Hermione Granger facts for kids

Kids Encyclopedia Facts

Quick facts for kids Hermione Granger
Harry Potter character
Emma Watson as Hermione Granger in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
First appearance	Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997)
Last appearance	Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007)
Created by	J. K. Rowling
Portrayed by	Emma Watson
Voiced by	Harper Marshall (video games; 1–4) Rachel Sternberg (video games; 6) Guy Harris (Lego Harry Potter: Years 1-4) Alice Keenan (video games; 7 Part 1 and Part 2) Jessie Braviner (Harry Potter for Kinect) Erica Luttrell (Harry Potter: Wizards Unite)
Information
Spouse(s)	Ron Weasley
Children	Rose Granger-Weasley Hugo Granger-Weasley
Nationality	British
House	Gryffindor
Born	19 September 1979

Hermione Jean Granger (pronounced hur-MY-ə-nee GRAYN-jər) is a character from J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter book series. She first appears in the book Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997). She is a first-year student on her way to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry.

After Harry and Ron save her from a mountain troll, she becomes their best friend. Hermione often uses her quick thinking, great memory, and vast knowledge to help them in tricky situations. J. K. Rowling has said that Hermione is a bit like herself when she was younger. She shared Hermione's feelings of being unsure and afraid of failing.

Hermione is a very popular character. Emma Watson played Hermione in all eight Harry Potter films. In 2016, Hollywood professionals voted her the best female character of all time.

Hermione Granger's Character Development

Hermione is a Muggle-born witch, meaning her parents are not magical. She belongs to the Gryffindor house at Hogwarts. She becomes best friends with Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. J. K. Rowling said Hermione was born on September 19, 1979. She was almost twelve when she started at Hogwarts.

Hermione is a very smart student who always does well in school. Rowling describes her as "very logical, upright and good." Hermione's parents are dentists who are a little surprised by their magical daughter but also very proud. They know about the wizarding world and have visited Diagon Alley with her. Hermione is an only child. Rowling once thought about giving Hermione a sister, but decided it was too late to add her to the story. Rowling has called Luna Lovegood the "anti-Hermione" because they are so different.

Rowling said that Hermione is partly based on herself. She recalled being called a "little know-it-all" when she was young. She also said that, like herself, Hermione has "a lot of insecurity and a great fear of failure" hidden beneath her studious nature. Hermione is also a great character for explaining things in the Harry Potter world because she knows so much. Rowling also said that Hermione, being "the brightest witch of her age," helps show strong female characters.

Hermione's first name comes from a character in William Shakespeare's play The Winter's Tale. Rowling chose an unusual name so fewer girls would be teased for it. Her first last name idea was "Puckle," but Rowling felt it didn't suit her. So, she chose "Granger" instead.

Hermione's Adventures in the Harry Potter Books

First Year: Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone

Hermione first meets Harry and Ron on the Hogwarts Express. She tells Ron off for not being able to turn his rat yellow with a spell. She shows off how much she knows by saying she has memorized all her textbooks. Harry and Ron first think she is bossy and annoying. They especially dislike her when she corrects Ron's spell.

However, their friendship begins when Harry and Ron save her from a troll. Hermione is so thankful that she lies to protect them from getting into trouble. This act wins their friendship. Later, Hermione's smart thinking helps the trio solve a puzzle to find the Philosopher's Stone. She also uses a "bluebell flame" spell to defeat the tricky Devil's Snare plant.

Hermione is the clever mind behind the plan to get to the Stone. She is suspicious of Professor Severus Snape. She tells Harry and Ron that she does a lot of research in the library. This research helped her defeat the Devil's Snare and understand the potions puzzle.

J. K. Rowling said she insisted on keeping the troll scene in the book. She felt Hermione was "so very arrogant and annoying" at first that she needed something big to bring her together with Harry and Ron.

Second Year: Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets

In Chamber of Secrets, Hermione likes the new Defence Against the Dark Arts (DADA) teacher, Gilderoy Lockhart. During a Quidditch practice, Draco Malfoy calls Hermione a "Mudblood". This is a very insulting word for Muggle-born wizards. Hermione defends the Gryffindor Quidditch team.

She helps make the Polyjuice Potion so the trio can look like Draco's friends. They want to find out about the Heir of Slytherin who reopened the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione cannot join them because the hair she used for the potion was from a cat, not a person. So, she turns into a cat-like version of herself for several weeks.

Hermione is later turned to stone by the basilisk. She figures out what the creature is by doing research in the library. Even though she is unconscious in the hospital wing, the information she found helps Harry and Ron solve the mystery of the Chamber of Secrets. Hermione wakes up after Harry kills the basilisk. She is sad to learn that all end-of-year exams have been cancelled as a school treat.

Third Year: Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban

Hermione buys a cat named Crookshanks. Crookshanks loves to chase Ron's pet rat, Scabbers. Before school starts, Professor Minerva McGonagall secretly gives Hermione a Time-Turner. This device lets her go back in time to attend all her many classes. This secret is not revealed until near the end of the book.

There is a lot of tension between Hermione and her two best friends. Harry is angry because Hermione told Professor McGonagall about his new Firebolt broom. It was taken away to be checked for dark magic. Ron is mad because he thinks Crookshanks made Scabbers disappear. Hermione strongly believes Crookshanks is innocent.

During a DADA class, Professor Snape calls Hermione "an insufferable know-it-all." He takes points from Gryffindor when she speaks out of turn to describe a werewolf. She correctly figures out Professor Remus Lupin's secret after doing Snape's homework. Crookshanks helps show that Scabbers is actually Peter Pettigrew. Pettigrew was a friend of James and Lily Potter. He told Voldemort where they were, leading to their deaths. He also wrongly blamed Sirius Black (Harry's godfather) for the Potters' deaths. The Time-Turner allows Hermione and Harry to save Sirius and the hippogriff Buckbeak.

Fourth Year: Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire

Hermione is upset by how house-elves are treated. She starts S.P.E.W., the Society for the Promotion of Elfish Welfare, to fight for their basic rights. She goes to the Yule Ball of the Triwizard Tournament with Viktor Krum, a famous Quidditch player from Bulgaria.

The book explains how to say her name (Her-my-oh-nee) when she teaches it to Krum. He can only say "Herm-own-ninny," but she doesn't mind. She later has a big argument with Ron. He accuses her of being friends with the "enemy" because of her friendship with Krum. The book hints that Hermione likes Ron when she says Ron cannot see her "like a girl," but Krum could. She helps Harry prepare for each task in the Triwizard Tournament. At the end of the second task, Krum asks her to visit him in Bulgaria over the summer, but she says no.

Near the end of the school year, she stops Rita Skeeter, a reporter who writes mean stories. Rita Skeeter is an unregistered Animagus (she can turn into an animal). Hermione catches her in her beetle form and keeps her in a jar.

Fifth Year: Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix

Hermione becomes a Gryffindor prefect along with Ron. She becomes friends with Luna Lovegood, but their friendship starts a bit rough. Hermione criticizes Luna's father's newspaper, The Quibbler, calling it "rubbish." She also scolds Lavender Brown for believing the Daily Prophet's lies about Harry making up stories about Voldemort's return.

Ron and Hermione argue a lot, probably because they are starting to like each other. But they always stay loyal to Harry. A big moment in the series is when Hermione suggests Harry secretly teach defensive magic to other students. This goes against the Ministry of Magic's rules. Hermione gets a huge number of students interested, and the group becomes the start of Dumbledore's Army. She is part of the battle in the Department of Mysteries. She is badly hurt by a spell from the Death Eater Antonin Dolohov but fully recovers.

Sixth Year: Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince

The new Potions professor, Horace Slughorn, invites Hermione to join his "Slug Club." She helps Ron keep his spot on the Gryffindor Quidditch team. She casts a spell on Cormac McLaggen, making him miss his last save during tryouts.

Hermione's feelings for Ron continue to grow. She decides to ask him to Slughorn's Christmas Party. But Ron starts dating Lavender instead, thinking Hermione had kissed Krum years ago. Hermione tries to get back at him by dating Cormac at the Christmas party. Her plan fails, and she leaves him during the party. Ron and Hermione keep fighting. Ron is upset because she made birds attack him after seeing him and Lavender kissing. Hermione is mostly angry because she is jealous. They make up after Ron is poisoned, which scares Hermione a lot.

After Dumbledore's death, Ron and Hermione promise to stay with Harry no matter what. Hermione and Harry also have a small rivalry in Potions class. Hermione is used to being the best, and she is annoyed that Harry does better than her by following notes in his old potions book. Hermione is the only one of the trio to pass her Apparition test.

Seventh Year: Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

In the seventh and last book, Hermione joins Harry on his mission to destroy Voldemort's remaining Horcruxes. Before they leave, she makes sure her parents are safe. She places a false memory charm on them, making them think they are Wendell and Monica Wilkins and want to move to Australia.

She inherits Dumbledore's copy of The Tales of Beedle the Bard. This book helps her understand some secrets of the Deathly Hallows. She prepares for their journey by putting an Undetectable Extension Charm on a small beaded purse. This makes the bag's inside endless, so she can fill it with everything they will need.

Hermione's spell saves her and Harry from Lord Voldemort and his snake Nagini in Godric's Hollow. When she, Ron, and Harry are caught by Snatchers (who hunt Muggle-borns), Hermione changes Harry's face with a Stinging Jinx to disguise him. She also tries to pretend to be a different student to avoid trouble. But they are recognized and taken to Malfoy Manor. Bellatrix Lestrange uses a dark spell on her to get information about how they got Godric Gryffindor's sword. Bellatrix orders the goblin Griphook to check if the sword is real. To save Hermione, Harry convinces Griphook to lie and say the sword is fake. When the others escape their cell, Bellatrix threatens to kill Hermione. Hermione, Harry, Ron, and the other prisoners are eventually rescued by Dobby.

Hermione later uses Polyjuice Potion to look like Bellatrix. This helps the trio steal Hufflepuff's cup (a Horcrux) from Gringotts bank. She, Harry, and Ron join Dumbledore's Army in the Battle of Hogwarts. During the battle, Hermione destroys Hufflepuff's cup in the Chamber of Secrets using a basilisk fang. Hermione and Ron also share their first kiss during the battle. In the final fight in the Great Hall, Hermione fights Bellatrix with Ginny Weasley and Luna. They cannot defeat Bellatrix until Molly Weasley steps in.

Epilogue and Later Life

Nineteen years after Voldemort's defeat, Hermione and Ron are married. They have two children, Rose and Hugo Granger-Weasley.

Hermione in Other Stories

In Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, a play that continues the story, Hermione becomes the Minister for Magic. This means she is the leader of the wizarding government. She takes over from Kingsley Shacklebolt.

Hermione Granger's Character Traits

Appearance

The books describe Hermione as having "bushy brown hair" and brown eyes. Her front teeth were already quite large. In Goblet of Fire, they grow uncontrollably after a spell from Draco Malfoy. Madam Pomfrey helps her in the hospital wing. At Hermione's request, she shrinks the teeth to a normal size. In the films, her hair is less bushy, and she usually has regular teeth. For one scene in Philosopher's Stone, Emma Watson wore fake teeth, but she stopped because they made it hard to speak.

There has been some discussion about Hermione's skin color in the books. One line from Prisoner of Azkaban says: "Hermione's white face was sticking out from behind a tree." Some people think this means her skin is white. Others believe it means her face looked pale because she was scared while watching Harry try to save Buckbeak. J.K. Rowling herself said Hermione "turned white" because she "lost colour from her face after a shock."

Another description from Prisoner of Azkaban is: "They were there, both of them, sitting outside Florean Fortescue's Ice-Cream Parlour, Ron looking incredibly freckly, Hermione very brown, both waving frantically at him." Some think this describes her skin color. Others think it means she had a tan from being outside during the summer.

Personality

Hermione's most important traits are her amazing intelligence and cleverness. She is calm, smart from books, and always thinks logically. Throughout the series, Hermione uses her skills to find information needed to defeat Voldemort. When she is unsure, she always goes to the school library. She can be a bit bossy but is always loyal and helpful to her friends. You can always count on her.

J.K. Rowling said that Hermione "never strays off the path; she always keeps her attention focused on the job that must be done." Despite her intelligence and bossy attitude, Rowling says Hermione has "quite a lot of vulnerability in her personality." She also has "a sense of insecurity underneath" and feels "utterly inadequate." To make up for this, she tries to be the best at everything in school, which can sometimes annoy people. During her DADA exam in Prisoner of Azkaban, Hermione's biggest fear is failure. A Boggart (a creature that takes the form of your worst fear) turns into Professor McGonagall and tells her she has failed all her exams.

Hermione is very caring and quick to help others, especially those who cannot defend themselves. This includes Neville Longbottom, first-year students, House-Elves, other Muggle-borns, half-giants like Hagrid, and werewolves like Lupin. After the last book, J.K. Rowling said Hermione's job in the Ministry of Magic was to fight for the rights of those who were treated unfairly. Hermione also protects her friends and values them greatly. Rowling has suggested that if Hermione looked in the Mirror of Erised, she would see Harry, Ron, and herself alive and Voldemort defeated. Hermione also learns to ignore bullies like Draco Malfoy. She often stops Harry and Ron from fighting back and instead thinks of clever ways to outsmart him. She is proud to be a Muggle-born. In Deathly Hallows, she says she is "a Mudblood and proud of it."

Magical Abilities and Skills

Hermione is shown throughout the series as an extremely talented young witch. J.K. Rowling has called Hermione a "borderline genius." She earned ten O.W.L.s (Ordinary Wizarding Levels), with nine "Outstanding" and one "Exceeds Expectations." She is the best student in Harry's year. She is often the first to master new spells or charms taught in class, even those from more advanced years. For example, she can cast a Protean Charm on the D.A.'s fake Galleon coins, which is a N.E.W.T. (Nastily Exhausting Wizarding Tests) level charm. She is also the first of her age to cast spells without speaking.

Hermione is good at dueling. Rowling has said that in the first three books, Hermione could have beaten Harry in a magical duel. But by the fourth book, Harry became so good at DADA that he would have won. Hermione did not do as well in subjects that were not learned from books or formal training. For example, broom flying did not come easily to her in her first year. She also did not like Divination and dropped it from her third-year studies. She was also not good at Wizard's Chess, which was the only thing she ever lost to Ron.

Hermione's Patronus (a magical guardian) is an otter. This is Rowling's favorite animal. In the Deathly Hallows book, when they enter the Ministry of Magic in disguise, Hermione pretends to be Mafalda Hopkirk. Her wand is made of vine wood and has a dragon heartstring core. Vine wood is linked to Hermione's birth month (September) on the Celtic calendar.

Portrayals of Hermione Granger

Film Series

Emma Watson played Hermione in all eight Harry Potter films. Watson's drama teacher in Oxford told the casting agents about her. They were impressed with her school play performances. Watson took her audition seriously but "never really thought she had any chance" of getting the part. The producers were impressed by Watson's confidence, and she was chosen over thousands of other girls.

J.K. Rowling herself supported Watson after her first screen test. When asked if the actors fit the characters, Rowling said, "Yes, I did. Emma Watson in particular was very, very like Hermione when I first spoke to her, I knew she was perfect from that first phone call."

Watson was well-received for the first film. IGN said that "from Hermione Granger's perfect introduction to her final scene, Watson is better than I could have possibly imagined. She steals the show." IGN also wrote that her "astute portrayal of Hermione has already become a favourite among fans."

Before making Half-Blood Prince, Watson thought about not returning. But she decided that the good things outweighed the bad, and she could not imagine anyone else playing Hermione.

Watson has said that Hermione is a character who makes "brain not beauty cool." She also said that even though Hermione is "slightly socially inept," she is "not ashamed of herself." When filming Chamber of Secrets, Watson was sure she wasn't like Hermione. But she later realized that "as I got older, I realised she was the greatest role model a girl could have." In 2007, before Order of the Phoenix came out, Watson said, "There are too many stupid girls in the media. Hermione's not scared to be clever. I think sometimes really smart girls dumb themselves down a bit, and that's bad. When I was nine or ten, I would get really upset when they tried to make me look geeky, but now I absolutely love it. I find it's so much pressure to be beautiful. Hermione doesn't care what she looks like. She's a complete tomboy."

Screenwriter Steve Kloves said in a 2003 interview that Hermione was his favorite character. He found her "fierce intellect coupled with a complete lack of understanding of how she affects people sometimes" charming and fun to write.

Theatre

In Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, Hermione is played by Eswatini-born actress Noma Dumezweni. Dumezweni described the role as a "privilege and a responsibility." She said that "we all aspire to be Hermione." Some people criticized the choice of a Black actress to play her. J.K. Rowling said this criticism came from "a bunch of racists." She added that the books never clearly state Hermione's race or skin tone. She also mentioned that Hermione has been shown as Black in fan art. Dumezweni herself called the negative reactions "so unimaginative." She said that "So many young actors and actresses have told me that they’re so pleased I’m playing Hermione because they can see a version of themselves on the stage."

Dumezweni received praise for her performance. The Independent newspaper said she "did a tremendous job as the stern witch." At the 2017 Laurence Olivier Awards, Dumezweni won the Award for Best Actress in a Supporting Role for playing Hermione.

Hermione in Popular Culture

Hermione has been made fun of in many comedy shows and cartoons. On Saturday Night Live, Lindsay Lohan played Hermione. On his show Big Impression, Alistair McGowan did a sketch called "Louis Potter and the Philosopher's Scone." It featured impressions of Nigella Lawson as Hermione. In 2003, Comic Relief did a funny story called Harry Potter and the Secret Chamberpot of Azerbaijan. In it, Miranda Richardson, who plays Rita Skeeter in the Harry Potter films, played Hermione.

Hermione also appears as Herheiny in the Harry Bladder sketches on All That, played by Lisa Foiles. The Wedge, an Australian comedy show, makes fun of Hermione and Harry being in love on a cooking show. They get caught by Snape. Hermione also appears as Hermione Ranger in Harry Podder: Dude Where's My Wand?. This is a play by Desert Star Theater in Utah. In the 2008 American comedy film Yes Man, Allison (played by Zooey Deschanel) goes to a Harry Potter-themed party dressed as Hermione.

Hermione also appears as Hormone in Harry Cover, a French comic book parody of Harry Potter. She is also in the Potter Puppet Pals sketches by Neil Cicierega. In the A Very Potter Musical, A Very Potter Sequel, and A Very Potter Senior Year musicals by StarKid Productions, Bonnie Gruesen and Meredith Stepien played Hermione.

Hermione is the main character in the fan-made web-series, Hermione Granger and the Quarter Life Crisis.

Images for kids

Emma Watson as Hermione Granger in Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix