23 Magical Facts About Professor Snape

January 3, 2018 | Chanell Alexander

23 Magical Facts About Professor Snape


He is arguably the most important character to the Harry Potter universe, and although initially portrayed as a villainous potions instructor, Professor Severus Snape holds within in him many secrets and much depth. Let's take a snaking stroll through the mind of everyone's favorite surprise hero.


23. A Major Player

Severus Snape is mentioned exactly 1,849 times throughout the run of the series. That's a lot of mentions!

Professor Snape FactsHero complex

22. A True Dark Arts Master

So much of the series focuses on Snape’s ties to Voldemort and his disdain for Harry Potter, but this guy also has some serious magical skills. Snape invented (to just name a few) a nonverbal spell, Levicorpus, that can lift people up by their ankles, a counter curse spell to Levicorpus, and a violent spell that can slash through opponents called Sectumsempra. Uh, those definitely sound like dark arts to me.

Professor Snape FactsDeviant art

21. Nasty

Because of Snape’s double agent status, he's described in a lot of unsavory ways by a lot of people: for example, "Snivellus" by Sirius Black, "Overgrown bat" by Professor Quirrell, and "Slimeball" by Peter Pettigrew, who is one to talk.

Professor Snape FactsAmino

20. Kind Words

Even with all this name calling, Harry also later describes Snape as "The bravest man I ever knew."

Professor Snape FactsPotter more

19. Getting Into Character

The late and great Alan Rickman had a hand in how Snape was portrayed on the big screen. Rickman determined the tightness of the sleeves, the number of buttons, and other critical features of Snape's costume.

Professor Snape FactsPinterest

18. Something Is Missing

Despite Rickman's involvement in Snape's character design in the movies, there is one thing missing from the book: a goatee. In the series, Snape is always illustrated with some kind of beard, which is mysteriously absent from the films.

Professor Snape FactsOdyssey

17. Patronus

Snape is the only Death Eater who can conjure a Patronus, which is (of course) a doe, just like his love Lily Potter.

Professor Snape FactsFanpop

16. Fan Theory

There is a fan theory circulating that Snape is actually transgender. Once more, bring on the fanfic!

Professor Snape Facts

15. Soft and Greasy

The two words used most often to describe Snape throughout the books are "Cold" and "Dark." Runners up include "Soft" and Greasy."

Professor Snape FactsTumblr

14. A Jinxed Position

Snape, as we know from The Half-Blood Prince, was half Muggle. His mother, Eileen Prince, was a witch, but his father, Tobias Snape, was a regular, non-magical person.

Professor Snape FactsHuffingtonpost

13. Cut Short

Severus Snape was born on January 9, 1960, making him a Capricorn. He died on May 2, 1998; he was only 38 years old.

Professor Snape FactsHypable

12. The Home of A Hero

Pottermore is the home base of Potter fans everywhere, and it continues to reveal fantastic tidbits about characters even now that the series has ended. One riddle contest revealed details of Snape and Lily Potter’s hometown, Cokeworth.

Professor Snape FactsFandom

11. Snape Should Find Better Cologne

Rowling enjoys interacting with fans on Twitter and answering their questions about her series. When one user asked her what Snape smelled like, she replied with, “bitterness and old shoes.” Wow, what type of cologne was he wearing?

Professor Snape FactsLife

10. Little of Column A, Little of Column B

Some of the worst things Snape has done? He tried to have Harry and Ron expelled after the flying car incident in The Chamber of Secrets and he also, well, killed Dumbledore. But he did do good things: that killing thing was on the Headmaster's orders, and he did once save Draco Malfoy's life in The Half-Blood Prince.

Professor Snape FactsAmino

9. Serving the School

Becoming headmaster at Hogwarts takes a lot of time and experience. That's why it's impressive that Snape held the title of headmaster at Hogwarts. His tenure was incredibly short, but his portrait still graces the grand office of historical Headmasters.

Professor Snape FactsPinterest

8. A Huge Easter Egg in The First Installment

When Snape approaches Harry Potter for the first time, the first thing he asks him is " What would I get if I added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood?" A fan translated the etymology and symbolism of the words, particularly using the language of flowers. Asphodel is a type of lily meaning "my regrets follow you to the grave" in Victorian flower language, while wormwood symbolizes bitterness and sorrow. The fan interpreted it as, “On Lily's grave, I promise to protect you.” Deep, man.

Professor Snape FactsSeverus snape hd images

7. Snape’s POV

Pottermore is the gift that keeps on giving. On it, there is a feature article that includes a summary of the Harry Potter books from Snape’s perspective, offering a differing view of the story about The Boy Who Lived.

Professor Snape FactsPottermore forum

6. Crabby

Although Harry names his son Albus Severus after both Dumbledore and Snape, that's not the only being named for Snape: In 2017, researchers discovered a new species of crab and called it Harryplax severus. Well, he is a pretty crabby guy.

Professor Snape FactsThe young journalist academy

5. Vampire Roots?

Many fans have felt that Snape is a vampire because of his demeanor, attire, and pale skin. Rowling has refuted this rumor, but that still hasn’t stopped fans from asserting this as a potential truth—and writing lots of fanfiction about it, no doubt.

Professor Snape FactsDeviant art

4. Least Favorite Subject

Rowling wasn't a huge fan of chemistry while in school. She hated it so much, in fact, that when she decided what subject Snape should teach, she settled on potions because of its resemblance to its scientific equivalent, and its conjuring of all the bad memories she had while learning the subject. While writing Snape, however, she found she actually did have some interest in the topic.

Professor Snape FactsVanguardia

3. Death by Toenail

One of Snape's weirder spell inventions? He created a spell (a hex really) that caused toenails to grow long incredibly quickly. Now what would you need that for?

Professor Snape FactsLektura obowiazkowa

2. “Always…”

When Rickman first took the role of Snape, the ending of the book series had not yet been revealed. The late Alan Rickman actually took one of Snape's secrets to the grave. To help Rickman understand the depth of Snape’s role in the series, J.K. Rowling let him in on key information behind an important word she associated with the character: “Always.” That is, that Snape would actually always love Lily and would protect Harry for her. Rickman never revealed what Rowling told him—even after the conclusion of the movies. We only know now, after Rickman’s death, because Rowling let fans in on the secret.

Professor Snape FactsVanity fair

1. Perfect Nomenclature

According to the English etymology dictionary, Snape means “to be hard upon, rebuke, revile, snub.” All of these words describe things Snape not only participated in but also sadly experienced.

Professor Snape Facts

Sources:  1234567891011


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