I don't understand - Everyone says there's hundreds of kids at Hogwarts..but if you do the math...?

Question

I don't understand - because J.K. Rowling put 10 kids in each year every year, and there's seven years. 10 times 7 is 70, which times 4 (4 houses) is 280. Am I missing something? 280 Kids, 70 kids in each house, 4 houses, 10 kids a year...?

Answer 1

Best Answer - Chosen by Voters

You're right, but technically, there are hundreds because 280 is more than 100. :)

Here's an article on it:

http://www.hplex.info/essays/essay-hogwa…

:)

Answer 2

i was thinking about this earlier too! because I'm rereading the series. I think they just did this in the movies to make a better effect, it looks alot cooler anyways.

Answer 3

Maybe they're counting the ghostly residents, too. =)

Answer 4

If you mean the dorms (5 boys, 5 girls in each room). there is probably more than one room in each dorm....

Answer 5

No. They are just inferring. I went through your math and I don't see any flaws.

Answer 6

it may vary, but 280 sounds about right, seeing as they always talk about the classes having most of the characters in them and we know most students. also in movies, when seeing the great hall and all the students at supper, i would estimate it around 300 in total.

Source(s):

being a harry potter nerd

Answer 7

She's actually said in older interviews that there were about a thousand. it's continuity, really. It's across all the editions. You can look it up on Accio Quote (if that site is still around).

There used to be this fantastic chart online of what they changed in the subsequent printings of the book. Names change, spells change. "Ennervate" became "Rennervate" in Half-Blood Prince.