Lord Voldemort

Lord Voldemort
Harry Potter character
First appearanceHarry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone (1997)
Last appearanceHarry Potter and the Deathly Hallows (2007)
Created byJ. K. Rowling
Portrayed by
Flashbacks:
Voiced byEddie Izzard (The Lego Batman Movie)
Liam O'Brien (Lego Dimensions)
In-universe information
Full nameTom Marvolo Riddle
AliasesThe Heir of Slytherin
The Dark Lord
You-Know-Who
He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named
TitleLord Voldemort
Minister of Magic (puppet ruler)
Family
  • Tom Riddle (father)
  • Merope Gaunt (mother)
Relatives
  • Thomas Riddle (paternal grandfather)
  • Mary Riddle (paternal grandmother)
  • Marvolo Gaunt (maternal grandfather)
  • Morfin Gaunt (maternal uncle)
NationalityBritish
HouseSlytherin
Born31 December 1926
Died2 May 1998

Lord Voldemort (/ˈvldəmɔːr/ VOHL-də-mor, /-mɔːrt/ -⁠mort in the films)[a] is a character and the main antagonist in J. K. Rowling's series of Harry Potter novels. The character first appeared in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, which was published in 1997, and returned either in person or in flashbacks in each book and its film adaptation in the series except the third, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, in which he is only mentioned.

Voldemort, an anagrammatic sobriquet for Tom Marvolo Riddle, is the archenemy of Harry Potter, who according to a prophecy has "the power to vanquish the Dark Lord". He attempts to murder the boy, but instead kills his parents, Lily and James Potter, and leaves Harry with a scar on his forehead in the shape of a lightning bolt. Nearly every witch or wizard dares not utter his name and refers to him instead with such monikers as "You-Know-Who", "He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named", or "The Dark Lord". Voldemort's obsession with blood purity signifies his aim to rid the wizarding world of Muggle (non-magical) heritage and to conquer both worlds, Muggle and wizarding, to achieve pure-blood dominance. Through his mother's family, he is the last descendant of the wizard Salazar Slytherin,[6][7] one of the four founders of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He is the leader of the Death Eaters, a group of evil wizards and witches dedicated to ridding the Wizarding World of Muggles and establishing Voldemort as its supreme ruler.

  1. ^ Takahama, Valerie (26 October 1999). "Enchanted with Potter Literature: Fans line up for hours to get their books signed". The Orange County Register. Santa Ana, California: Digital First Media. Retrieved 28 December 2006.
  2. ^ "HPL: Lord Voldemort: Quick facts". Archived from the original on 3 June 2004. Retrieved 12 September 2020.
  3. ^ Anderton, Ethan (11 September 2015). "J.K. Rowling Clarifies Voldemort Pronunciation in Harry Potter". /Film. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  4. ^ Dibdin, Emma (10 September 2015). "You got this Harry Potter character's name wrong". Digital Spy. London, England. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  5. ^ Levine, Nick (31 May 2017). "J.K. Rowling responds to Stephen Fry 'Harry Potter' feud rumours". NME. London, England: TI Media. Retrieved 27 April 2018.
  6. ^ Rowling, J. K. (1998). "The Heir of Slytherin". Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets. Bloomsbury. ISBN 0747538492.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference [HP6]ch20 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).


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