An interesting fan theory attempts to answer why Harry Potter’s class size was so small at Hogwarts. The boy wizard’s time at the educational institution was the focus of the Harry Potter series. The theory suggests that Voldemort and the First Wizarding War affected the birth rate; however, the small class sizes in Harry Potter are probably just an oversight by the author of the original book series, J.K. Rowling.
The Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry is one of the most notable institutes in Rowling’s Wizarding World. It’s a school funded by the Ministry of Magic, and houses those enrolled for seven years. Wizards and witches start their Hogwarts career around 11 years old. It was at this age that Harry first learned that he was a wizard in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. Shortly thereafter, he embarked on his journey to Hogwarts. Incoming students, including Harry, were then sorted into one of four Great Houses: Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, or Slytherin.
Harry was sorted in Gryffindor House, along with Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger. There only seemed to be seven other students sorted in Gryffindor during Harry’s first year including Neville Longbottom, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil, Eloise Midgen, and Romilda Vane. If there were 10 new students per year for each House, only approximately 280 students would be studying at Hogwarts each term. A theory (via Tumblr) suggests that Harry’s class size, in particular, was small because of the events of the late ’70s and early ’80s that may have affected the number of non-muggle babies born.
Harry Potter’s Class Size Was So Small Because Of Lord Voldemort
Harry began attending Hogwarts in 1991. 11-year-olds like Harry would have been born in 1980, which meant they would have been conceived in late 1979 or early 1980. That timespan occurred during the backend of the First Wizarding War. The theory pointed out that Lord Voldemort held a lot of power at that time and many innocent figures in the Wizarding World fell victim to his Death Eaters. Others bravely joined the Order of the Phoenix, which meant starting a family wasn’t a priority. Others could have possibly decided against the idea of bringing a child into the world considering the chaos that Voldemort stirred up.
It’s plausible to believe that the tragic deaths and overwhelming fear that was caused by Voldemort would have an effect on the witches and wizards born in the ’70s and ’80s resulting in small class sizes during Harry’s time at Hogwarts. Rowling, however, once stated that there were around 1,000 students at Hogwarts. This would mean that each House consisted of 250 kids with around 35 or 36 students per year. This seemed to have been an oversight due to the number of students described in the novels and shown in the Harry Potter movies. The lower class sizes also gave the perception that Hogwarts was a super-exclusive institute for young witches and wizards. The Harry Potter series already focused on an ensemble set of characters, so perhaps it was best not to have an overwhelming amount of classmates.
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