Hermione Granger's mother

Mrs Granger (temporarily known as Monica Wilkins ) was a Muggle, the wife of Mr Granger, and mother of Hermione. Working as a dentist alongside her husband, she and her family lived in a house somewhere in England.

She and her husband were proud and accepting of their daughter's identity as a witch, which explained some strange things which happened around her when she was a child. They entered the magical world in 1992 to buy Hermione's school supplies, and were assisted by Arthur Weasley. Several years later, however, Hermione was forced to alter her parents' memories and give them new identities as Wendell and Monica Wilkins, to protect them from the Death Eaters.

After the Second Wizarding War ended, Hermione found Mrs Granger and her husband in Australia and returned their memories. They gained grandchildren in Hermione and Ron Weasley's children, Rose and Hugo.

Early life
Mrs Granger was born somewhere in Great Britain to Muggle parents, at least one of whom may have been descended from a Squib.

She studied for a career in dentistry. This was presumably how she met Mr Granger, who was in the same profession.

She and Mr. Granger both achieved a Licentiate in Dental Surgery, earning the prefix of "doctor", and married, living in a house on a street somewhere in England.

Motherhood
"The Forest of Dean. I came camping here once, with my mum and dad."

- Hermione mentioning her parents.

Mrs Granger later became pregnant with her child around 1978, and gave birth to a baby girl on 19 September, 1979. They named her "Hermione Jean Granger", choosing "a nice, unusual" first name because they wanted to establish how educated and intelligent they were.

The couple gave Hermione a bedroom on the first-floor, and they lived happily for many years.

At some point, Mr and Mrs Granger took Hermione camping in the Forest of Dean. They also went to a theatre on Shaftesbury Avenue in London, and at least once went to Tottenham Court Road with her.

1991-1992
"I've tried a few simple spells myself and they've all worked for me. Nobody in my family's magic at all, it was ever such a surprise when I got my letter, but I was ever so pleased, of course, it's the best school of witchcraft there is I've heard-- I've learned all the course books by heart, of course."

- Hermione on the acceptance letter.

In 1991, Mrs Granger and her husband were visited by a staff member from Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, who gave them the letter inviting their daughter to the school.

Hermione, at least, was shocked, as her parents presumably were, but was pleased. Mr and Mrs Granger went to Diagon Alley to purchase her school supplies, including her wand from Ollivanders Wand Shop.

Mrs and Mr Granger were separated from their daughter after she took the Hogwarts Express to her new school. They were bemused by Hermione's new identity, but were proud of her, as she had memorised all of her school books before leaving.

1992-1993
"[...] he [ Arthur Weasley ]  was distracted almost at once by the sight of Hermione's parents, who were standing nervously at the counter that ran all along the great marble hall, waiting for Hermione to introduce them."

- Description

For the 1992–1993 school year, Mr and Mrs Granger had to purchase more school equipment for their daughter. Firstly, in order to buy the supplies, they went to Gringotts Wizarding Bank to exchange Muggle money with the wizarding currency.

There, they met Arthur Weasley, a wizard obsessed with Muggles, and his family, who were friends of their daughter. Arthur was fascinated by the ten-pound notes that Mr Granger had in his hand, and asked them all about their money. "They [ Harry Potter, Ronald Weasley and Hermione] each grabbed a copy of Break with a Banshee, and sneaked up the line to where the rest of the Weasleys were standing with Mr and Mrs Granger."

- Description

The Grangers went with the Weasleys to Flourish and Blotts to purchase spellbooks with their new money. Gilderoy Lockhart was there doing book signings, which Mr and Mrs Granger queued up for with the Weasleys. After Lucius Malfoy approached Arthur and began arguing, Mrs Granger and her husband watched apprehensively. Being a pure-blood supremacist, Malfoy scorned Arthur for being in the Grangers' company, glancing at them. The two wizards proceeded to fight each other, before Rubeus Hagrid stopped them. "They hurried up the street, the Grangers shaking with fright and Mrs Weasley beside herself with fury."

- Description

The Grangers left with the Weasleys, shocked and frightened by what they had just witnessed. They went to the Leaky Cauldron Inn, sitting by the fireplace, before saying farewell to the Weasleys and Harry Potter and leaving with their daughter for the Muggle world. "It's French. I had it on holiday, summer before last, it's very nice."

- Hermione on bouillabaisse

After the school term ended, Mr and Mrs Granger took Hermione on holiday to France during the summer holidays. There, Hermione ate bouillabaisse, which she liked the taste of.

1995-1996
During the 1995–1996 school year, Mr and Mrs Granger arranged a skiing trip over the Christmas holidays, possibly in France, where they had gone once before.

However, Hermione told them at the last minute that she wanted to stay at Hogwarts in order to study hard for her fifth year exams, the Ordinary Wizarding Levels, which are roughly equivalent to Muggle O-Levels. Mrs Granger and her husband were both disappointed, but, because they wanted their daughter to achieve good grades, they understood.

1997-1998
One afternoon, Mrs Granger called upstairs to Hermione's bedroom, telling her that she had cooked her dinner. She and her husband were sitting in the living room looking at a house in Australia on an unnamed television programme.

Hermione came downstairs with her wand and secretly cast a False Memory Charm on both of her parents. She made them believe that they were called Wendell and Monica Wilkins, a couple with a desire to go to Australia and live there. She did this in order to keep them safe should the Death Eaters come after them. "I've also modified my parents' memories so that they're convinced they're really called Wendell and Monica Wilkins, and that their life's ambition is to move to Australia, which they have now done. That's to make it more difficult for Voldemort to track them down and interrogate them about me – or you, because unfortunately, I've told them quite a bit about you... Wendell and Monica Wilkins don't know that they’ve got a daughter, you see."

- Hermione talking about the spell she put on her parents.

"Monica" and "Wendell" proceeded to act on their apparent ambition to move, and quickly packed up their belongings and left their house just in time, as the Death Eater Yaxley later arrived there.

It is possible that the "Wilkinses" moved into a house along Australia's coast which they had been admiring before their daughter bewitched them. Otherwise, it is unknown exactly where they went or what they did there.

Immediately after the conclusion of the Second Wizarding War, Hermione sought out her parents and returned their memories. They presumably then returned to England.

Later life
Mrs Granger and her husband gained a son-in-law when Hermione married Ron Weasley. The two of them proceeded to have two children, Rose and Hugo.

The Grangers were presumably close to their grandchildren, as Ron referred to his father as "Granddad Weasley", implying that Mr Granger was "Granddad Granger".

Physical description
Mrs Granger had dark brown hair, green eyes and pale skin. She was only slightly shorter than her husband and appeared to favour dark clothing, such as black and blue, especially when she was younger.

Family
"They are a bit bemused by their odd daughter but quite proud of her all the same."

- A description of the Grangers' relationship with Hermione.

Mrs Granger's relationship with her husband is largely unknown, though they were presumably happy together. They both worked as dentists together, and frequently went on holidays, such as the one to France. The two of them appeared to have a shared taste in real estate, as they both commented on a house in Australia that was being shown on television.

Her relationship with Hermione was presumably a good one. They kissed each other as a greeting in Diagon Alley, and Hermione was deeply upset about the False Memory Charm that she put on her parents. Mrs Granger was also disappointed when she did not come with her and her husband to France, but she wanted her to do well in her Ordinary Wizarding Levels and accepted that.

Weasley family
"But you're Muggles! We must have a drink! What's that you've got there? Oh, you're changing Muggle money? Molly, look!"

- Arthur Weasley looking at Mr. Granger's money.

Mr and Mrs Granger first met the Weasley family in Gringotts Wizarding Bank, where they stood nervously waiting for their daughter to introduce them.

The couple came to trust the Weasleys very much, allowing their daughter to stay at their house over the holidays, prior to the school term, and to go to the Quidditch World Cup in 1994.

The two families were brought even closer when Hermione married Ronald Weasley and had Rose and Hugo.

Behind the scenes

 * Mrs Granger was portrayed by Heather Bleasdale in the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. She was replaced by Michelle Fairley for Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1.
 * It is possible that Mrs Granger's name is Jean Granger, as J. K. Rowling has some sort of "passion" for naming her characters after a relative of them. Notable examples include Harry James, Ronald Bilius, William Arthur, Percy Ignatius, and Ginevra Molly.
 * In the earliest draft of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone the Potters lived on an island, and the Grangers lived on the shore nearby. When Voldemort killed James and Lily, Mr Granger noticed an explosion. He got on his boat and rowed out to the island to see what had happened, and found Harry.
 * Mrs Granger was originally intended to have another daughter, but she was cut because, by Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, she still had not made an appearance and J. K. Rowling felt that it was too late to introduce her.
 * "Wilkins" is the surname of a magical family.

Name etymology
"Granger" is derived from grange, a barn or farm with buildings that store grain, thus "granger" is a term for a farm bailiff. Also, "Granger" is a member of the Grange Movement of the United States, which involved agricultural activism in the nineteenth century.

The name "Monica" is of unknown meaning, most likely of North African or Phoenician origin. In the 4th century this name was borne by the North African saint Monica of Hippo, the mother of Saint Augustine, whom she converted to Christianity. Since the Middle Ages it has been associated with Latin moneo "advisor" and Greek monos "one". As an English name, Monica has been in general use since the 18th century.

J. K. Rowling
On Mr and Mrs Granger, J. K. Rowling said "I have deliberately kept Hermione's family in the background. You see so much of Ron’s family so I thought that I would keep Hermione's family, by contrast, quite ordinary. They are dentists, as you know. They are a bit bemused by their odd daughter but quite proud of her all the same".

After a Harry Potter fan asked if the Grangers would appear again, Rowling said, "Well we've seen them very briefly, but they're dentists so they're not that interesting".

Appearances

 * Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
 * Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
 * Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
 * Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince (film)
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
 * Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
 * J.K.Rowling Official Site