Ravenclaw

**Ravenclaw** was one of the four Houses of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Its founder was the medieval witch Rowena Ravenclaw. Members of this house were characterised by their wit, learning, and wisdom. The emblematic animal symbol was an eagle, and blue and bronze were its colours. The Head of Ravenclaw was Filius Flitwick, and the House ghost was the Grey Lady, real name Helena Ravenclaw, daughter of Rowena.

Ravenclaw corresponded roughly to the element of air, and it was for that reason that the House colours were chosen; blue and bronze represented the sky and eagle feathers respectively, both having much to do with air. The Ravenclaw points hourglass contained blue sapphires.

## Traits

Ravenclaw House prized learning, wisdom, wit, and intellect in its members. Thus, many Ravenclaws tended to be academically motivated and talented students. They also prided themselves on being original in their ideas, and methods. It was not unusual to find Ravenclaw students practising especially different types of magic that other houses might shun. Hermione Granger, an extremely intelligent witch and the top student in her year, was sorted into Gryffindor, though she admitted that the Sorting Hat had seriously considered placing her in Ravenclaw.

Often hard-working and diligent, as often was the case with intellectuals with a predisposition for academics, some of the pupils sorted under the blue-bronzed eagle were known to be inclined to dismiss certain social expectations for the sake of satisfying their own intellectual curiosity. Some of these eventually also ended up being not only accepted but even celebrated, in spite of being initially subjected to scorn for their various oddities. Luna Lovegood, for example, was one such student: eccentric to put it at its mildest, she was a Ravenclaw student who initially was bullied for her open defiance of conventionality, but ultimately became a celebrated wizarding naturalist and renowned for her participation in the legendary Battle of Hogwarts and past membership in Dumbledore's Army. Another example would be Professor Filius Flitwick, a half-goblin who might have faced scorn for his short stature earlier in life but went on to become a renowned Duelling Champion, and subsequently one of the finest and most knowledgable Charms Masters in the entirety of the wizarding world during his employment at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. (*The* best, according to some of his students).

Ravenclaws tended to be curious about the world and paid attention to the world around them. Ravenclaws were known to be logical and rational. In addition, Ravenclaw students tended to have abilities regarding Memory. Garrick Ollivander, for example, possessed an eidetic memory and can remember every wand he has sold, and Gilderoy Lockhart had an exceptional talent in the Memory Charm.

Even so, not all Ravenclaws were motivated by academic prowess. Examples of such individuals included Gilderoy Lockhart and Cho Chang, both of whom sought to use the good name and renown of their house, the inherent expectations of certain academic prowess that came with being sorted into it as well as the often somewhat natural ability of its members to gain popularity among their peers, which particularly was the case of the former, proving true the fact that a good student did not necessarily make a good witch or wizard.

Minerva McGonagall was a Hatstall, having approximately equal Ravenclaw and Gryffindor traits; the Sorting Hat finally sorted her into Gryffindor. Hermione Granger was also considered for Ravenclaw due to her intelligence, but the hat ultimately decided on Gryffindor once again. Filius Flitwick was in the same situation at the time of his Sorting, but in his case the Hat decided on Ravenclaw instead of Gryffindor.

Isolt Sayre, founder of Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, wanted to be a Ravenclaw as a child, but never got to attend Hogwarts. Her choice of blue as a colour for the Ilvermorny school uniform was inspired by Ravenclaw.

## Reputation

According to Slytherin prefect Gemma Farley, Ravenclaws were so competitive when it came to academic success that they were known to backstab each other, and likely other students, in order to get top marks. While Hufflepuff prefect Gabriel Truman noted that they were so proud of the success of famous members, such as Laverne de Montmorency, that they claimed any intelligent wizard as a member of Ravenclaw House, such as Bridget Wenlock, who was, in fact, a Hufflepuff. Some Ravenclaws, such as Uric the Oddball, Xenophilius Lovegood, and his daughter Luna Lovegood were also noted to have a propensity towards eccentricity.

Ravenclaw House appeared to have little rivalry with the other houses, except in Quidditch. Harry Potter believed that they tended to side with Gryffindor in its rivalry with Slytherin, as did Hufflepuff house. However, during the 1994 Triwizard Tournament, most Ravenclaws supported Hufflepuff champion Cedric Diggory over Harry. They believed that Harry had, in fact, cheated his way into being a champion and that the true Hogwarts champion was Cedric. Many Ravenclaws (such as Cho Chang) joined Dumbledore's Army and fought in the Battle of Hogwarts along with Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs. They rose at almost the exact moment as the Hufflepuffs and turned their wands upon Pansy Parkinson and Slytherin House in Harry Potter's defence when the former wished to hand Harry over to Lord Voldemort and his army of Death Eaters.

Within the house, though, they're well-known for being welcoming and encouraging of creativity, eccentricity, and individuality and being very accepting.

## Common Room

*Main articles: Ravenclaw Tower and Ravenclaw common room*
The Ravenclaw common room was in one of the castle's towers and was wide and circular. One had to climb a tight spiral staircase to get there. It had graceful arched windows, and the walls were hung with blue and bronze silks. The domed ceiling was painted with the night sky, which was echoed in the midnight-blue carpet. Tables, chairs, and bookcases covered the expanse of the floor, and a white marble statue of Rowena Ravenclaw sat next to the door that led to the dormitories above. Harry Potter entered the common room in 1998 while searching for clues to the location of one of Voldemort's Horcruxes.

Unlike the other common rooms in the school, a logical riddle given by a bronze eagle-shaped knocker must be answered to enter. This could prove troublesome as anyone with enough intellect could intrude into the dormitory, as was shown in 1998 where Professor McGonagall had no trouble entering by answering the riddle correctly (though she was a "hatstall" between Gryffindor and Ravenclaw). On the other hand, a particularly poorly-phrased riddle might bemuse a particular student, blocking them from entering and forcing them to sleep outside. However, Hermione stated in her first year when figuring out the complicated riddle, beneath the trapdoor, that most wizards and witches did not have much sense of logic, which might be something that Ravenclaw noticed herself and decided to use clever riddles instead of passwords, as they were safer than some words.

## Head of House

Rowena Ravenclaw (10th century)

Filius Flitwick

The Head of House before and during Harry Potter's time was Filius Flitwick. It is unknown when he became head of house, but it is known that he was teaching Charms in 1971. It is unknown whom he succeeded.