Lycanthropy

Lycanthropy
Ailment information
Provoked by	Contamination and infection of a human victim's blood by werewolf saliva
Symptoms	Temporarily turning into a deadly, fearsome near-wolf form upon the apex of the full moon Passing down one's condition to other human beings via infection between saliva and blood Non-hereditary
Treatment(s)	None known
Known affected	Unidentified medieval werewolf William Fenrir Greyback Remus Lupin Silas Crump Chiara Lobosca Unidentified Dragonologist Unidentified werewolf Anonymous author Unidentified werewolf Scarlett Sparks Fugitive werewolf Wagga Wagga Werewolf Group of werewolves Gerard Grey Abigail Grey

"Another term lycanthrope, often used to describes werewolves, however, refers to someone who suffers from a mental disease of fantasising being a wolf. This particular mental disorder is termed lycanthropy."

— The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts

Lycanthropy was the state in which a werewolf found him or herself: that of turning into a fearsome and deadly near-wolf. Muggles were far less likely to be infected by lycanthropy than wizardkind, as the wounds had a higher fatality rate. To date, there was no cure for lycanthropy. Lycanthropy was a deeply feared and despised condition, as tragic tales were told that victims begged to be allowed to die rather than becoming werewolves.

The term was often used to describe actual werewolves, but some authors, like Arsenius Jigger in his work The Essential Defence Against the Dark Arts, asserted that its correct use was of describing a mental disease of fantasising being a wolf and, thus, preferred the term werewolfry, when referring to the condition of being a werewolf.

Behind the scenes

• J. K. Rowling has stated that she used lycanthropy as a metaphor for HIV in the Harry Potter novels. This statement was repeated in material provided for Pottermore Presents, leading some sources to report it as if was new information. In response, Rowling posted a series of scathing Twitter messages pointing out that "at a conservative estimate, 90% of 'revelations' that keep cropping up about Potter characters are recycled from years ago".
• Despite the similarities between the two conditions, lycanthropy was not considered a type of blood malediction, and a female werewolf was not considered a Maledictus.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (First mentioned)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film) (Mentioned only)
• Pottermore (Mentioned only)
• Wizarding World (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (Mentioned only)
• Harry Potter: Wizards Unite (Mentioned only)
• Hogwarts Legacy (Appears on a tapestry)