Siren

Siren
Species information
Eye colour	Varies
Skin colour	Varies
Hair colour	Varies
Related to	Merpeople
Native to	Greece
Mortality	Mortal (likely)
Distinction	Considered beautiful
Ministry of Magic Classification	Beast (by choice) XXXX
Status	Extant

"The oldest recorded merpeople were known as sirens (Greece) and it is in warmer waters that we find the beautiful mermaids more frequently depicted in Muggle literature and painting."

— Newton Scamander, Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them

The sirens were the earliest recorded race of merpeople. They lived in Greece. Like most merpeople that live in warm water, sirens were exceptionally beautiful as compared to colder water merpeople like Selkies and Merrows. It is believed that these merpeople used their singing voices to lure unwary sailors into the water like in Muggle legend.

History

The International Confederation of Wizards invited sirens and merfolk to a summit in 1692 to discuss the International Statute of Wizarding Secrecy, and the sirens and merfolk helped the Confederation solve the problem of concealing the existence of the various wizarding creatures from Muggle eyes. It was likely because of this help that Minister Grogan Stump granted the merfolk legal protections in 1811, and the Café L'Air De La Sirène was named as such for the same reason.

A portrait depicting a siren had been hung in the Prefects' Bathroom on the fifth floor of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry inside Hogwarts Castle since before the late 19th century.

The wandmaker Cosme Acajor used some part from a siren as cores for his wands.

During the first week of January 1995, the siren in the portrait appeared as Triwizard Champion, Harry Potter, visited the bathroom to find the hint in the golden egg he received from the First Task of the Triwizard Tournament.

Behind the scenes

• In mythology, the sirens were island-dwelling maidens that sung beautiful songs to travelling mariners to lure them into sailing closer and crashing on the treacherous rocks around their island homes.
  • In the original myths, sirens were half-woman and half-bird creatures, similar to harpies. Despite the depiction similar to that of a harpy, over time the siren has undergone various interpretations that portrayed her as a mermaid-like creature or as a sea-nymph.
• In the film adaptation (or only in the magic stained-glass window in the Prefects' Bathroom) the Sirens have a physiology inspired by sturgeons like the Selkies, even if they look more pretty than the latter. The hair is ginger coloured, compared to books which are blonde. Their tail is bright light green in colour and the skin is pale-white.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (First appearance) (Appears in portrait(s))
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (film) (Seen on stained-glass window)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (video game) (Seen on stained-glass window)
• Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (First identified as Siren)
• Pottermore (Appears in portrait(s))
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 (Seen on stained-glass window)
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery (Mentioned only)
• Hogwarts Legacy (Mentioned only)
• The Wizarding World of Harry Potter (Mentioned only)