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In the film version of Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire a huge melee breaks out at the site of the Quidditch World Cup and a group of Death Eaters march through the campsites, burning them to the ground. There's a tiny bit where we see the Death Eaters walking through the campsites with torches, chanting something.

What are the Death Eaters chanting as they're burning down the campsites at the Quidditch World Cup?

I'm a native English speaker and the chanting truly doesn't sound like English to me, for what it's worth. Also, I did check the site to see if this question has already been asked and I couldn't find that it has. My Google-Fu skills apparently suck today, meh. I'm pretty sure J.K. Rowling hasn't addressed this; she tends to prefer talking book canon.

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  • To me it sounds like they are just chanting the words "Death Eaters" over and over. "Death (step step) Eaters"
    – Mac Cooper
    Mar 8, 2014 at 14:19
  • Sorry, pressed enter too soon and then ran out of time to edit: the film script merely says they are chanting "ominous noises"
    – Mac Cooper
    Mar 8, 2014 at 14:24
  • @MacCooper - I hear "death", I don't hear "eaters".
    – Valorum
    Mar 8, 2014 at 15:26
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    Well, no, it doesn't matter in that the world won't implode if we don't get to the bottom of the mystery, but I'm curious and it's an on topic, legitimate question. (I saw Goblet of Fire like 50 times yesterday because I was too lazy to change the BD, LOL! Hence my question.)
    – Slytherincess
    Mar 8, 2014 at 16:53
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    @MacCooper - Oh, no worries! I just wanted to clarify why I was asking. :)
    – Slytherincess
    Mar 9, 2014 at 1:17

5 Answers 5

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This script for the movie here describes the relevant scene thusly:

Some figures in pointed hoods carrying flaming torches are walking across the campsite chanting ominous noises.

My guess is that the chanting is not meant to be anything meaningful.

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    Except that they certainly sound like they're chanting actual words.
    – Valorum
    Mar 11, 2014 at 13:37
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    Thanks very much for the link to the script (I don't know why I wasn't able to find this on my own!). That's interesting that it calls the Death Eaters' chanting just "ominous noises" because, like Richard said, it really does sound like they're saying something in a valid language. :)
    – Slytherincess
    Mar 17, 2014 at 20:17
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I don't know how correct this is, but I'm a Latin student, and the chant really sounds like a derivative of the verb 'interficere' (the specific word they're saying sounds like interfectus) which is the Latin verb meaning - to kill. Many of the spells and potions throughout the series are in Latin, so it really wouldn't suprise me.

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    This is a great idea. I, too, am a (former) Latin student, so I could buy that. And you're right -- JKR uses Latin root words for many of her spells and potions; it wouldn't be a stretch for that to carry over to specific Death Eater chants. Thanks for the answer! :)
    – Slytherincess
    Mar 17, 2014 at 20:13
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    Slight correction: it is a Latin verb meaning ‘kill’. There are many others.
    – Janus Bahs Jacquet
    Apr 14, 2016 at 4:36
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It sounds to me like at 10:54 they say "In death, and then __" (something that I couldn't make out. I'm revisiting this because I'm just watching the movie again and never wondered until now what they were chanting.

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Honestly, and this sounds weird, but I heard, "Victor, I love you, Victor I do," like the twins were singing to Ron right before... at least if you listen carefully, it's almost the same tune.

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    Welcome to SF:SE. The original poster was ideally looking for something more than just people's opinions on what they (think they) heard
    – Valorum
    Dec 6, 2014 at 9:41
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    This seems highly unlikely at best.
    – Valorum
    Dec 6, 2014 at 9:41
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I always thought they were saying "mmm, death, death, death, amazing death", like they found the concept of death alluring.

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