Wand-Lighting Charm

Wand Lighting Charm
Incantation	Lumos (LOO-mos)
Type	Charm
Hand movement
Light	White
Effect	Illuminates the wand tip
Creator	Levina Monkstanley (1772)

"The Wand-Lighting Charm is simple, but requires concentration. Take care not to accidentally set your wand alight as damage of this kind can be permanent. If in any doubt about your abilities you would do better to buy yourself a magic lantern."

— Miranda Goshawk regarding this charm

The Wand-Lighting Charm (Lumos) was a charm that illuminated the tip of the caster's wand, allowing the caster to see in the dark. The counter-charm for the spell was the Wand-Extinguishing Charm (Nox), which was used to extinguish the light from the caster's wand.

History

Despite its apparent simplicity, the Wand-Lighting Charm was not invented until the 18th century. It was first used publicly by its inventor, Levina Monkstanley in the Ministry of Magic in 1772 — to the astonishment of her colleagues — to help her look for a fallen quill in a dusty corner.

However, Garvin Lügner (a German wizard) claimed to have been the one who invented the spell, while he was developing his Instant Darkness Powder. It later transpired that Lügner had been lying about the invention of the charm and that his Instant Darkness Powder did not do too much more than slightly dim the lights.

This spell is taught in first year Defence Against the Dark Arts and Charms classes at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and is detailed in The Dark Forces: A Guide to Self-Protection, another unidentified spellbook and the Book of Spells. This spell is also used frequently as Hogwarts student skulk about the castle or the Forbidden Forest, often during the night-time or in dark places.

Effects

"To illuminate the end of a wand, the caster must call out the incantation "Lumos." If correctly incanted, the end of the wand will then illuminate and cast light in the immediate vicinity of the caster. It can also be used to illuminate unseen entrances."

— Miranda Goshawk regarding the effects of this charm

One of the simplest yet most useful light-creation spells, the Wand-Lighting Charm's principal usage is to create a light at the tip of the wand in order to see in the dark. This light is fairly warm, and risks igniting flammable things, including the caster's wand if they are careless enough.

Wand light is also able to repel ghosts and other spectral foes such as Gytrashes, from which they will flee. In addition, the Wand-Lighting Charm is able to illuminate and reveal magically hidden architecture such as doorways.

While the caster must own a wand in order to perform the charm, they do not actually have to be holding it in order to illuminate it. Indeed, if the caster performs the charm without holding their wand, their wand will light up even if it is some distance away.

When the charm was used in The Cave, the illuminated area was less-than-expected, as the darkness within seemed to be denser than normal.

There are three known variations of this charm: Lumos Solem, Lumos Duo and Lumos Maxima.

Known uses

Caster(s)	Date	Notes
Newton Scamander	September, 1927	Used it to light Yusuf Kama's eye in Nicolas Flamel's house while he was trying to pull out, by tweezers, a water dragon parasite which weakened Kama.
Porpentina Goldstein		Used it to light the Records Room in the French Ministry of Magic while searching for a box with Credence Barebone's true identity.
Harry Potter	24 May, 1993	Used it to light the trail of spiders in the Forbidden Forest.
	29 May, 1993	Used it to light the tunnels leading to the Chamber of Secrets.
	6 August, 1993	Used it to light the Magnolia Crescent when he spotted Sirius Black in his Animagus form.
	December, 1993	Used it to light the passage way leading from the statue of the hump-backed witch to Honeydukes.
	6 June, 1994	Used it to light the passage way leading from the Whomping Willow to the Shrieking Shack. Used it when trying to gain entry to the upstairs of the Shrieking Shack.
	24 February, 1995	Used it to light the Hogwarts Library to seek books about how to survive under water, a few hours before the Second Task of the Triwizard Tournament.
	24 June, 1995	Used it to light the path in maze during the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament.
	2 August, 1995	Used it wandlessly to light the Magnolia Crescent when he and Dudley Dursley were attacked by two Dementors.
	30 May, 1996	Used it to light the Forbidden Forest when he and Hermione Granger followed Rubeus Hagrid to meet Grawp.
	30 June, 1997	Used it to light the Crystal cave during the search for the Horcrux locket.
	2 August, 1997	Used it to light the stairs in 12 Grimmauld Place while hiding after the attack at the Burrow and the Luchino Caffe Duel.
	September, 1997	Used it to examine the Marauder's Map whilst staying in Perkins's tent camping out in the English wilderness, whilst hunting for Horcruxes.
	24 December, 1997	Used it to light the room in Bathilda Bagshot's house while he and Hermione Granger were searching for the Sword of Gryffindor.
	28 December, 1997	Used it to light the Forest of Dean while following the silver doe sent by Severus Snape.
	1 May, 1998	Used it to light the Lestrange Vault to search for the Horcrux cup during the break-in.
	2 May, 1998	Used it to light the Forbidden Forest in order to use the Resurrection Stone.
	September, 2020	Used it to light the room while talking to Ginny Potter in their home.
Severus Snape	1993	Used it to patroll the Hogwarts corridors at night, during which he caught Harry Potter out of bed, but the pair was interrupted by Remus Lupin.
Hermione Granger	6 June, 1994	Used it to light the passage way leading from the Whomping Willow to the Shrieking Shack. Used it when trying to gain entry to the upstairs of the Shrieking Shack.
	25 August, 1994	Used it to light the forest in Dartmoor while hiding from the Death Eaters after 422nd Quidditch World Cup final.
	30 May, 1996	Used it to light the Forbidden Forest when she and Harry Potter followed Rubeus Hagrid to meet Grawp.
	1 May, 1998	Used it nonverbally to light the Lestrange Vault during the break-in to search for the Horcrux cup.
Ron Weasley	February, 1994	Used it to light the tree, where he and Harry Potter spotted Crookshanks.
	25 August, 1994	Used it to light the forest in Dartmoor while hiding from the Death Eaters after 422nd Quidditch World Cup final.
	1 May, 1998	Used it nonverbally to light the Lestrange Vault during the break-in to search for the Horcrux cup.
Albus Dumbledore	24 May, 1995	Used it to light the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest while looking for Bartemius Crouch Snr.
	12 July, 1996	Used it to light the room in the wrecked house in Buddleigh Babberton in which Horace Slughorn was hiding.
	13 July, 1996	Used it nonverbally to light the run-down stone outhouse near The Burrow, where the Weasleys kept their broomsticks, to talk with Harry Potter.
	30 June, 1997	Used it to light the Crystal cave when he and Harry Potter were searching for the Horcrux locket.
Cedric Diggory	24 June, 1995	Used it to light the path in maze during the Third Task of the Triwizard Tournament.
Peter Pettigrew		Used it to light his wand in the dark Little Hangleton graveyard.
Minerva McGonagall	18 December, 1995	Used it to help illuminate her dark surroundings as she escorted Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley to Albus Dumbledore's office at night, following Harry's vision of the Attack on Arthur Weasley.
Nymphadora Tonks	5 August, 1995	Used it to light the stairs in 4 Privet Drive, when she and other members of the Advance Guard escorted Harry Potter from Surrey to 12 Grimmauld Place.
Ginny Weasley	31 August, 2020	Used it to light the room while talking to Harry Potter in their home.
Mathilda Grimblehawk	21st century (presumably)	Used to explore the dark sewers of London whilst investigating a case for the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures.

Known practitioners

Porpentina Goldstein

Newton Scamander

Albus Dumbledore

Minerva McGonagall

Filius Flitwick

Quirinus Quirrell

Severus Snape

Horace Slughorn

Alastor Moody

Nymphadora Tonks

Ginevra Weasley

Harry Potter

Ronald Weasley

Hermione Granger

Luna Lovegood

Katie Bell

Cedric Diggory

Peter Pettigrew

Mathilda Grimblehawk

Jacob's sibling

• Levina Monkstanley

Etymology

The incantation Lumos is derived from the Latin word lumen, meaning "light".

Behind the scenes

• This is the only spell whose hand motion stayed the same between Pottermore and Wonderbook: Book of Spells.
• It is possible this charm was not affected by The Trace, perhaps because of its simplicity or because it resembled torch light so closely.
• If one listens closely in the third and the sixth films, one can hear a very soft humming sound when the spell is cast.
• On any Android phone (on Lollipop or better), if a user types Lumos in the search bar on the Google app, the torch will turn on. Respectively, the Wand-Extinguishing Charm turns it off.
• A charity founded by J. K. Rowling is named after this spell.

Appearances

• Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (First appearance)
• Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (film)
• Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (video game)
• Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
• 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 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 1
• Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child
• Harry Potter and the Cursed Child (play)
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald - The Original Screenplay
• Fantastic Beasts: The Crimes of Grindelwald
• The Tales of Beedle the Bard
• LEGO Harry Potter: Building the Magical World
• LEGO Harry Potter
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4
• LEGO Harry Potter: Years 5-7
• LEGO Dimensions
• Harry Potter: Spells
• Wonderbook: Book of Spells
• Fantastic Beasts: Cases from the Wizarding World
• Pottermore
• Wizarding World
• Harry Potter: The Character Vault
• Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery

Notes and references

The Standard Book of Spells
Grade 1 · Grade 2 · Grade 3 · Grade 4 · Grade 5 · Grade 6 · Grade 7
Charms included in the series: Dancing Feet Spell (Tarantallegra) · Disarming Charm (Expelliarmus) · Engorgement Charm (Engorgio) · Fire-Making Spell (Incendio) · Freezing Charm (Immobulus) · General Counter-Spell (Finite Incantatem) · Levitation Charm (Wingardium Leviosa) · Locking Spell (Colloportus) · Memory Charm (Obliviate) · Mending Charm (Reparo) · Nonverbal spell · Severing Charm (Diffindo) · Skurge Charm (Skurge) · Softening Charm (Spongify) · Substantive Charm · Summoning Charm (Accio) · Tickling Charm (Rictusempra) · Unlocking Charm (Alohomora) · Wand-Lighting Charm (Lumos)