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"Hermione's name was called. Trembling, she left the chamber with Anthony Goldstein, Gregory Goyle, and Daphne Greengrass"
— Daphne present for her O.W.L.s[src]

Daphne Greengrass (b. 1979/1980)[1] was a pure-blood witch and a member of the Greengrass family, an old wizarding family and one of the Sacred Twenty-Eight. She began attending Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry in 1991 and was sorted into Slytherin House. She was in the same year as the famous Harry Potter.[1]

Biography[]

Early life[]

Daphne Greengrass was born to pure-blood wizarding[2][3] parents in 1979 or 1980.[1] She had at least one sibling, a sister, Astoria, who was two years younger than her.[6]

The family was one of the oldest, 'truest' pure-blood families in Britain, and were counted among the Sacred Twenty-Eight.[7] The Greengrass sisters were raised to believe in the ideals of pure-blood supremacy.[8] Although Astoria later converted from these ideals to a more tolerant life view,[8] it is unknown if Daphne underwent the same transformation.

One of the sisters' distant ancestors was cursed with a blood malediction, which resurfaced in Astoria.[9] It is unknown whether Daphne suffered from the same condition as her younger sister.

Hogwarts years (1991-1998)[]

On 1 September 1991, Daphne began her education at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was sorted into Slytherin.[3][5] During her school years, she was a member of Pansy Parkinson's gang of Slytherin girls.[5]

She took her O.W.L.s in 1996 at the same time as Hermione Granger.[10] The following school year, she was not one of the selected students who advanced to N.E.W.T.-level Potions, and thus she evidently failed to achieve the required grade or did not find continuing on to N.E.W.T. Potions worthwhile.

It is unknown if she was present during the Battle of Hogwarts on 2 May 1998, or was led from the Great Hall by Filch before, along with her fellow Slytherins.

Later life[]

Daphne's younger sister Astoria eventually married Draco Malfoy, a fellow Slytherin in the same year as Daphne at Hogwarts.[5] She had a nephew, Scorpius, by this marriage.[11] It is currently unknown whether Daphne herself ever married or had any children of her own.

In the summer of 2019, Daphne lost Astoria to the blood curse.[9][12]

Etymology[]

The name Daphne means 'Laurel' in Greek. It is derived from the nymph Daphne in Greek mythology, who was pursued by the god Apollo. She prayed to her father, the river god Peneus, to change her body in order to escape the love-struck Apollo and Peneus then transformed her into the laurel tree, which Apollo then claimed as one of his sacred symbols. In Ancient Greece, a wreath of laurels was given as a prize and considered a symbol of prosperity, fame, and victory.[13][14]

Daphne is also the name of a plant noted for its fragrant flower, but for also being wholly poisonous.

Behind the scenes[]

Appearances[]

Notes and references[]

  1. 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 31 (O.W.L.s) - Daphne takes her O.W.L.s the same year as Harry Potter, so she must have been born 1979 or 1980 to also have been sorted in 1991.
  2. 2.0 2.1 Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Epilogue - Daphne's nephew, Scorpius, was described as pure-blood by Ron Weasley indicating that Daphne and her sister Astoria were born into a pure-blood family.
  3. 3.0 3.1 3.2 Harry Potter and Me - Daphne Greengrass (then named Queenie Greengrass) is listed as pure-blood and Slytherin in the hand-drawn list of students in Harry Potter's year shown by J. K. Rowling in the documentary.
  4. "World Exclusive Interview with J K Rowling," South West News Service, 8 July 2000 - "Hogwarts just serves Britain and Ireland."
  5. 5.0 5.1 5.2 5.3 'Rowling Answers 10 Questions About Harry' archived from TIME
  6. 24 December 2007 PotterCast interview with J. K. Rowling
  7. Writing by J. K. Rowling: "Pure-Blood" at Wizarding World
  8. 8.0 8.1 Writing by J. K. Rowling: "Draco Malfoy" at Wizarding World
  9. 9.0 9.1 Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act Four, Scene Four
  10. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 31 (O.W.L.s)
  11. Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, Epilogue (Nineteen Years Later)
  12. Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Act One, Scene Four
  13. WP favicon Bay Laurel on Wikipedia
  14. https://en.wikisource.org/wiki/Translation:Metamorphoses/Daphne_and_Apollo
  15. Writing by J. K. Rowling: "The Original Forty" at Wizarding World
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