Questions tagged [sorting-hat]
For questions about the Sorting Hat from the Harry Potter franchise. Use when asking about the Hat itself, its decisions, and possibly when asking why a certain character belongs to a certain house. Use with the [harry-potter] and [hogwarts] tags when appropriate.
83
questions
137
votes
5
answers
127k
views
Why was Hermione not in Ravenclaw?
She's clearly the smartest person in her year, and the defining trait of Ravenclaw is intelligence. Why would she be in Gryffindor rather than Ravenclaw?
- 69.2k
82
votes
5
answers
23k
views
Why didn't Harry want to be placed in Slytherin?
I just read a question regarding Slytherin, then I searched around and found this question and corresponding answers: How far can a Hogwarts student persuade the Sorting Hat?
This brings up another ...
- 2,938
77
votes
8
answers
14k
views
Why do less-bright students end up in Slytherin?
The main trait of Slytherin house is ambition and cunning.
Malfoy fits the bill. Snape fits the bill. Harry Potter has both, to an extent.
But how can someone argue that Crabbe, Goyle or Millicent (...
- 343k
72
votes
5
answers
18k
views
Why weren't Fred and George Weasley Placed in Ravenclaw?
Yes, you read that right. Fred and George are perhaps the most Ravenclaw characters in the entire series, and this is why:
Relevant passages from the Ravenclaw welcome message (out of order for ...
- 3,555
62
votes
8
answers
16k
views
Could the Sorting Hat Have Told Dumbledore That Harry Was a Horcrux?
The Sorting Hat is a sentient magical artifact that has the ability to initiate communication and have conversations with the person wearing it. There's two things that make me wonder if it would have ...
- 165k
61
votes
4
answers
10k
views
Do Hogwarts Houses have quotas?
Not a year goes by where we don't see at least one person Sorted into each House, and it's usually a fairly even distribution.
The Sorting Hat doesn't get a chance to study the mind of each child ...
- 106k
59
votes
10
answers
19k
views
Why was Neville Longbottom in Gryffindor?
So, students in Gryffindor are supposed to represent bravery. How does Neville represent bravery, to the point in being accepted into the house. I've always thought of his strongest traits being ...
- 50.7k
55
votes
7
answers
17k
views
Do students ever get sorted into houses other than what their family is in?
It seems to me that whatever house your parents were in is where you will end up. I know the Sorting Hat initially wanted to Sort Harry into Slytherin, but that had a lot to do with his connection to ...
- 115k
50
votes
6
answers
24k
views
Can one's House change?
In Harry Potter, when a witch or a wizard is 11 they go to Hogwarts and their first major experience is their own Sorting. In front of the Great Hall, each new student goes to the stool, sits down, ...
- 8,851
49
votes
4
answers
25k
views
What happens if you don't fit in any of the Hogwarts houses and still have to go to Hogwarts?
Like me for example, I have some traits from some houses but lack other traits. I'm definitely not a Gryffindor because I lack bravery, not a Hufflepuff because I'm lazy, not a Ravenclaw because I'm ...
48
votes
7
answers
32k
views
Why Was Peter Pettigrew Sorted To Gryffindor?
The Sorting Hat says:
You might belong in Gryffindor
Where dwell the brave at heart
Their daring, nerve, and chivalry
Set Gryffindors apart . . .
Sorcerer's Stone - Page 118 - US ...
- 165k
46
votes
2
answers
16k
views
Can a Hogwarts student refuse the Sorting Hat's decision?
After reading Harry Potter and the Cursed Child,
and remembering how Harry asked the Sorting Hat not to join Slytherin and how it granted his request, I started wondering what happens when a student ...
- 4,220
43
votes
2
answers
5k
views
Is there any way to prove that you are a true Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw or Slytherin - analogous to pulling Godric Gryffindor's sword?
In HP "Harry Potter" books, Harry pulled the Godric Gryffindor's sword out of the Sorting hat to fight Tom Riddle. It is also said that the sword was said to appear whenever a true Gryffindor was in ...
- 13.2k
40
votes
8
answers
14k
views
Is there a Flaw with Gryffindor's "Characteristics"?
Is there an inherent and perpetual flaw in Gryffindor House? As someone pointed out in one of the chatrooms, some people have been questioning the sorting hat's decisions when it comes to Gryffindor:
...
- 3,555
39
votes
3
answers
12k
views
Does the Sorting Hat speak only to the person wearing it?
My question is straightforward. Does the Sorting Hat speak only to the person wearing it, or to the Great Hall? Did all of the students hear it say,
"Not Slytherin, eh?"
when Harry used it?
- 5,698
35
votes
11
answers
28k
views
Why did Slytherin House not get disbanded?
If every former Hogwarts student who goes bad was in Slytherin, why has Hogwarts kept the house over the years? Why not disband it?
- 9,562
35
votes
3
answers
8k
views
Is the Sorting Hat a Horcrux?
The Sorting Hat is significantly different from most other enchanted objects we've seen in the Wizarding World. The hat is sapient - it not only converses with Harry on multiple occasions but invents ...
- 2,367
34
votes
4
answers
12k
views
Why was Percy Weasley sorted into Gryffindor?
He's determined, sure, but he doesn't exactly come across as particularly courageous or chivalrous. I know families tend to all fall into the same house, but of all the Weasleys we meet, Percy ...
- 3,898
32
votes
5
answers
6k
views
What is the point of the Sorting Hat?
The Sorting Hat determines what the inner qualities of each student are and then decides the Hogwarts House they will go into. Why does this need to be done, though? I titled this question this way ...
- 11.6k
31
votes
6
answers
67k
views
Were there (or are there) any Dark Wizards who were Sorted into the Hufflepuff House?
I just finished watching Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's (Philosopher's) Stone on DVD. Not my first time seeing in the movie by a long shot, but Quirrell captured my attention during the film. He was ...
- 319
30
votes
3
answers
9k
views
How did the Hogwarts founders sort students?
Currently the Sorting Hat looks inside a student’s head and determines the traits that best match one of the Hogwarts houses. These may be traits the student has yet to demonstrate or even be aware ...
- 309
30
votes
4
answers
19k
views
Do other wizarding schools have different houses?
At Hogwarts, there are four houses: Slytherin, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, and Ravenclaw.
Do any of the other wizarding schools, like Durmstrang or Beauxbatons, sort their students into separate houses?
- 3,418
29
votes
8
answers
32k
views
Were there muggleborns in Slytherin?
Is it possible for a Muggle-born to be sorted to Slytherin? We know that half-bloods can like Snape and Voldemort, but how about Muggle-borns?
If it is possible, was there an example from canon to ...
- 883
26
votes
3
answers
29k
views
Why exactly did the Sorting Hat originally want to put Harry in Slytherin?
I know that the Sorting Hat wanted to for other reasons, but if he made the right decision then why did he ever want to? The Sorting Hat made it very clear that he chose the right house, then why did ...
- 279
26
votes
5
answers
17k
views
Why was Albus Severus sorted into Slytherin?
What made the Sorting Hat sort Albus Severus into Slytherin?
I’m OK with an answer based on specific traits that match known house characteristics if an unambiguous canon explanation doesn’t exist.
- 343k
23
votes
3
answers
7k
views
Which House Was Gilderoy Lockhart In?
. . . And don't automatically say Slytherin just because he was a huge ponce. ;)
Seriously, though, using canon as a guide, what house would Gilderoy Lockhart have been Sorted into? He certainly had ...
- 165k
23
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Have any students not been sorted?
Based on an answer on Ilvermorny school's sorting ceremony, multiple houses of the school can express an interest in a student, and some students have received a request for all four houses.
Have any ...
- 2,043
23
votes
3
answers
12k
views
Did any Gryffindor marry a Slytherin?
Supposedly House Gryffindor and House Slytherin have a centuries-old enmity, but at some point this must have been overcome at least by a few individuals.
In canon (books, Pottermore, interviews, ...
- 134k
22
votes
2
answers
15k
views
What houses are the Patil twins in?
In the Muggles Guide to Harry Potter it says that one of the Patil twins is in Gryffindor and the other is in Ravenclaw.
But then in the Goblet of Fire movie, they are both in the Gryffindor common ...
- 365
22
votes
7
answers
15k
views
Why was Lockhart sorted into Ravenclaw?
Lockhart is a bumbling idiot - except when it comes to memory charms, and he was so driven to be a famed writer that he used inscrupulous means to obtain his status as star autobiographical wizard and ...
- 8,186
22
votes
4
answers
13k
views
How far can a Hogwarts student persuade the Sorting Hat?
Several times, in the Harry Potter series, we are led to believe the sortee has some control over the House they are sorted into. Most famously, Harry Potter turns down his chance at being in ...
- 81.9k
21
votes
4
answers
34k
views
Are there any non-Slytherin Death Eaters (besides Pettigrew)?
In Philosopher's Stone, Hagrid explains to Harry:
All wizards who turned evil have been in Slytherin.
Later we learn that he was wrong, as Peter Pettigrew was in Gryffindor and has been a Death ...
- 629
20
votes
3
answers
13k
views
What happened to the Sorting Hat after the Battle of Hogwarts?
In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows our dear friend Voldy sets fire to the Sorting Hat while it is on Neville's head, yet Neville manages to escape and pull Gryffindor's sword out of the burning ...
- 3,161
20
votes
8
answers
29k
views
Was Wormtail the only Dark wizard sorted to Gryffindor?
In the HP universe, Gryffindor house is somewhat a metaphor of righteousness and morality. On the other hand, Slytherin house represents the dark side. However, there are a few exceptions on the ...
- 3,708
19
votes
3
answers
3k
views
Ravenclaw House - is it really a good place for eccentric people?
The Ravenclaw House's motto is:
"Wit beyond measure is man's greatest treasue." (Rowena Ravenclaw)
And from their welcome letter, it seems Ravenclaws associate eccentric behaviour with creativity ...
user68762
18
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Does the Sorting Hat Ever Get Stumped?
There's a few parts to this question. When the Sorting Hat was on Harry Potter, it picked up the part of Voldemort's soul and suggested Harry would do well in Slytherin, but went with Harry's ...
- 107k
17
votes
3
answers
17k
views
Which house was Fudge sorted into?
I was recently told that many think the lime-hatted Minister for Magic was Sorted into Slytherin, but I always had him as a dead ringer for Hufflepuff. A quick scan of Internet wikis doesn't turn up ...
- 17.8k
16
votes
4
answers
13k
views
Why was Prof. Slughorn in Slytherin?
It seems to me that Horace Slughorn would have belonged to Ravenclaw if anything.
He wasn't terribly ambitious himself (Slug club was about his vanity, not ambition).
He wasn't really evil (I mean, ...
- 343k
16
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Does the Sorting Hat ever win an argument with a student?
It's in the first book that we see Sorting Hat arguing with Harry over placing Harry in Slytherin. In the end, Harry wins, and the Hat puts him in Gryffindor.
Sometimes, the hat just can not decide (...
- 161
15
votes
2
answers
3k
views
Which House was Moaning Myrtle From?
I've just read Sorcerer's Stone or Philosopher's Stone with my daughter and watched the movie and we are now beginning Chamber of Secrets. As my husband and I were watching the movie (to decide if it ...
- 8,186
15
votes
6
answers
24k
views
What house of Hogwarts was Barty Crouch Jr. in?
Did Barty Crouch Jr. attend Hogwarts? In which house was he sorted?
What's the breakdown of Hogwart's Professor in Houses? lists him as a Slytherin, but gives no evidence. Do you have any ...
- 33k
14
votes
6
answers
25k
views
Why wasn’t Cedric Diggory sorted into Ravenclaw?
Cedric Diggory was a clever wizard. He was very expert in the field of magic and he also proved it every time. These qualities are suggesting that he should be in Ravenclaw rather then Hufflepuff.
So ...
- 1,876
13
votes
4
answers
2k
views
Has anyone ever been unhappy with the sorting hat's decision?
Neville was concerned, at least early on, that he wasn't worthy of being a Gryffindor, but I don't think he ever expressed unhappiness about it. Has anyone?
- 3,838
13
votes
2
answers
6k
views
Did anyone choose to be sorted into Hufflepuff?
Harry, Ron and Hermione all could have ended in other houses, namely Slytherin, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw. Yet they ended up in Gryffindor due to their innate, though at that time undiscovered, courage....
- 383
13
votes
2
answers
4k
views
What was the other house that Seamus might have been placed in?
In Sorcerer's Stone we find:
Sometimes, Harry noticed, the hat shouted out the house at once, but at
others it took a little while to decide. "Finnigan, Seamus," the
sandy-haired boy next to ...
- 25.2k
13
votes
1
answer
3k
views
Does the Ilvermorny School have a sorting hat?
Many fans of the Harry Potter Universe are continuing to learn more and more about the wizarding world, as the world expands through new media content, including Pottermore.
One of the more recent ...
- 1,962
12
votes
5
answers
4k
views
In which Hogwarts House would each of the Peverell brothers be in? [closed]
Had the Peverell brothers been at Hogwarts, which house would each of them have been Sorted into?
I assume their respective choices of hallows is reflective of their traits and desires.
Just so ...
- 1,073
12
votes
6
answers
37k
views
What house did Albus and James Potter end up in?
I know the epilogue to DH doesn't say this, but are there any interviews or other JKR info about which houses the Potter children were sorted into?
- 2,186
12
votes
2
answers
17k
views
What's the breakdown of Hogwart's Professor in Houses?
In the answer to my other question : Why aren't all Professors Ravenclaws? it was pointed out that Hogwarts Professors might be from any House. In actuality, were there an equal number of ...
- 4,516
12
votes
1
answer
2k
views
How many Hogwarts students changed House from book to film?
The only example I can think of is Padma Patil: Ravenclaw in the books, Gryffindor in the films.
Were there any other Hogwarts students who were in one House in the books but in a different one in ...
- 134k