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At least some content in this article is derived from information featured in Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery. Spoilers will be present within the article. |
The hourglasses tallying the house points for Ravenclaw, Slytherin, Gryffindor and Hufflepuff
- "While you are at Hogwarts, your triumphs will earn your House points, while any rule-breaking will lose House points. At the end of the year, the House with the most points is awarded the House Cup, a great honour."
- —Minerva McGonagall to first years in 1991[src]
House points were awarded to students at Hogwarts[1] and Ilvermorny[2] that did good deeds, correctly answered a question in class, or won an inter-house Quidditch match. They could also be taken away for rule-breaking.[1] The points were stored in House point hourglasses that showed the point totals at the bottom with stones the main colour of their house (rubies for Gryffindor,[3] sapphires for Ravenclaw,[3] emeralds for Slytherin,[4] and yellow diamonds for Hufflepuff).[5] Each student earned points for his or her House, and at the end of the year, the House with the most points would be awarded the House Cup.[1] Teachers, as well as librarians, matrons, and caretakers could award or deduct points from students.[1][6] Prefects, the Head Boy, and the Head Girl could deduct points as well, but not from other Prefects. During the 1995–1996 school year however, members of the rather short-lived Inquisitorial Squad were permitted to do so.[4] The squad was disbanded after Dolores Umbridge's departure from Hogwarts.[3]
Contents
Notable point gains/losses
1910
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leta Lestrange | Slytherin | Minerva McGonagall | 100 points deducted[7] | 1910 | Using the dark charm Oscausi on a classmate.[7] |
| Leta Lestrange | Slytherin | Minerva McGonagall | 100 points deducted[7] | 1910 | Running away from Professor McGonagall.[7] |
1980s
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jacob's sibling (possibly)[6] | Unknown | Severus Snape or Minerva McGonagall[6] | 40 points deducted[6] | 1985 | Lying about sneaking into the Gryffindor or Slytherin Common room[6] |
1991-1992 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 1 point deducted | 6 September, 1991 | Cheekiness[8] |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 1 point deducted[8] | 6 September, 1991 | Not correcting a mistake of Neville Longbottom's in Potions[8] |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | Several points awarded[8] | Knowing about Switching Spells in Transfiguration[8] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 5 points deducted[9] | 31 October, 1991 | Hermione claimed to have gone looking for the troll[9] |
| Harry Potter and Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 5 points awarded each[9] | 31 October, 1991 | For saving Hermione from the troll[9] |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 5 points deducted[10] | Taking the library's copy of Quidditch Through the Ages outside of the castle[10] | |
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 5 points deducted[11] | Attacking Draco Malfoy[11] | |
| Draco Malfoy | Slytherin | Minerva McGonagall | 20 points deducted[12] | Wandering the corridors at night[12] | |
| Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 50 points deducted each[13] | Wandering the corridors at night[13] | ||
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Albus Dumbledore | 50 points awarded[14] | For winning McGonagall's chess game in the underground chambers[14] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Albus Dumbledore | 50 points awarded[14] | For correctly solving Snape's potion riddle[14] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Albus Dumbledore | 60 points awarded[14] | For defeating Quirrell[14] | |
| Neville Longbottom | Gryffindor | Albus Dumbledore | 10 points awarded[14] | For standing up to Harry, Ron and Hermione[14] |
1992-1993 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Pomona Sprout | 10 points awarded[15] | 2 September, 1992 | Correctly listing the properties of Mandrakes[15] |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Pomona Sprout | 10 points awarded[15] | 2 September, 1992 | Correctly identifying the danger of handling Mandrakes[15] |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Gilderoy Lockhart | 10 points awarded[15] | 2 September, 1992 | Getting full marks on Lockhart's quiz[15] |
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Percy Weasley | 5 points deducted[16] | Using a girls' bathroom[16] | |
| Harry Potter and Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Albus Dumbledore | 200 points awarded each[17] | For saving Ginny Weasley, slaying the Serpent of Slytherin and defeating Tom Riddle's soul in the Chamber of Secrets[17] |
1993-1994 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 5 points deducted[18] | For helping Neville Longbottom with his Shrinking Solution[18] | |
| Gryffindor | Remus Lupin | 5 points awarded to each (10 for Neville)[18] | For combating a Boggart[18] | ||
| Hermione Granger and Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Remus Lupin | 5 points awarded to each[18] | For answering Lupin's questions in class[18] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[19] | Arriving late to Defence Against the Dark Arts[19] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 5 points deducted[19] | Not sitting down when asked[19] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 5 points deducted[19] | "Being an insufferable know-it-all"[19] | |
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 50 points deducted[20] | For throwing a crocodile heart at Draco Malfoy[20] | |
| Slytherin | Minerva McGonagall | 50 points deducted[21] | For dressing up as Dementors to sabotage Harry Potter during a Quidditch match[21] |
1994-1995 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Potter and Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 50 points deducted[22] | Shouting at Snape after he remarked that he saw no difference to Hermione after Densaugeo was used on her[22] | |
| S. Fawcett | Ravenclaw | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[23] | Being caught in the rose bushes with Stebbins[23] | |
| Stebbins | Hufflepuff | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[23] | Being caught in the rose bushes with S. Fawcett[23] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[24] | Discussing topics unrelated to Potions in class[24] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[24] | Reading Witch Weekly in class[24] |
1995-1996 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Dolores Umbridge | 10 points deducted[25] | Declaring that Voldemort had returned[25] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank | 5 points awarded[26] | Identifying Bowtruckles[26] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Wilhelmina Grubbly-Plank | 5 points awarded[26] | Having knowledge of a Bowtruckle's diet[26] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Dolores Umbridge | 5 points deducted[27] | Expressing views contrary to those of Wilbert Slinkhard[27] | |
| Angelina Johnson | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 5 points deducted[27] | Shouting at Harry in the Great Hall for getting himself detention[27] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 5 points deducted[27] | For losing his temper with Umbridge despite McGonagall's warning[27] | |
| Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[28] | Fighting (although, in reality, Harry and Ron were holding Neville back)[28] | ||
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Rubeus Hagrid | 10 points awarded[29] | Explaining why Thestrals are invisible to some[29] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Dolores Umbridge | 50 points deducted[30] | Having an interview with Rita Skeeter published in The Quibbler[30] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Pomona Sprout | 20 points awarded[30] | Handing her a watering can; a way for her to express her feelings towards his interview[30] | |
| Draco Malfoy | Slytherin | Dolores Umbridge | 50 points awarded[31] | Using a Trip Jinx to apprehend Harry after exposing Dumbledore's Army[31] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Draco Malfoy | 5 points deducted[4] | Insulting Umbridge[4] | |
| Ernie Macmillan | Hufflepuff | Draco Malfoy | 5 points deducted[4] | For contradicting Malfoy[4] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Draco Malfoy | 5 points deducted[4] | Because Malfoy disliked him[4] | |
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Draco Malfoy | 5 points deducted[4] | Having his shirt untucked[4] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Draco Malfoy | 10 points deducted[4] | Being Muggle-born[4] | |
| Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall | 50 points awarded to each (a total of 250)[3] | For their actions in the Battle of the Department of Mysteries[3] | ||
| Luna Lovegood | Ravenclaw | Minerva McGonagall | 50 points awarded[3] | For her actions during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries[3] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Minerva McGonagall (on Severus Snape's behalf) | 10 points deducted[3] | For threatening to curse Draco Malfoy (Snape attempted to remove the points before realising that Gryffindor had no points left)[3] |
1996-1997 school year
| Student | House | Authority | Points gained/lost | Date | Reason |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 50 points deducted[32] | 1 September, 1996 | Arriving late to the Start-of-Term Feast[32] |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 20 points deducted[32] | 1 September, 1996 | Wearing Muggle attire to the Start-of-Term Feast[32] |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Horace Slughorn | 20 points awarded[33] | For her knowledge of Amortentia[33] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Horace Slughorn | 10 points awarded[33] | For her knowledge of Felix Felicis[33] | |
| Hermione Granger | Gryffindor | Horace Slughorn | 10 points awarded[34] | Explaining Golpalott's Third Law[34] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Horace Slughorn | 10 points awarded[34] | For presenting a bezoar as an answer to an activity involving antidotes[34] | |
| Harry Potter | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[35] | Arriving late to Defence Against the Dark Arts[35] | |
| Ron Weasley | Gryffindor | Severus Snape | 10 points deducted[35] | Being sarcastic and disrespectful towards Snape[35] |
Behind the scenes
- It is stated that prefects are allowed to dock points from students in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. However, this idea is diminished in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix when it is stated that prefects are in fact not allowed to do so. In later editions, however, it seems that, with the exception of the Inquisitorial Squad, prefects can dock points only from their own house.
- Exactly how points are tabulated and recorded is not explained in detail. It is implied in several books that simply stating the addition or subtraction of points magically adjusts the score accordingly. It's not certain if this occurs in all cases, such as when Dumbledore adjusts the scores at the end of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone. The four giant hourglasses, however, seemingly adjusts their contents accordingly to the house points granted or retracted by the teachers' wordings.
- In Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, when Minerva McGonagall was about to determine punishment for Harry Potter and Ron Weasley for crashing the Flying Ford Anglia into the Whomping Willow, Harry advised her that Gryffindor should not lose any house points as this misdemeanour occurred before term started, which she accepted (though she gave them detention).
- In the Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Severus Snape takes 70 points from Gryffindor before term starts, saying that Gryffindor would have negative 70 points, but in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Snape was unable to take points from Gryffindor when they had no points left. It is possible, however, that Snape's next words after "In that case, Potter, we will simply have to..." would have been to send to Gryffindor into negative points, but he was unable to get them out before being interrupted by Professor McGonagall. It can also be assumed he was being sarcastic or joking cruelly about the situation. Also, in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Minerva did not take any points from Gryffindor when Harry and Ron took the Flying Ford Anglia, since it was before term started, which shows Snape's deduction of 70 points 4 years later as unorthodox.
- In the films and video games from Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the house points are earned and counted in the Great Hall to the right of the staff table. However in the first video games, they are also counted in the Great Hall, despite the hourglasses being located in the Entrance Hall.
- In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Severus Snape deducts one point from Gryffindor for Harry's statement that Hermione could answer his questions and suggestion that he ask her. This, and the point that he takes for Harry's supposedly setting Neville Longbottom up for failure, are the only instances shown in the books of a single point being deducted for a transgression. In the extended cut of the Film, this is a straight 5 points. In the original version of the Film, it's omitted entirely.
- In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game), Hermione awards Harry between 5 and 50 house points for learning the Unlocking Charm, although she was only a first year at this point.
- In the films, the role of house points is almost exclusively limited to the first film. The other 7 films make almost no mention of them outside of Pomona Sprout awarding Hermione 10 points for identifying both the properties and dangers of the Mandrake Root (as opposed to 20 for both in the books) in Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, and Professor Snape deducting 5 points from Hermione being an "insufferable know-it-all" during Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban. The films make no mention of the House Cup or point totals is mentioned in any film outside of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.
- In the GBA version, Professor McGonagall, instead of awarding 10 points to Harry and Ron and deducing 5 from Hermione, awards 50 points to Gryffindor for saving Hermione.
- In the first film, during the potions lesson, Professor Snape deduces five points for cheekiness instead of just one.
Appearances
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (First appearance)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (film)
- Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (film)
- Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
- Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film)
- 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 2
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)
- Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay (Appears in flashback(s))
- Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald (Appears in flashback(s))
- Pottermore
- Wizarding World
- LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
- LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
- The Wizarding World of Harry Potter
- Harry Potter Trading Card Game
- Pottermore
- Harry Potter: The Creature Vault
- Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
Notes and references
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 7 (The Sorting Hat)
- ↑ Writing by J.K. Rowling: "Ilvermorny School of Witchcraft and Wizardry" at Wizarding World
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 3.8 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 38 (The Second War Begins)
- ↑ 4.00 4.01 4.02 4.03 4.04 4.05 4.06 4.07 4.08 4.09 4.10 4.11 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 28 (Snape's Worst Memory)
- ↑ Twitter conversation with J.K. Rowling (Official) where she confirms what gem is in the Hufflepuff Hourglass.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 6.3 6.4 Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 7.3 Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay
- ↑ 8.0 8.1 8.2 8.3 8.4 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 8 (The Potions Master)
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 9.2 9.3 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 10 (Hallowe'en)
- ↑ 10.0 10.1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 11 (Quidditch)
- ↑ 11.0 11.1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 12 (The Mirror of Erised)
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 14 (Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback)
- ↑ 13.0 13.1 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 15 (The Forbidden Forest)
- ↑ 14.0 14.1 14.2 14.3 14.4 14.5 14.6 14.7 Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 17 (The Man with Two Faces)
- ↑ 15.0 15.1 15.2 15.3 15.4 15.5 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 6 (Gilderoy Lockhart)
- ↑ 16.0 16.1 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 9 (The Writing on the Wall)
- ↑ 17.0 17.1 Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 18 (Dobby's Reward)
- ↑ 18.0 18.1 18.2 18.3 18.4 18.5 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 7 (The Boggart in the Wardrobe)
- ↑ 19.0 19.1 19.2 19.3 19.4 19.5 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 9 (Grim Defeat)
- ↑ 20.0 20.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 10 (The Marauder's Map)
- ↑ 21.0 21.1 Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Chapter 15 (The Quidditch Final)
- ↑ 22.0 22.1 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 18 (The Weighing of the Wands)
- ↑ 23.0 23.1 23.2 23.3 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 23 (The Yule Ball)
- ↑ 24.0 24.1 24.2 24.3 Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Chapter 27 (Padfoot Returns)
- ↑ 25.0 25.1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 12 (Professor Umbridge)
- ↑ 26.0 26.1 26.2 26.3 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 13 (Detention with Dolores)
- ↑ 27.0 27.1 27.2 27.3 27.4 27.5 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 15 (The Hogwarts High Inquisitor)
- ↑ 28.0 28.1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 17 (Educational Decree Number Twenty-Four)
- ↑ 29.0 29.1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 21 (The Eye of the Snake)
- ↑ 30.0 30.1 30.2 30.3 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 26 (Seen and Unforeseen)
- ↑ 31.0 31.1 Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Chapter 27 (The Centaur and the Sneak)
- ↑ 32.0 32.1 32.2 32.3 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 8 (Snape Victorious)
- ↑ 33.0 33.1 33.2 33.3 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 9 (The Half-Blood Prince)
- ↑ 34.0 34.1 34.2 34.3 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 18 (Birthday Surprises)
- ↑ 35.0 35.1 35.2 35.3 Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Chapter 21 (The Unknowable Room)
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