Cho Chang

"Obviously, she is feeling very sad, because of Cedric dying. Then I expect she's feeling confused because she liked Cedric and now she likes Harry, and she can't work out who she likes best. Then she'll be feeling guilty, thinking it's an insult to Cedric's memory to be kissing Harry at all... And she probably can't work out what her feelings are towards Harry anyway, because he was the one who was with Cedric when Cedric died, so that's all very mixed up and painful."

- Hermione Granger on Cho Chang.

Cho Chang (born c. 1979) was a witch who attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from 1990 to 1997 and was sorted into Ravenclaw House. She was a Seeker for the Ravenclaw Quidditch team and a popular student. In Cho's fifth year, she began dating Cedric Diggory while he was a Champion in the Triwizard Tournament. Cedric became one of the first casualties of the Second Wizarding War, as he was murdered by Peter Pettigrew on the orders of Lord Voldemort in June of 1995. His death greatly upset Cho and made her determined to fight against the recently returned Dark Lord.

In her sixth year, against her parents' wishes she joined Dumbledore's Army, an organisation taught and led by Harry Potter. In the same year she also began a romantic relationship with him. However, Cho's best friend Marietta Edgecombe betrayed the D.A., and Cho and Harry's relationship fell apart. Cho remained loyal to her school and to the D.A., returning after she had graduated to participate in the Battle of Hogwarts.

She survived the Second Wizarding War and eventually married a Muggle.

Early years


Cho was born into a wizarding family, the daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Chang, who were of Asian descent. She became a great Quidditch fan at the age of six, and cheered for the Tutshill Tornados.

In 1990, at the age of eleven, Cho began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was Sorted into Ravenclaw house. She soon tried out for her house Quidditch team, and attained the position of Seeker. She became friends with fellow Ravenclaw Marietta Edgecombe.

Fourth year
"Their seeker, Cho Chang, was the only girl on their team."

- Harry Potter in 1994

During a Gryffindor-Ravenclaw Quidditch match in her fourth year, Cho first met Harry Potter, who was a year below her at Hogwarts and a fellow Seeker. Harry noticed she was very pretty and she made his stomach "feel funny." Cho's impression of Harry was favourable, and when she later wished Harry good luck before Gryffindor had a Quidditch match against Slytherin, Harry went bright red. During the match against Ravenclaw, Cho began to tail Harry rather than find the Golden Snitch herself. Harry soon caught on to her strategy and attempted to trick her into thinking he had spotted the Snitch. As he dove, he saw the Snitch for real. Cho then gasped at the sight of a trio of dementors. Harry managed to unleash a powerful Patronus Charm as well as snag the Snitch; the dementors were actually Draco Malfoy, Vincent Crabbe, Gregory Goyle and Marcus Flint in disguise. Ravenclaw did not win the Quidditch Cup this year and instead Gryffindor did.

Fifth year


In the summer of 1994, Cho went to the Quidditch World Cup, and exchanged greetings with Harry, who had a crush on Cho by this time. She was friendly towards Harry, but probably did not return his romantic feelings, as she accepted when Cedric Diggory asked her to be his date to the Yule Ball. Cedric was a year above Cho and a champion in the Triwizard Tournament. Despite this, Cho refused to treat Harry poorly, as many others did because the Goblet of Fire had also selected him.



She refused to wear one of Draco Malfoy's Support Cedric Diggory badges, something Harry was grateful for. He asked Cho to attend the Yule Ball with him, and she let him down kindly; he still spent most of the ball watching Cho, who soon began dating Cedric. She was the "thing" Cedric would miss most and thus became his hostage during the Second Task of the Tournament; he employed the Bubble-Head Charm to save her from Hogwarts' lake.

That June, Cedric was murdered by Peter Pettigrew on Lord Voldemort's orders. Cho was devastated and openly cried at the memorial service at the end of the school year.

Sixth year


Cedric's death made Cho believe Harry's claim that Voldemort had returned despite the Ministry of Magic and Daily Prophet branding him a liar or insane. She sought Harry out several times and attempted to engage him in conversation, probably motivated by both a desire to learn the circumstances of Cedric's death and a growing fondness for Harry. Unfortunately for Harry, these encounters did not go well. The first time, Cho found him covered with Stinksap that was accidentally let off by Neville Longbottom's Mimbulus mimbletonia. The second time, she ended up arguing with Ron Weasley about Quidditch teams. On the third try, when Cho entered the Owlery to send a letter to her mother for her birthday while Harry was there, she defended him from a suspicious Argus Filch.



When invited by Hermione Granger to join Dumbledore's Army, Cho went against the advice of her parents, who wished her to remain on Dolores Umbridge's good side. She also brought her best friend and fellow Ravenclaw Marietta Edgecombe along, despite the other girl's reluctance. Cho joined because she was determined to fight against Lord Voldemort after what happened to Cedric in the previous year. As a D.A. student, however, she had her ups and downs. At first, she got nervous and performed her spells poorly whenever Harry was nearby, indicating that her romantic feelings for him had grown. Later, though, she was able to conjure a corporeal Patronus in the shape of a swan. However, she did have some trouble with a Disarming Charm (due to Harry approaching them and causing Cho to lose her cool), saying Expellimellius, instead of Expelliarmus, causing Marietta's sleeve to catch on fire.



Cho initiated a kiss with Harry under some mistletoe shortly before Christmas after a D.A. session. However, she soon ended up in tears, confused and guilty because of her feelings for Harry and Cedric. Despite this, she and Harry went on a date in the wizarding village of Hogsmeade on Valentine's Day.

Cho's continuing grief over Cedric's death, her ill-founded jealousy over Harry's friendship with Hermione (who, ironically, tried to advise Harry on how to handle girls), and Harry's overall inexperience with girls soured the experience. Cho became jealous when Harry mentioned his plans to meet Hermione later in the day, and she tried to gauge Harry's feelings for her by mentioning that Roger Davies had asked her out, but this only bewildered Harry. She ended up in tears after Harry refused to discuss Cedric's death with her.

Later in the year, Cho's friend Marietta betrayed the D.A. to Umbridge, and, as a result, was afflicted by the jinx performed by Hermione on the piece of parchment, signed earlier by all members of the D.A. The hex made purple pustules spell "SNEAK" across her face that could not be removed, something Cho considered a "horrible trick". When Harry scorned Marietta for the betrayal and Cho defended her, their relationship went downhill.

Seventh year
At the beginning of her seventh and final at Hogwarts, Cho caught a glimpse of Harry on the Hogwarts Express. She did not speak with him, instead hiding back in her compartment with Marietta Edgecombe. Harry commented that she was the only one not staring at him, he also noticed that her friend Marietta still had the word SNEAK written in pimples on her face. The two had almost no interaction for the rest of the year; according to Harry, they simply "fell apart," too embarrassed to even look at one another. That year, Harry began dating Ginny Weasley while Cho dated Michael Corner, who ironically had previously dated Ginny, and who offered Cho comfort over the trying events of her fifth and sixth years.

Battle of Hogwarts
Cho demonstrated her loyalty by reuniting with other members of Dumbledore's Army to join the battle against Voldemort and the Death Eaters when they attacked Hogwarts. She appeared amicable and friendly with Harry, offering to lead him to the Ravenclaw Common Room in search of Rowena Ravenclaw's diadem. Cho fought in the Battle of Hogwarts and survived the war.

Later life
After the Second Wizarding War, Cho later married a Muggle individual. It is unknown if they had any children.

Physical appearance
Cho is described as an extremely beautiful girl of Asian descent, with long, shining dark hair and eyes and freckles on her nose, and was about a head shorter than Harry Potter. For her date with Harry, she tied her hair back into a ponytail, to which Harry described as very pretty. During her years at Hogwarts, she attracted Cedric Diggory, Roger Davies, Michael Corner and Harry Potter.

Personality and traits
Having been sorted into Ravenclaw House, Cho was presumably intelligent, enforced by her mastery of all defence magic that Harry taught her, including the Patronus Charm, though she did admit that she was unable to stun anything before Harry taught her. She was also an avid Quidditch fan (having supported the Tutshill Tornados since she was six years old) and a good athlete, playing Seeker for her House's team. She was a popular student at Hogwarts, with a large group of friends and many boys who admired her for her extreme beauty. She was also loyal and brave, having been loyal to the Tutshill Tornados for many years as opposed to jumping the bandwagon, joining Dumbledore's Army in defiance with the Ministry in order to avenge her late boyfriend, sticking up for her friend when the rest of the group ousted her for treason, and returning to Hogwarts in order to fight alongside her comrades and defend the school from Death Eaters.

Despite her perceived intellect and loyalty, Cho appeared to have been a poor judge of character when it came to choosing her friends. Her gang of friends that followed her for years disbanded and went their own ways when she suffered an emotional breakdown. She was besotted enough to adamantly believe Marietta Edgecombe would never report Dumbledore's Army to Dolores Umbridge despite how cynical Marietta acted, and when that trust was betrayed, Cho overlooked Marietta's treacherous actions and maintained that she was "a lovely person," despite the fact that she had sold all of her classmates out to the Ministry of Magic — including her — while insisting that Marietta "just made a mistake" and deserves forgiveness and a second chance.

Cho was perceived by Harry Potter and others to be excessively melodramatic and angsty, with very little control over her emotions. Though a certain amount of distress could be expected after the murder of her boyfriend, she basically spent the rest of the year wallowing in sadness, losing most of her group of friends as a result, and even used her relationship with Harry to delve into the details of Cedric's death, while showing embarrassment and shame when Pansy Parkinson criticised Cho's taste in her boyfriends. She was also somewhat prone to jealousy, as evidenced in her attitude towards Hermione Granger, and did not even listen to Harry's attempt to explain himself when he mentioned meeting up with Hermione during their date. Contrary to her loyalty to her school and friends, she seemed to move on somewhat quickly with various boyfriends, as she dated Roger Davies, then Cedric; after Cedric's death, she sought comfort from Harry; after that (short) relationship fell apart from misunderstandings and quarrels, she went with Michael Corner when he comforted her, though she seemingly retained some feelings for Harry (that he no longer returned), but ultimately married a Muggle.

Magical abilities and skills


"She's a fourth year, and she's good...."

- Oliver Wood on Cho's flying


 * Flight: Cho flew excellently, so much so that she was chosen to play the position of Seeker on the Ravenclaw Quidditch team.
 * Charms: Whilst the extent of Cho's ability at Charms is unknown she did learn how to successfully conjure a corporeal Patronus in her sixth year, which is a very advanced piece of magic and a sign of superior magical ability. Her Patronus took the form of a swan.
 * Defence Against the Dark Arts: Considering she trained with the D.A., Cho should be proficient at defensive magic, her skills furthered by the fact she fought in and survived the Second Wizarding War.

Possessions


"It means they're not real fans, they're just jumping on the bandwagon —"
 * Wand: Cho's wand is of unknown length, wood, and core. Like most wizards and witches in Great Britain, she likely purchased it at the age of eleven from Garrick Ollivander before beginning her education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1990.
 * Dress robes: Cho wore robes to the Yule Ball in 1994, which she attended with Cedric Diggory. The robes were silver, Asian style robes.

- Ron regarding Cho's badge


 * Tornados badge: Cho Chang was a great fan of the Tornados Quidditch team and showed her support by owning and wearing one of their badges.
 * Comet 260: Cho owned this model of broom and used it while on the Ravenclaw Qudditich team. She was seen riding it in her match against Harry Potter in 1994.

Family
Her relationship with her parents is unknown, but it is known that both her mother and father wanted her to stay on Dolores Umbridge's good side, during the 1995–1996 school year. However, Cho went against their wishes. Cho did send her mother a parcel for her birthday, showing affectionate care. Their relationship after the school year is unknown.

Roger Davies


Some time during Cho's life, she dated a fellow Ravenclaw — Roger Davies, who also served as her Captain in their house's Quidditch team — but it didn't last long since he eventually got a new girlfriend while Cho moved on with either Cedric or Harry. Davies asked Cho out sometime after Cedric's death, though Cho rejected him in favour for Harry; regardless, she used this to gauge Harry's feelings for her, and looked at Roger and his girlfriend as though they were setting a standard that Cho expected Harry to live up to.

Cedric Diggory


In her fifth year, Cho was asked to the Yule Ball by Cedric Diggory, a Hufflepuff student a year above her. The two subsequently began dating. Because Cho was the person Cedric would miss most, she served as his hostage during the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament. Cho and Cedric also had a date at Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop. Cho was devastated when Cedric was murdered that June.

The following year was very difficult for her; in addition to missing Cedric, she was the subject of gossip regarding her burgeoning romance with Harry Potter, the only witness to Cedric's murder who was widely regarded as being either a liar or a nutter for claiming that Lord Voldemort had returned. Cho grieved for Cedric to the point of crying almost everywhere, including the bathroom, frequently, and her Quidditch-playing abilities also suffered. This was probably compounded by a lack of closure, as the only person who knew what had happened to Cedric, Harry, did not want to discuss it with Cho.

Harry Potter


Harry Potter was drawn to Cho's good looks and developed a crush on her when she was in her fourth year, and asked her to the Yule Ball in the next, though she had already agreed to attend with Cedric. Still, Cho treated Harry kindly, such as in refusing to wear a Potter Stinks/Support Cedric Diggory! badge during the Triwizard Tournament.

In her sixth year, Cho began to return Harry's feelings, though she felt somewhat guilty for doing so, considering the recent murder of Cedric Diggory. She joined Dumbledore's Army and became nervous whenever Harry was nearby, something Harry also exhibited. They shared a kiss under the mistletoe around Christmas, but this was spoiled by Cho beginning to cry, and Harry being at a loss for how to respond.



The two went on a date in Hogsmeade on Valentine's Day, but Cho's feelings for Harry were confused because of her continuing grief over Cedric's death and Harry's discomfort with discussing it. She also became jealous of Harry's friendship with Hermione Granger, and in a moment of weakness and insecurity, ditched the date. Harry, who was inexperienced with girls, found Cho's behaviour very confusing, especially when she tried to make him jealous and to gauge his feelings for her by mentioning that Roger Davies had asked her out, and ultimately leaving him in Madam Puddifoot's Tea Shop for the other customers to stare at him astonishingly; unimpressed with her attitude and for souring his experience of a first date, Harry grew angry at her in return. Though they eased up a bit after Cho read Harry's interview in The Quibbler, the strike that broke the relationship was when Marietta Edgecombe betrayed the D.A. and Cho stood up for her, angering Harry. After that, their relationship simply “fell apart”.

When Cho saw Harry on the Hogwarts Express at the end of the 1995–1996 school year, and again at the start of the 1996-1997 school year, she avoided him both times, as she was too embarrassed for them to look at each other, let alone talk to each other; on the other hand, Harry found himself not caring about Cho anymore due to his godfather, Sirius Black's, death being far more devastating, and even sneered at Marietta's limited success of hiding her disfigurement while seemingly disregarded Cho with indifference as opposed to embarrassment.

However, by 1998, any negative feelings on Cho's part seemed to have vanished, as she offered to escort Harry to Ravenclaw Tower just before the Battle of Hogwarts. She was disappointed when Ginny Weasley fiercely suggested that Luna Lovegood escort him instead, suggesting that Cho may still have had some feelings for Harry or simply wanted to resolve any of their lingering issues so that they could be friendly again. Harry, on the other hand, did not so much as hesitate in accepting Ginny's suggestion and Luna's escort.

"Women! What did she want to talk about Cedric for, anyway? Why does she want to drag up a subject that makes her act like a human hosepipe?"

- Harry angry at Cho's crying.

One of the reasons for Harry's attraction for Ginny was due to her being rarely weepy. This contrasts with Cho, who cried throughout the school year after her boyfriend's death, and Harry's awkwardness for it turned to annoyance as it went on, causing him to lose interest in her more and more. Harry had always envisioned that any time they spend together is Cho enjoying herself, not crying over his shoulders, showing that he had little desire in spending time comforting her to begin with. Eventually, Harry's became too irritated when Cho started crying due to Harry refusing to forgive Marietta, and he ended up telling her off rudely.

Michael Corner


At the end of her sixth year, after the end of her relationship with Harry, Cho began dating Michael Corner, a Ravenclaw student a year below her. Michael's ex-girlfriend, Ginny Weasley, said that this happened shortly after she chucked Michael when he became sulky over a Ravenclaw-Gryffindor Quidditch match. Michael seems to have offered Cho comfort. They may have continued to date even after Cho graduated from Hogwarts, as she went to sit by his side in the Room of Requirement upon returning to the school for the final battle. However, they must have broken up at some point because according to J. K. Rowling, Cho had eventually gone on to marry a Muggle man.

Marietta Edgecombe
"I never dreamed Marietta would tell... She's a lovely person, really. She just made a mistake..."

- Cho's besotted believes in Marietta.

Marietta Edgecombe was Cho's best friend and a fellow Ravenclaw. Marietta joined Dumbledore's Army mainly because Cho wanted her to; she was uncomfortable with opposing Dolores Umbridge because her mother worked at the Ministry of Magic. Cho was besotted enough to believe that Marietta is loyal to Dumbledore's Army and would never tell, despite her reluctance and cynicism, to which she told the others to ignore. When Marietta betrayed the D.A. because of this, Cho overlooked the treacherousness and simply placed it under a forgivable mistake, tried to persuade Harry to forgive Marietta, pointing out that Marietta was afraid for her mother's job, and defended her when Harry badmouthed Marietta. Cho's loyalty and sympathy for Marietta was the death knell in Cho's romance with Harry.

Other friendships
Cho Chang was, until the beginning of her sixth year, very popular. She had an entire group of Ravenclaw friends, who were constantly giggling and gossiping. Marietta Edgecombe was Cho Chang's one constant friend. However, as Cho became something of an emotional wreck all the others fell by the wayside. Being a Quidditch star and very pretty, she was the centre of the group, having a handful of friends accompany her even to the bathroom, and up until her sixth year she was never seen without them. At the welcoming feast in her sixth year Cho chatted animatedly with her friends but later on she is mostly by herself or with Marietta.

Dumbledore's Army


Cho became a member of Dumbledore's Army in 1995. It was an organisation led by Harry Potter, in order to oppose Dolores Umbridge. Cho's relationship with the other members of the army is unknown, but it is possible that they were all friends. Some members of Ravenclaw, such as Michael Corner, Terry Boot, Anthony Goldstein, Padma Patil and Luna Lovegood were members of the army, as well. Other members were Zacharias Smith, Susan Bones, Justin Finch-Fletchley, Hannah Abbott and Ernie Macmillan from Hufflepuff, and Alicia Spinnet, Angelina Johnson, Lee Jordan, Fred and George Weasley, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Dean Thomas, Seamus Finnigan, Lavender Brown, Parvati Patil (Padma's twin), Neville Longbottom, Ginny Weasley, and Colin and Dennis Creevey from Gryffindor. She may also have been friends with Katie Bell as the two girls were in the same year and were seen chatting to one another after the Battle of Hogwarts.

Cho didn't like Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger; she believed that Harry had romantic feelings for Hermione, instead of being friends. This was one of the reasons that Cho and Harry fell apart; ironically, Hermione was trying to give advice to Harry on building a successful relationship with Cho. Ron was tactless when Cho came to Harry, accusing her of being biased in supporting the Tutshill Tornados while being ignorant of her desire to talk to Harry alone. As Harry discussed Cedric's death with both Ron and Hermione, while refusing to do the same with Cho, this only increased Cho's dislike of Harry's two best friends.

Ginny Weasley, who would become Harry's true love, was jealous of Cho being Harry's first crush and taking his first kiss. Ginny showed disappointment when she heard how Harry could not take his eyes off Cho, and worked hard in Quidditch and other means to surpass Cho to impress Harry. Ginny also suggested Harry take Luna to Ravenclaw Tower over Cho.

When the entire DA ostracized Marietta for betraying them, Cho alone stood up for her, putting her in odds against the rest of the group.

However, she fought with Dumbledore's Army during the Battle of Hogwarts, and the most of them survived the war.

Etymology

 * Cho is a Chinese and Korean surname. As a Japanese given name it is derived from the word chou, meaning “butterfly”. Chang is a common Chinese family name meaning “free” or “unhindered”. In Chinese, chou chang means “melancholy”. This may allude to Cho's fragile emotional state following Cedric Diggory's murder. Cho may also be an English variant of her given name chou, meaning autumn. In the Mandarin translations of Harry Potter, the name "Cho Chang" is translated into "Zhang Qiu"[张秋] (in Chinese, surnames come before the first name), with "Zhang" being a common Chinese surname and a variant of the name "Chang", and "Qiu" meaning "autumn". If Cho were the surname: Cho/Cao 曹.As the name Cho Chang is considered to be Chinese, the Mandarin translation may give a hint as to what the name may mean.

Behind the scenes

 * "Cho" means "butterfly" in china, which may be where her name came from.
 * Over 3,000 girls turned up to audition for the role of Cho Chang.
 * Cho was portrayed in the fourth, fifth, and sixth films and the two-part film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows by Scottish actress Katie Leung, who portrayed her as a Scot, although this is never mentioned in the books.
 * In the Order of the Phoenix film, the character of Marietta Edgecombe does not appear, and instead it is Cho who betrays the D.A. under the influence of Veritaserum. This is also the reason for her break-up with Harry in the film, instead of her continuing grief over Cedric Diggory, jealousy of Hermione Granger, and defense of Marietta, as in the book. Harry, Ron, and Hermione don't know this until it is confirmed by Professor Snape.
 * In the films, Cho is in the same year as Harry which was first brought up in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (similar changes were made for Romilda Vane and Katie Bell in the Half-Blood Prince film adaptation). This explains why she is still at Hogwarts in the last film. In the books she is a year older than Harry and graduated at the end of the Half-Blood Prince.
 * Also in the film adaptation of the Order of the Phoenix, it was mentioned that Cho's mother worked for the Ministry, whereas in the book it was Marietta's mother that worked for the Ministry. This change was due to Marietta's removal from the film.
 * Cho's known Quidditch record against Gryffindor is 0-3. This includes two straight defeats playing head to head against Ginny Weasley.
 * Cho Chang is well known for being Harry Potter's first crush, first kiss, and first girlfriend in the Harry Potter books and movies.
 * Ironically, Ginny's first boyfriend, Michael Corner, and Harry's first girlfriend, Cho, begin dating in 1997
 * Katie recently portrayed Cho again, for one of Jessie Cave's Pindippy video.
 * In Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Cho appears as one of the many students of Hogwarts suffering under the Death Eater regime run by Snape and the Carrows. When Harry returns, it seems that all hard feelings about her betrayal of Dumbledore's Army have been forgotten when she is one of the many people to embrace him. She is also one of the many who stand up for Harry against Pansy Parkinson's claim that they should grab him after Voldemort's ultimatum and is seen with Neville and Seamus receiving instructions from Professor McGonagall to blow up the bridge. Finally, she is seen by Harry recovering from the battle in the Great Hall. They smile at each other.

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (video game)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
 * Harry Potter: Quidditch World Cup
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
 * LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
 * Pottermore

Notes and references
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