Muggle is the only word used in the Harry Potter series of books by
J. K. Rowling to refer to a normal person who lacks any
sort of magical ability. The word was used in popular culture and literature prior to the usage by J. K. Rowling. However, the
Harry Potter series popularised the word and it has come into common usage in other contexts.
Harry Potter
Muggle is a term, sometimes used in a pejorative manner, from the fictional
Harry Potter series of books, the first of which was published in 1997. "Muggle" refers to a person who is a member of the
non-magical community. That is to
say that Muggles are ordinary people. According to J. K. Rowling, a quarter of the annual Hogwarts intake have two non-magical parents;[citation needed] thus far in canon, there have also
been a few children shown to derive from a mixed parentage of one magical parent and one non-magical parent. Children from mixed
households families are called half-bloods (strictly speaking, they
are 'Literal Half-bloods'); children with recent Muggle ancestry are also called Half-bloods (strictly speaking, 'Technical
Half-bloods').
In the Harry Potter books, non-magical people are often portrayed as foolish, often befuddled characters who are completely
ignorant to the Wizarding world around them. If, by unfortunate means, non-magical people do happen to notice the presence of
magic, a Memory Charm is cast upon them.
Some muggles, however, know of the Wizarding world; the Grangers (Hermione Granger's
parents), the muggle Prime Minister (and his predecessors), and the Dursleys (Harry Potter's
only living relatives) being just a few of these. Informed muggles generally keep quiet about magic to their uninformed fellows —
either out of shame at their connection to magic, or fear of being disbelieved or thought mad or gullible. Some humans who come
by knowledge of the magical world unconventionally do spread their knowledge: one man who had been a witness to a
dragon attack on a beach told stories to anyone who would listen for years afterwards of the
lizard puncturing his lilo.
J. K. Rowling said she created the word "muggle" from "mug", an English term for
someone who is easily fooled. She added the "-gle" to make it sound less demeaning and more "cuddly."[1]
Prior usages
There are several uses of the word "muggle" or "muggles" prior to its use in the Harry Potter novels, arranged in
chronological order:
- "Muggle" is the name of the antagonist in Lewis Carroll's 1854 short story "Wilhelm von Schmitz."
- "Muggles" was a slang term for marijuana in the 1920s and 1930s, associated with the
jazz scene.[2]
- Muggles is a tune recorded by Louis Armstrong and his orchestra in
1928.
- "Muggles" is used in a 1946 book Raggedy Ann in the Snow White Castle.[3]
- "Muggles" is a character from Carol Kendall's first Minnipins novel The Gammage
Cup (1959).[4] She acts as an
initially-unwitting and confused participant in challenging the narrow-minded orthodoxy of the powers that be in Valley Between
the Mountains. However, it is her down-to-earth thinking and personal integrity and support from her friends that give them the
ability to think outside the square. It is this that gives them the capacity to save their community from an external threat, the
Mushroom people. The book's chapters are headed with a series of "Muggles' Maxims" which provide the moral and intellectual spine
for the story.
- "Muggle" is used once to refer to a spliff in Zap Comics
No. 0 (published 1971).
- "Muggles" are a race in "RAH" (later retitled "The Legend of
Rah and the Muggles"), a 1984 book by Nancy Stouffer.
She claimed that she owned the trademark for the word "muggle", and sued Rowling and her publishers. In 2002, the case was
dismissed.[5]
Later usages
The word "muggle" or "muggles" is is used in other contexts, most of which are similar to the sense used in the Harry Potter
series of books:
- "Muggle" (or geomuggle) is used by geocachers to refer to those not involved in or aware of the sport of
Geocaching. A cache that has been tampered with by non-participants is said to be
"muggled"[10][11].
Related Terms
See also
References
- ^ http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2004/0304-wbd.htm JK Rowling's World Book Day Chat,March
4, 2004
- ^ Harry J. Anslinger, with Courtney, Ryley Cooper, "Marijuana: Assassin of
Youth," American Magazine, 124 (July, 1937): 19, 150.
- ^ Court document: SCHOLASTIC, INC., J.K. ROWLING, and TIME WARNER ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY, L.P.,
Plaintiffs/Counterclaim Defendants, -against- NANCY STOUFFER,
Defendant/Counterclaim and Crossclaim Plaintiff, -against- ABC CORPORATIONS
- ^ Court document: SCHOLASTIC, INC., J.K. ROWLING, and TIME WARNER ENTERTAINMENT COMPANY, L.P.,
Plaintiffs/Counterclaim Defendants, -against- NANCY STOUFFER,
Defendant/Counterclaim and Crossclaim Plaintiff, -against- ABC CORPORATIONS
- ^ Court throws out 'Muggles' claims against Rowling
- ^ The Twits, ISBN 0-224-01855-8 (hardcover, 1980)
- ^ BBC: 'Muggle' goes into Oxford English Dictionary
- ^ Jargon File: muggle
- ^ Faith von Adams, "I Roomed With A Muggle", New Witch Magazine, Issue 5
(Fall 2003) pg. 34
- ^ Geocaching Glossary (HTML). Geocaching.com. Retrieved on 2007-09-20.
- ^ Muggle (HTML/wiki). GeoWiki. Retrieved on 2007-09-20.
- ^ Heroes episode Fallout
External links
The
Harry Potter Wiki has information related to:
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