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An in-depth reference guide to nearly everything in the Harry Potter universe.

Wizarding Wands
Remember: the wand chooses the wizard. But did you know that what month you're born in would effect what wood your wand would be made of? Below is a month by month chart courtesy of JKRowling.com that explains this wand wood to month conversion.
- December 24 - January 20 = Birch
- January 21 - February 17 = Rowan
- February 18 - March 17 = Ash
- March 18 - April 14 = Alder
- April 15 - May 12 = Willow
- May 13 - June 9 = Hawthorn
- June 10 - July 7 = Oak
- July 8 - August 4 = Holly
- August 5 - September 1 = Hazel
- September 2 - September 29 = Vine
- September 30 - October 27 = Ivy
- October 28 - November 24 = Reed
- November 25 - December 23 = Elder
Character Wands
  Name: Harry Potter
  Measurements: 11"
  Wood Type: Holly
  Core: Phoenix tail feather
  Name: Ron Weasley (1st wand, broken by Whomping Willow)
  Wood Type: Ash
  Name: Ron (2nd wand, bought with Weasley's winnings in a Daily Prophet contest)
  Measurements: 14"
  Wood Type: Willow
  Core: Tail hair of unicorn
  Name: Hermione Granger
  Wood Type: Vine
  Core: Dragon heartstring
  Name: James Potter
  Measurements: 11"
  Wood Type: Mahogany
  Name: Lilly Potter
  Measurements: 10 1/4"
  Wood Type: Willow
  Core: Tail hair of unicorn
  Name: Hagrid
  Measurements: 16"
  Wood Type: Oak
  Name: Cedric Diggory
  Measurements: 12 1/4"
  Wood Type: Ash
  Core: Tail hair of unicorn
  Name: Fleur Delacour
  Measurements: 9 1/2"
  Wood Type: Rosewood
  Core: Hair of veela (from her grandmother)
  Name: Viktor Krum
  Measurements: 10 1/4"
  Core: Hornbeam and Dragon Heartstring
  Name: Tom Riddle (Lord Voldemort)
  Measurements: 13"
  Wood Type: Yew
  Core: Phoenix tail feather
Other Wand Information
Nearly every type of magic performed requires a wand. Wands are long, thin pieces of wood with a magical core inside. It is interesting to note that no two wands created are ever excactly the same.
To put a wand to use, a "swish and flick" motion of the wrist is usually required along with a particular incantation, which can either be used verbally or non-verbally.
Mr. Ollivander is the finest wand-maker in Britain. His shop, Ollivanders, in Diagon Alley seems to �tingle with some secret magic�, and has been making wands since 382 B.C. Mr. Ollivander, along with selling his fine wands, also makes them, plucking hair from unicorns� tails himself at the risk of a severe goring. The only other wand-maker name that is mentioned in the series is Gregorovitch, who supposedly does a fine job, yet, according to Mr. Ollivaner, his stylings are questionable.
A wand's length seems to directly correspond to the owners height. The longest wand in the series is Voldemort�s at 16 inches, and he is repeatedly described as quite tall. However, Dolores Umbridge�s wand is referred to as "unusually short". Interestingly, we are repeatedly told that Voldemort�s fingers are long, while Umbridge�s are short and stubby. Perhaps then a wand is simply an extension of the owner's hand, therefore, the wand length directly relates to the length of its owner�s fingers.
Two brother wands, that is, wands that own the same core, do not work properly against each other. This is seen when Harry duels Voldemort (whose wand cores both come from Fawkes) in the graveyard at the end of Goblet of Fire. Harry attempts the Expelliarmus spell while Voldemort tries the Killing Curse, thus beginning a reverse spell effect called Priori Incantatem. The two wands became connected and beads of light slid up and down the connecting beam. The beads seem to move based on which wizard concentrates on moving them, which was Harry in this case. When a bead of light made contact with Voldemort�s wand, it was forced to regurgitate spells it had performed. Shadows or echoes of people Voldemort killed emerged in reverse order (except for the accidental reversal of James and Lily, which JKR admitted to be a mistake), which allowed Harry time to escape via use of the Triwizard Cup (a portkey). This between the wands will most likely factor into the final book in some way as well.
After a student is expelled from Hogwarts, thier wand is snapped in two. They are permitted to keep the broken pieces, which Hagrid keeps in a pink Umbrella. While he uses this with shocking success, Ron's wand performed quite poorly and could not complete a simple spell.
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