--- description: One Harry Potter detail that has long bothered readers is the number of students in Harry's Hogwarts class. title: This Harry Potter Fan Theory May Finally Solve a Hogwarts Mystery image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5169db8fd80e467a/69889538ab6d7799a46a9dd8/harry-potter.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [Entertainment](/section/entertainment/) ## Entertainment Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [Books](/tag/books/) ## Books Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # This _Harry Potter_ Fan Theory May Finally Solve a Hogwarts Mystery  by [Megan McCluskey](/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer May 26, 2016 9:03 PM CUT  Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone7831/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images  by [Megan McCluskey](/author/megan-mccluskey/)  ## Megan McCluskey Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Staff Writer May 26, 2016 9:03 PM CUT Although most of [J.K. Rowling’s](http://time.com/4110623/j-k-rowlings-biggest-harry-potter-revelations/ "undefined") logic in the [_Harry Potter_ universe](http://time.com/4215336/jk-rowling-harry-potter-cursed-child-book/ "undefined") is considered flawless by fans, one detail that has always bothered readers is the number of students in Harry’s [Hogwarts](http://time.com/4053951/harry-potter-jk-rowling-hogwarts-great-hall/ "undefined") class. While the author herself has stated about [1,000 students](http://www.beyondhogwarts.com/harry-potter/articles/doing-the-math-how-many-kids-are-at-hogwarts.html "undefined") attended the school during Harry’s era, there seemed to only be around 18 boys in his year. As you can probably see, this math just doesn’t add up. Luckily, one Tumblr user recently came up with a possible answer for this particular wizarding world conundrum. “What if there were less students in the Hogwarts Class of 1998 because the period when the other kids would have been conceived (1979-1981) was when Voldemort’s reign of power was at its peak?,” [marauders4evr](http://marauders4evr.tumblr.com/?ref%5Furl=http://io9.gizmodo.com/ajax/inset/iframe?id=tumblr-post-140524900827-marauders4evr&autosize=1 "undefined") wrote. “Between the dozens of adults who joined the Order, the dozens of civilians who were killed in Death Eater raids, and the dozens of adults that didn’t want to bring a child into the world, just then…It’s actually entirely possible that there was a baby drought for a few years in the wizarding world, leading to a smaller class size a decade later.” **Read More:** [The First Harry Potter Prequel Trailer Is Here](http://time.com/4145643/harry-potter-prequel-fantastic-beasts-trailer/ "undefined") See the full theory below. [(h/t Gizmodo)](http://io9.gizmodo.com/a-harry-potter-theory-that-both-explains-harrys-tiny-cl-1778880961?rev=1464273392385&utm%5Fcampaign=socialflow%5Fio9%5Ffacebook&utm%5Fsource=io9%5Ffacebook&utm%5Fmedium=socialflow@ "undefined") Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery Explained by Fan Theory ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4349759/harry-potter-hogwarts-fan-theory/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4349759/harry-potter-hogwarts-fan-theory/"},"headline":"This Harry Potter Fan Theory May Finally Solve a Hogwarts Mystery","datePublished":"2016-05-26T21:03:37.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T07:32:46.251Z","description":"And simultaneously depress you","url":"https://time.com/4349759/harry-potter-hogwarts-fan-theory/","keywords":["Books","Newsfeed","movies","Harry Potter","J.K. 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