Things – Harry Potter Lexicon

For two thousand years, witches and wizards all over the world have been living their lives with the use of magic. Their culture has developed alongside that of their Muggle counterparts, sometimes together and sometimes separately. Since the beginning of the eighteenth century, the wizarding world has been hidden away, intentionally separated from Muggle culture. As a result, wizard culture is in many ways distinct. However, Muggle culture has influenced that of the magical community in many ways, some more obvious than others. For example, students travel to Hogwarts aboard a Muggle steam train, albeit one which was “borrowed” by the Ministry of Magic and has been magically traveling the length of England ever since and never been spotted by the Muggles. Wizarding fashion of today resembles Muggle clothing of long ago. The entire wizarding world seems stuck approximately the mid-1800s in many ways.

Use the links on this page to explore the rich details of wizard culture, from government and health to music, insults, and colorful slang.