- "There are some wizards – like Malfoy's family – who think they're better than everyone else because they're what people call pure-blood…"
- — Ron Weasley explaining blood purity to Harry Potter and Hermione Granger[src]
Malfoy is the surname of a wealthy pure-blood wizarding family. They live in Malfoy Manor in Wiltshire, England, and are related to many other pure-blood families, including the Blacks, Lestranges, Greengrasses, and Rosiers as well as the Tonks and Lupin families, of mixed wizarding and Muggle heritage, much to the Malfoys' disdain.[1]
History
Early history
- "Look at his family, the whole lot of them have been in Slytherin for centuries."
- — Harry Potter[src]
Lucius Malfoy and his son, Draco, in 1994.
The Malfoy family consists of an ancient line of pure-blood wizards, most of whom attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and were Sorted into Slytherin. One older member, Brutus Malfoy, was the editor of an anti-Muggle periodical called Warlock at War.
Recent history
The Malfoy family was one of the first wizarding families to come back to the side of good after Lord Voldemort's first defeat, claiming they had been bewitched, in 1981[2]. They allied themselves with him again during the Second Wizarding War, believing strongly in the notion of blood purity[3]. However, Voldemort became displeased with Death Eater Lucius Malfoy for his failure to obtain the prophecy involving him and Harry Potter in 1996. While Lucius was in Azkaban, Voldemort ordered his son Draco to kill Albus Dumbledore, a seemingly impossible task, as a way to punish Lucius[4]. After Dumbledore's death at the hands of Severus Snape and the Death Eaters' escape from Azkaban in 1997, the Malfoys had fallen out of favour with the Dark Lord, and were extremely uncomfortable with having their home used as his base of operations.
Before Voldemort's ultimate defeat, the Malfoys switched sides; Narcissa Malfoy lied to the Dark Lord in assistance of Harry Potter, and neither she nor Lucius participated in any of the fighting during the Battle of Hogwarts[5]. None of the Malfoys were subsequently imprisoned in Azkaban because of this defection.
Draco Malfoy then married Astoria Greengrass some time between 1998 - 2017, and had a son called Scorpius circa 2006.
Malfoy family crest
The family crest pays homage to Salazar Slytherin, bearing the colors black, green and silver, as well as images of several serpentine creatures. The latin words "Sanctimonia Vincet Semper," appear inscribed on a silver banner, meaning "Purity Always Conquers"[6].
Known Members
- Brutus Malfoy (fl. 17th century): The editor of anti-Muggle periodical Warlock at War
- Abraxas Malfoy (fl. 1954): The father of Lucius Malfoy and possibly a friend of Horace Slughorn. Died of Dragon-Pox sometime between 1954 and 1996.
- Lucius Malfoy (b. 1954): The son of Abraxas Malfoy, the husband of Narcissa Malfoy, and the father of Draco Malfoy. He was formerly a Death Eater.
- Narcissa Black (b. 1955): The wife of Lucius Malfoy, and the mother of Draco Malfoy. She has two sisters, and many other relatives. She was married into the Malfoy family.
- Draco Lucius Malfoy (b. 5 June, 1980): The son of Lucius and Narcissa Malfoy, the husband of Astoria Greengrass and the father of Scorpius Malfoy. He was formerly a Death Eater.
- Astoria Greengrass (born c. 1982): The wife of Draco Malfoy and the mother of Scorpius Malfoy. She has a sister who is about two years older than her.
- Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy (born c. 2006): The son of Draco and Astoria Malfoy. Sorted in 2017 along with Rose Weasley and Albus Potter.
Malfoy family tree
| Malfoy family | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Armand Malfoy (fl. 1066) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (many generations) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Nicholas Malfoy (fl. c. 1340s) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (many generations) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Lucius Malfoy I (fl. 1500s) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (many generations) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Brutus Malfoy (fl. 1675) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (many generations) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Septimus Malfoy (fl. 1700s) | House of Black | Rosier family | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| (many generations) | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Abraxas Malfoy (fl. 1954) | Cygnus Black III (1938—1992) | Druella Rosier (fl. 1950s) | Tonks family | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Greengrass family | Lucius Malfoy (b. 1954) | Narcissa Black (b. 1955) | Andromeda Black (b. 1953) | Edward Tonks (d. 1998) | Lupin family | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Daphne Greengrass (b. c. 1980) | Astoria Greengrass (c. 1982—2019) | Draco Lucius Malfoy (b. 1980) | Lestrange family | Nymphadora Tonks (c. 1973—1998) | Remus John Lupin (1960—1998) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Scorpius Hyperion Malfoy (b. c. 2006) | Bellatrix Black (1951—1998) | Rodolphus Lestrange (b. c. 1950s) | Edward Remus Lupin (b. 1998) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Slytherin, the traditional House of the Malfoy family.
Viole Amorphia Malfoy
Etymology
Malfoy is derived from the French "mal foi," meaning "badly (or in this case, bad) faith" or "unfaithful". In law, "bad faith" refers to a case in which a malicious motive on the part of a party in a lawsuit undermines their case. In existentialism, "bad faith" is a philosophical concept in which people blame their own failures on external factors, thus denying responsibility for themselves. Also, this most likely refers to the Malfoys' tendency to switch their supposed loyalties to avoid danger, rather than steadfastly supporting their views.