Hogwarts Houses

In the Harry Potter series, the Hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry is divided into four houses, each bearing the last name of its founder: Godric Gryffindor, Salazar Slytherin, Rowena Ravenclaw and Helga Hufflepuff.

House dynamics

The four houses are rather separate entities. Each has its own common room and dormitory, its own table at the Great Hall, and students mostly share lessons with classmates of their same house. There is no rule against students from different houses mingling, but in practice, a good majority of social interactions occur within the same house. Each house has one teacher who acts as its Head of House. Each house also has a house ghost. The function they serve (if any) is unknown, although they might be house mascots. Each Head of House and house ghost was previously a pupil within that house.

Related Topics:
Common room - Dormitory - Mascots

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A great deal of rivalry exists between the houses, not always friendly, especially when Slytherin is involved. This rivalry is demonstrated in the Quidditch matches and the annual school competition for the House Cup which is determined by the amount of points earned or lost by each member of the rival houses. These points are awarded or taken based on students' conduct throughout the school year. All members of the faculty, prefects, and the Head Boy and Girl have the authority to grant and deduct points as they see fit in each instance. (See this FAQ on Rowling's site.) Some, like Severus Snape, the former Potions master, tend to favour their own house, but that does not seem to be against the rules. He is despised by many students, other than those in Slytherin, where he is very popular.

Related Topics:
Quidditch - Prefect - Severus Snape

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House rivalry is most seen between Slytherin and Gryffindor ("Gryffindor and Slytherin students loathed each other on principle"{{HP6}}). This rivalry likely to goes back to the days of Godric Gryffindor and Salazar Slytherin after they founded Hogwarts, because the Sorting Hat said that they were the best of friends before they founded the school.{{HP5}}

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Usually, though not always, the other two houses support Gryffindor in its rivalry with Slytherin, which again is reminiscent of how Slytherin was in the end opposed by all three other Founders. One exception to this occurred when Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff, and Slytherin all supported Hufflepuff's Cedric Diggory instead of Gryffindor's Harry Potter in the Triwizard Tournament.{{HP4}}

Related Topics:
Cedric Diggory - Harry Potter - Triwizard Tournament

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