Horcruxes are present in earlier novels without being identified as such. Rowling uses the character Horace Slughorn to introduce their properties. The retrieval and destruction of Lord Voldemort's Horcruxes forms the main focus of the final two books in the series, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince and Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows.

Description

In an online diary entry, Rowling described a Horcrux as a "receptacle in which a Dark wizard has hidden a part of his soul for the purposes of attaining immortality."[1] With part of a wizard's soul thus stored, the wizard becomes immortal so long as the Horcrux remains intact. For this reason, Horcruxes are typically hidden in a safe location. Even if the wizard's body is destroyed, a portion of his soul will remain preserved within the Horcrux.[2] However, the destruction of the creator's body leaves the wizard or witch in a state of half-life, without corporeal form.[3] The dark magic involved in the creation of a Horcrux is considered most despicable and is therefore rarely published, even in books devoted to the Dark Arts.

A Horcrux can be made from any normal object, including living organisms. Destroying a Horcrux will destroy the fragment of soul contained within it, ending its protection and returning the creator to a state of mortality. If a wizard has created more than one Horcrux, he will remain immortal until all are destroyed. Once destroyed, the wizard will die normally if mortally wounded. [4]

The portion of soul within a Horcrux also has the ability to take spiritual possession of other people. This possession is limited to those who become emotionally attached to the Horcrux. Once possessed, the soul within the Horcrux can take total control of the person's actions while the person remains completely unaware of the connection. Once a person has become possessed by a Horcrux, the Dark Wizard has the ability to take corporeal form by draining the life force of the possessed person. None of these spiritual connections extend to a wizard's other Horcruxes. The portions of soul also possess some level of sensory awareness, being able to sense when in danger and defend themselves.

Lord Voldemort is the only wizard explicitly mentioned as having created a Horcrux (though others are known to have done so), and is the only wizard known to have created more than one. In a recent interview J.K. Rowling mentioned that Herpo the Foul, parselmouth and first breeder of a basilisk, created the first Horcrux.

Creation

Rowling uses Professor Slughorn's expository dialogue to reveal that the creation of a Horcrux requires one to commit a murder, which, as "the supreme act of evil, (...) rips the soul apart."[6] After the murder, a spell is cast to infuse part of the ripped soul into an object, which becomes the Horcrux. Rowling has never published the actual enchantment. In the final book of the series, Hermione Granger finds the spell in a book titled Secrets of the Darkest Art.[7]

Both inanimate objects and living organisms have been used as Horcruxes, though the latter is considered riskier to use, since an organism can move and think for itself. There is no limit to the number of Horcruxes a wizard can create. However, as the creator's soul is divided into progressively smaller portions, he loses more of his natural humanity and his soul becomes increasingly unstable.

Under very specific conditions, a soul fragment can be sealed within an object without the intention or knowledge of the creator. While the object thus affected will, like any Horcrux, preserve the immortality of the creator, it does not become a "Dark object."[8] The only time this is known to have occurred is when Voldemort unsuccessfully used the Killing Curse on one-year-old Harry Potter. Voldemort's body was destroyed by the attempted murder and a portion of his soul was embedded within Harry.

Destruction

Horcruxes are extremely difficult to destroy. They cannot be destroyed by conventional means such as smashing, breaking, or burning. In order to be destroyed, a Horcrux must suffer damage so severe that repair through magical means would be impossible. (Known specific means for accomplishing this are enumerated and detailed below.) Once a Horcrux is irreparably damaged, the fragment of soul within it is destroyed.

A Horcrux can be magically undone only if the creator goes through a process of deep remorse for the murder committed to create the Horcrux. The pain of this remorse is so excruciating that the process itself may kill the creator.

Horcruxes of Lord Voldemort

Voldemort's creation of Horcruxes is central to the later storyline of the Harry Potter novels.

As the number seven is a powerful, mystical number in the world of Harry Potter, (see Bridget Wenlock), Voldemort intended to split his soul into that many pieces, with six in Horcruxes and the last reposing within his body[9]. When Voldemort attacked Godric's Hollow on October 31, 1981, he had been intending to make his sixth and final Horcrux with the death of "The Chosen One." Despite his defeat, he actually succeeded in doing so: when his body was destroyed by the rebounded Killing Curse, a piece of his soul was spalled off and attached itself to the only living thing remaining in the room—Harry Potter—effectively making The Boy Who Lived a sixth Horcrux. Voldemort, unaware of this, "completed" his collection of Horcruxes by turning his snake Nagini into one, thus fragmenting his soul into a total of eight (counting the one residing in his own body), not seven, pieces. Complicating things even further, only six Horcruxes ever existed at any one time in the series: by the time Nagini had been made a Horcrux (mid-'93), one of the original Horcruxes had already been destroyed (his diary, by Harry Potter, in 1992).

All of Voldemort's (deliberately-created) Horcruxes were made using objects that had been important or held some sentimental value.

Marvolo Gaunt's Ring

Tom Riddle creates his first Horcrux using a ring owned by his maternal grandfather, Marvolo Gaunt, during the summer after his fifth year as a student at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He casts the spell after murdering his father. The ring is introduced during the fourth chapter of the Half-Blood Prince, having already been destroyed by Albus Dumbledore but its significance not yet revealed.

In a Pensieve memory, it is revealed that Riddle had taken the gold ring, which has a black stone inscribed with a magical symbol, from his uncle Morfin Gaunt, whom he had framed for the murder of his father and grandparents. Riddle wears the ring while still a student at Hogwarts, but eventually hides it in the house where the Gaunt family had lived. It remains hidden under the floorboards, placed in a golden box, and protected by several enchantments, until Dumbledore finds it.

Dumbledore finds Marvolo Gaunt's ring during the summer break between the events of Order of the Phoenix and Half-Blood Prince. Dumbledore destroys the Horcrux with Godric Gryffindor's sword. Dumbledore is seriously injured by the ring's curses after putting the ring on his finger. The injury leaves his right arm permanently disfigured and would have killed him quickly but for the intervention of professor Severus Snape, who can merely postpone its inevitably fatal effects.[12] The damaged ring is kept for a time on a table in the Headmaster's office.

Before his death, Dumbledore hides the ring's black stone inside a Golden Snitch and wills the Snitch to Harry Potter. Dumbledore had learned that the stone is, in fact, the Resurrection Stone, one of the three Deathly Hallows. This was why he had put it on his finger: he had hoped to activate it and apologize to his long-dead family, quite forgetting it was also a Horcrux now, and thus likely to be protected by destructive enchantments. Voldemort remained unaware of the stone's additional magical properties throughout his lifetime.

Tom Riddle's Diary

Tom Riddle used his diary to create his next Horcrux during his sixth year at Hogwarts. He cast the spell after murdering his fellow student Moaning Myrtle using a Basilisk. The diary is introduced in the fourth chapter of the Chamber of Secrets and is destroyed by Harry Potter during the climax of the same book.

Before Voldemort's downfall, he entrusted the Horcrux to Lucius Malfoy. While aware of its corrupting magical properties, Malfoy did not know the diary was a Horcrux. In an attempt to discredit Arthur Weasley, Malfoy hid the diary in Ginny Weasley's cauldron, amidst her other books. Tom Riddle's soul-fragment possessed Ginny and through her reopened the Chamber of Secrets. At the end of book two, Harry saved Ginny and destroyed the diary by stabbing it with the venomous fang of a Basilisk, making it the first Horcrux to be destroyed. His reports of the diary's behavior to Dumbledore were the latter's first inkling that Voldemort might have created, not just one Horcrux, but several: "What intrigued and alarmed me most was that the diary had been intended as a weapon as much as a safeguard[13]," implying that Voldemort must have had backups of some sort.

To Rowling, a diary is a very scary object. She said in an interview that "the temptation particularly for a young girl, [is] to pour out her heart to a diary." Rowling's little sister Diane was prone to this, and her great fear was that someone would read her diary. This gave Rowling the idea to have a diary that is, in itself, against the confider.[14] When asked what would have happened if Ginny had died and Riddle had managed to escape, Rowling declined to give a straight answer, but revealed that "it would have strengthened the present-day Voldemort considerably."

Helga Hufflepuff's Cup

Tom Riddle used a cup owned by Hogwarts founder Helga Hufflepuff to create his third Horcrux. The spell was cast after he murdered Hepzibah Smith. The cup is introduced during the twentieth chapter of Half-Blood Prince and is destroyed by Hermione Granger in the thirty-first chapter of Deathly Hallows.

Hepzibah Smith, who owned the cup, was a distant descendant of Helga Hufflepuff. Riddle killed Smith, stole the cup, then framed her house elf for the murder.

Voldemort entrusted the cup to Bellatrix Lestrange, who kept it protected in her family's vault at Gringotts Bank, a place that Harry guessed that the once penniless Voldemort would have always coveted a connection to. Additional protective spells, including the Gemino and Flagrante curses, were used to protect the contents of the vault. Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, and Hermione Granger stole the cup after breaking into the bank.

Hermione destroyed this Horcrux using a fang from the remains of the basilisk that appears in the Chamber of Secrets.

Salazar Slytherin's Locket

Tom Riddle created his next Horcrux using a locket once owned by Salazar Slytherin and which had belonged to Riddle's mother, Merope Gaunt. The spell was cast after Riddle murdered a Muggle tramp.[11] The locket is introduced briefly in Order of the Phoenix (described only as "a heavy locket that none of them could open") and is destroyed by Ron Weasley in the nineteenth chapter of Deathly Hallows.

Slytherin's locket was passed down through the generations and eventually ended up in the possession of Merope Gaunt. After being abandoned by her husband Tom Riddle Senior, Merope sold the locket to Caractacus Burke, shopkeeper of Borgin & Burkes, for ten galleons, a fraction of the Locket's true value. The locket was eventually sold to Hepzibah Smith. Riddle stole the locket, along with Helga Hufflepuff's cup, after murdering Smith. Once the locket became a Horcrux, Voldemort hid it in a cave where he had once terrorized two of his fellow orphans. The cave's magical protection included an enchanted boat and the use of Inferi.

Disillusioned Death Eater Regulus Black learned about the Horcrux and its hiding place. In an effort to bring about Voldemort's eventual downfall, he and his house elf Kreacher broke through the magical protection and stole the locket. While Black died in the effort, killed by the surrounding inferi, Kreacher took the locket back to their home at Number Twelve, Grimmauld Place. Kreacher continued to protect the locket for years. However, while the Order of the Phoenix was using the house as its headquarters, the locket was stolen by Mundungus Fletcher, a petty criminal and member of the Order. He gave it to Dolores Umbridge as a bribe when she caught him selling stolen property.

Two years later, Harry, Ron, and Hermione infiltrated the Ministry of Magic, where Umbridge worked, and stole the locket. Ron later saved Harry from being strangled by the locket. The Horcrux inside assumed the shape of Harry and Hermione and played on Ron's fear that Harry and Hermione had started a relationship during his absence (and his longer-held fear that in Hermione's eyes he, Ron, would never match up to Harry). The Horcrux attempted to possess him, but Ron overcame its influence and destroyed it using the sword of Godric Gryffindor.

After the release of the final book, several reviews noted similarities between Slytherin's locket and the One Ring from The Lord of the Rings, as both artifacts negatively affect the personality of those who wore them.

Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem

Lord Voldemort created his fifth Horcrux using Hogwarts founder Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem.[17] The spell needed to create a horcrux was cast after Voldemort murdered an Albanian peasant.[11] The diadem is introduced by Xenophilius Lovegood, father of Luna Lovegood, in The Deathly Hallows.[17] Ravenclaw's daughter Helena, also known as The Grey Lady of Ravenclaw, stole the diadem from her mother in an attempt to become more intelligent than her own mother.[17] She fled to Albania where she hid the diadem in the hollow of a tree when the Bloody Baron attempted to search for her.[17] After Helena died, she became the Ravenclaw house ghost.[17] Tom Riddle, while a student at the school, charmed the Lady into telling him the location of her mother's lost diadem.[17] Shortly after leaving Hogwarts and after the subsequent murder of Hepzibah Smith where Riddle stole Slytherin's Locket and Hufflepuff's cup from her, he travelled to Albania and took possession of the artifact while planning his rise to power.[17] Years later, when Voldemort returned to Hogwarts and reapplied for the Defence Against the Dark Arts position and was denied the job by Albus Dumbledore, he hid the diadem Horcrux in the Room of Requirement.[17] Voldemort believed himself to only have delved into Hogwarts's many secrets and thought the Horcrux to be safe and hidden, with the additional protection of the school and the room he never placed curses around the diadem.[17]

In Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry first comes into contact with the diadem when he hastily hides the Half-Blood Prince's old potions book in the Room of Requirement, right after he used an invented spell from the book on Draco Malfoy. The diadem was only mentioned as an "old discoloured tiara" in the sixth book where Harry attempted to plan to try to later remember exactly where he placed the book. Later, after having the diadem described to him by the Ravenclaw ghost, Harry recalls this scene and hurries to retrieve it from the Room.[17] The diadem was destroyed by a Fiendfyre spell cast by Vincent Crabbe as he, Gregory Goyle and Draco Malfoy attacked Harry, Ron and Hermione within the Room, Crabbe was slain by the resulting fire.

Harry Potter

Voldemort inadvertently sealed a fragment of his soul within Harry Potter while attempting to murder the boy. The event took place just before the opening chapter of the Philosopher's Stone. Rowling has explicitly stated that Harry never became a proper "Dark object" since the Horcrux spell was not cast.[8] Regardless, as with all Horcruxes, Voldemort would remain immortal so long as his soul fragment remained within Harry.[18] That portion of Voldemort's soul is destroyed by Voldemort himself at the close of the thirty-fourth chapter of the Deathly Hallows.

As a baby, Harry Potter was in the room when Voldemort's fatal Killing Curse backfired. Voldemort's soul had been weakened and destabilized by his continuous murders and the creation of his previous Horcruxes. Harry became a Horcrux when a fragment of Voldemort's soul attached itself to him after the unsuccessful curse. The lightning bolt-shaped scar on Harry's forehead is a direct result of this attempted murder.

This connection is used to explain several important plot points. Throughout the series, Harry is able to receive insight into Voldemort's mental and emotional states, allowing the reader to eavesdrop on the series' primary antagonist. This insight is usually accompanied by pain in the scar on Harry's forehead. Through Voldemort, Harry also inherited the ability to speak and understand Parseltongue. It is also revealed by Rowling in an interview that Harry's frequent pain in his scar when Voldemort is either active, nearby or feeling strong emotions, is really the trapped bit of soul yearning to depart from Harry's body and rejoin its master soul. [19]

While Voldemort did learn of Harry's telepathic ability, Voldemort was never made aware that Harry was inadvertently protecting a portion of his soul. When Voldemort attempted to kill Harry with the Killing Curse near the end of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, he destroyed the portion of his own soul embedded within Harry. Once destroyed, the connections between the two were also broken, and Harry never again felt pain in his scar.

Nagini

Nagini (Hindi: nāginī, pronounced [ˈnɑːɡɪniː], or [nəˈɡiːni]; variant of Hindi: nāgin, a female cobra, from Hindi/Sanskrit: nāg, a cobra) is a serpent used by Voldemort to create his final Horcrux.[17] Voldemort intended Nagini to be his sixth Horcrux, which would have split his soul into seven pieces, a number he considered to have magically powerful properties.[17] Since he had inadvertently made Harry into a Horcrux and since he had not known this, Nagini was in fact his seventh Horcrux.[17] He cast the spells needed to create the Horcrux after murdering Ministry official Bertha Jorkins.[20][21] As with his diary, Voldemort intended Nagini to be a tool as well as a safeguard to his immortality.[17] Nagini is introduced in the first chapter of the Goblet of Fire.[20] The snake is killed by Neville Longbottom in the final chapter of The Deathly Hallows.[17]

Voldemort is able to communicate with Nagini due to his ability to speak Parseltongue, the language of snakes.[22] Readers are first introduced to Nagini when the snake is the first to notice Frank Bryce, an old gardener who had worked for the late Riddle family, and alerts Voldemort to Bryce's presence.[20] During the fourth year Harry spends at Hogwarts, Voldemort's temporary body is sustained by Nagini's venom, harvested by Peter Pettigrew.[20] In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry takes a direct viewpoint of Nagini's attack on Arthur Weasley in one of his dreams, feeling that he (Harry) himself is the snake.[23] Albus Dumbledore believes this to be due to Harry's special connection to Voldemort, with Harry's witnessing the attack by virtue of the fact that Voldemort's mind "happened to be" in Nagini at the time.[23] This is the first indication of Nagini and Voldemort's deeper connection, having the ability to share each other's thoughts, and share them with Harry as well.[23]

In the final book, Nagini consumes Charity Burbage, a Hogwarts Muggle Studies professor, after the Killing Curse is used on her.[17] Nagini is later placed inside the body of Bathilda Bagshot by Voldemort, and uses the hiding place to launch a surprise assault on Harry when he visits Godric's Hollow.[17] Because snakes can sense heat and movement in a way humans can't, Nagini is able to detect Harry and Hermione even when they are under the Invisibility Cloak.[21] After discovering that Harry is searching for his Horcruxes, Voldemort places Nagini into a protective magical cage to prevent her from being killed, but still uses her to slay Severus Snape by expanding the cage over and on top of him.[17] When Harry is apparently killed by Voldemort, Nagini is released from the protective enchantment and is draped around Voldemort's shoulders during the Death Eaters' victory march back to Hogwarts.[17] After Neville Longbottom openly defies Voldemort, Voldemort punishes him by forcing the Sorting Hat on his head and setting it on fire.[17] The Death Eaters are then attacked and a battle ensues, and Neville pulls Godric Gryffindor's sword from the Hat and beheads Nagini.[17]

Since she was Voldemort's last remaining Horcrux, her death sets up the series' climactic duel between Voldemort and Harry Potter. As Voldemort has no Horcruxes remaining and is therefore mortal, his death in that duel is final