Minor Hogwarts teachers

The following are minor teachers at Hogwarts in J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter series. The more important teachers, Minerva McGonagall, Severus Snape, Filius Flitwick, Professor Quirrell, Gilderoy Lockhart, Remus Lupin,  Alastor Moody (Barty Crouch Jr.), Dolores Umbridge, Rubeus Hagrid, and Sibyll Trelawney have their own pages, as do caretaker Argus Filch, librarian Irma Pince, nurse Poppy Pomfrey and headmaster Albus Dumbledore.

Professor Binns
Professor Binns teaches History of Magic and has the distinction of being the only teacher at Hogwarts who is a ghost. This is said to be the case because, unbeknownst to him, he died while taking a nap in the staff room but continued teaching as though nothing had happened. His classes are infamous for being dreadfully boring.

Binns hasn't appeared in the films. His explanation in the second book of the legend of the Chamber of Secrets is instead given by Professor McGonagall in the film.

Professor Grubbly-Plank
Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank is a substitute Care of Magical Creatures teacher. She first appears in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, taking lessons when Hagrid is unable to teach. She appears again in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when Hagrid is away on a mission for Albus Dumbledore.

We know little about her except that she is a very competent teacher, passing even Dolores Umbridge's inspection without incident. She seems always level-headed, cheerful and efficient, and fends off Umbridge's questions without losing her temper or incriminating anybody. She claims to be very happy with the way Dumbledore runs the school.

In Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry trusts her enough to ask her to heal his owl Hedwig when she is injured.

Madam Hooch
Madam Hooch is a flying teacher at Hogwarts School who serves as the referee at Quidditch games. Madam Hooch has grey hair that is cut short. Her eyes are yellow and hawk-like. Madam Hooch learned to fly on one of the old Silver Arrows, which are now no longer made. They were considered the true forerunner of the racing broom.

Like Professor Quirrell, Madam Hooch dosen't have an official first name. The Trading Card Game lists it as Rolanda. The Internet Movie Database lists her first name as Xiomara.

Madam Hooch was played by Zoe Wanamaker in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. Madam Hooch didn't reappear in the film for Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets as Wanamaker had only signed up for one film.

Professor Kettleburn
Professor Kettleburn was Care of Magical Creatures instructor before Rubeus Hagrid as Kettleburn retired to "spend more time with his remaining limbs."

Professor Sinistra
Professor Sinistra (first name unknown) is the teacher of Astronomy in Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Although Astronomy is a compulsory subject for students of all years at Hogwarts, the character remains obscure and appears extremely rarely in the books.

Professor Sinistra's first appearance is in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, helping to move a petrified Justin Finch-Fletchley to the hospital wing. The genderless title of "Professor" and the lack of any description of the character or lines for him or her to say prevented us from knowing even Sinistra's gender. The character does not appear again in the book.

Sinistra appears again during the Yule Ball in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, dancing a nervous two-step with (a presumed) Professor Moody, who is male. From that it can be deduced that Professor Sinistra is a witch rather than a wizard. She is not mentioned again in the book, except for a passing mention at the beginning where the table of the teachers is described.

Thanks to the scarcity of information surrounding her, Professor Sinistra is rather popular in the fan fiction community, as her character can be moulded in any way the writer wishes. The most common piece of fanon about her used to be that she is the head of Ravenclaw House, this has however since been disproved as J. K. Rowling has said that the Head Teacher of Ravenclaw is Professor Flitwick.

Professor Sinistra's name originates from the Latin sinister, meaning left or with a direction to the left. The most probable explanation for this is that the planets of the solar system rotate anticlockwise (from right to left). Sinistra is also the name of a star of the constellation of Ophiuchus. The contemporary meaning of the word sinister is "having bad intent", but considering Professor Sinistra's uninvolvement in the plot so far this is a less likely theory.

Professor Sinistra holds her classes every Wednesday at midnight on the top of the Astronomy Tower of Hogwarts, since it is the tallest tower of the castle and offers the best view of the night sky. The Astronomy Tower is otherwise out of bounds for students.

Professor Sprout
Pomona Sprout (birthday May 15) is the Herbology teacher. Her most notable accomplishment is having prepared a draught of mandrake to revive those who had been petrified in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. She subsequently appeared in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire when she was forced to comfort the parents of Hufflepuff student Cedric Diggory after his death at the hands of Lord Voldemort.

Professor Sprout is the head of Hufflepuff house and was played by British character actress Miriam Margolyes in the film.

Professor Vector
Professor Vector is the arithmancy professor at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Professor Vector is female and likes to give her pupils plenty of complicated homework, yet she never speaks, though occasionally appears, though quite seldom. This is possibly due to the fact that Harry, as the title character, does not take Arithmancy, having chosen Divination instead (the two subjects share the same slot in his school timetable). Arithmancy is Hermione's favourite subject, and it is mostly through her that we receive our impressions of Professor Vector. Alongside her colleague Professor Sinistra, Vector is a popular figure in fanfiction.

A "vector" is a quantity, velocity for instance, specified by a magnitude and a direction.