Draco Dorma Nunquam Titillandus

There are different symbols and hymns for the four houses of Hogwarts, Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw and Slytherin and each one hides curious facts. However, one of the most striking is the Hogwarts motto, which we find on its shield.

On the shield of Hogwarts, the school where the Harry Potter characters study, we can find the words Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus, but what do these words mean?

It’s simple, because it is an ancient language called Latin and the meaning of Draco Dormiens Nunquam Titillandus is “do not tickle a sleeping dragon”.

As a curious fact, we inform you that according to the original writer of Harry Potter, JK Rowling, many schools have trivial mottos, for example, “Continge Astris”. That is why she came up with a more striking motto for Hogwarts, which even has a lot to do with the fantasy and magical world of this story.

Hogwarts symbol

The symbol or shield of the school has four images of animals in the center, which belong to the four houses. We will talk about the latter later.

Another aspect that we can see in the Hogwarts symbol is the letter H in the middle of the 4 animals. She doesn’t have much of a secret, as she simply stands for Hogwarts, the name of the school. Likewise, this Harry Potter shield reflects the four elements, earth, fire, water and air, which belong to each house.

It should be noted that, according to some opinions on the Internet, the name of Hogwarts comes from two words, Hog (pig) and Warts (warts). If we look at it this way, Hogwarts means “pig warts.” However, this remains a mystery regarding the Hogwarts logo, as the author has not yet confirmed this theory.

Here are the mottos for each house at Hogwarts, to take you a little deeper into the Harry Potter books and movies.

gryffindor

Each Hogwarts School house has a different motto and Gryffindor is not far behind. But before getting into the subject, we want you to know a little more about this house, which was founded by a man named Godric Gryffindor.

This character is from Godric’s Hollow, the same town that Dumbledore and Harry belong to. In addition, it should be noted that honorable wizards of the franchise were trained in this house, including Hermione Granger, who accidentally broke Harry Potter’s wand when she was defending him from Nagini. 

Also, Minerva McGonagall, Neville Longbottom, Ronald Weasley and Albus Dumbledore belonged to this house. The latter was the headmaster of Hogwarts while Harry studied there.

The Gryffindor motto seems to be very well inspired by the lion, which is the animal that represents it. In addition, it has a lot to do with the anthem of this house. His phrase is “we are going to teach everyone with acts of courage towards his name and his heart”.

slytherins

This is one of the most prominent houses and its founder, Salazar Slytherin was also one of the creators of Hogwarts. However, he was divided from his peers because he only tolerated pure-blooded people.  

The term of pure blood was only deserved by children whose parents were completely magicians or possessed a certain blood heritage. The animal in this house is the snake. In addition to this, a very striking Slytherin motto is “do what it takes”.

Voldemort, Bellatrix Lestrange, Severus, Lucius and Draco Malfoy, among others, were trained in this house. However, it was not a bad house overall, as most of its students were good wizards. Some of the qualities that characterize this house are pride and racism, although some characters that were formed there were kind and showed a different way of loving others.

Hufflepuff

Perhaps this is the most important Hufflepuff motto, “do what is good”, as its students are usually loyal and intelligent and above all, they play fair.

Among the most striking Harry Potter shields, the Hufflepuff shield stands out, thanks to its design with a badger in the center. Also, due to its colors, especially yellow and black.

In the same order of ideas, we mention that the present house was founded by Helga Hufflepuff, a magician who taught a lot at Hogwarts and valued all students equally, regardless of what family they came from or if they were powerful. One of Helga’s most important contributions to Harry Potter was her food recipes.

In addition to its founder, Cedric Diggory, Pomona Sprout, Newt Scamander and Bridget Wenlock were other characters who studied in this house and stood out for their great magical talent and personality. Unfortunately, Cedric Diggory did not live long, as he was killed in the Triwizard Cup by Peter Pettigrew.

ravenclaw

This house of Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry was founded by Rowena Ravenclaw, who only accepted intelligent and creative students. It is for that reason that most of the students in the house were intelligent. Even to enter the Ravenclaw room, the characters had to answer riddles. 

Perhaps this is the most beautiful Ravenclaw motto: “Boundless intelligence is man’s greatest treasure.”