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Veela are human-like creatures that look like young, beautiful women with skin as bright as the moon and hair that shines golden white. Their looks and their dances can hypnotize all men and cause those men to perform impulsive or ridiculous acts or say ridiculous things just to get more attention from the Veela.
Veela were introduced as the mascot for the Bulgarian National Quidditch team during the Quidditch World Cup. Though they originate in Bulgaria and Eastern Europe, the Delacour family is part Veela, indicating they have likely moved across Europe and settled throughout the continent.
Veela Quick Facts
Skin color | Bright white, almost shiny |
Eye color | Various |
Hair color | White-gold, dazzling and long |
Related to | Humans |
Native to | Bulgaria |
Affiliation | Bulgarian National Quidditch Team |
Known for | Being so beautiful they can charm humans; they turn into harpies when angry |
Last Updated | July 18, 2023 |
Veela Nature
Veela are described as appearing like beautiful women. They have skin as bright as the moon with white gold hair that seems to flow around them even when there isn’t wind. Their beauty alone seems to mesmerize anyone who is attracted to women, and their dances can do even more.
During the Quidditch World Cup, the dancing they did caused one of the referees to start behaving hysterically in front of all the fans and the players. Many of the men in the stands were drawn to the women; Harry and Ron found themselves inexplicably climbing out of their chairs and attempting to jump out of the box to try and impress them.
Ron seems to be affected by it worse than anyone else. Harry Potter is somewhat affected, and Arthur laughs the whole thing off but doesn’t seem to do much other than smile in their presence. This would imply that some level of self-control or intelligence associated with the men in question would dictate the influence of the Veela. Those who are more gullible are more likely to be drawn in.
They can perform magic without a wand, attracting people and getting them to say or do ridiculous things, but if they get angry, they transform into bird-like creatures with scaly wings and balls of fire that they can throw at people.
Later, when the Dark Mark has appeared in the sky, and everyone is running away, many of the men who are standing near the Veela in the darkness are making up preposterous lies about themselves being the minister of magic or being the wealthiest person in the world, all to try and get more attention from the Veela.
Veela Hair
The hair in Veela was considered a magical substance, and it was strong enough that it could be used when crafting new wands. Ollivander noted that he didn’t use it because it was often too temperamental, but most of the wands with Veela hair were used by part Veela.
Other substances used for wand cores included:
- Kelpie hair
- Kneazle whiskers
- Dragon heartstrings (pieces of a dragon heart cut into strings)
- Unicorn tail hair
- Phoenix feathers
Veela Origin
The term “Veela” originated in Slavic mythology with The Ballads of Marko Kraljevic, an English translation of the original. They have similar qualities and characteristics to the Greek Sirens.
Sirens were half bird, half woman, much like the Veela when they are angry. Similarly to the Rusalki, Veela and Sirens alike lure men to water, to their deaths. Rusalki are confined to their particular body of water, Sirens worked in the Mediterranean Sea, and the Veela seem to work on land.
Veela Trivia and Fun Facts
- Though the term “Veela” is heavily used throughout the books, it does not appear in any of the films.
- Veela are fairies in Slavic mythology who live near water and can control storms. They are very similar to the Rusalki in Russian mythology, known for hypnotizing men and bringing them to their doom. Veela are sometimes thought to be the ghosts of women who were betrayed by men or drowned.
- Fleur Delacour’s wand is said to contain one of the hairs from her grandmother, who was a Veela. However, in Slavic mythology, if a single hair is taken from a Veela, it will either die or convert permanently into its non-human shape, most often swans, horses, snakes, or wolves.
Known Veela
We know that Fleur Delacour’s grandmother on her mother’s side was a full-blooded Veela, as were two of her cousins who showed up to the wedding, at which point Fred and George Weasley fought over who would escort them to their seats.
All of those who appeared during the Quidditch World Cup as mascots for Bulgaria were pureblood Veela.
It was quite common for Veela to marry wizards, although there is nothing in the original books or films to suggest that any of them married non-magical people. The children who came from these marriages were half Veela and inherited some of their beauty and charm. The traits remained persistent for several generations.
Apolline Delacour, Fleur’s mother, was half Veela, so her daughters, Fleur and Gabrielle, were one-quarter. Each of the children Fleur had with Fred would have been one-eighth.
We don’t actually know if they inherited specific characteristics, but at one point, Harry Potter points out that Fleur is part Veela which he uses to explain away Ron’s bad behavior in her presence. It would also explain Arthur’s silly behavior in the presence of Fleur’s mother.
Veela Appearances in Books
Veela appears in the following books:
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows
Veela Appearances in Films
Veela appears in the following films:
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
- Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 1
Veela Quotes
A description of the change from beautiful to harpy during the International Quidditch Cup:
“At this, the veela lost control. Instead of dancing, they launched themselves across the field and began throwing what seemed to be handfuls of fire at the leprechauns. Watching through his Omnioculars, Harry saw that they didn’t look remotely beautiful now. On the contrary, their faces were elongating into sharp, cruel-beaked bird heads, and long, scaly wings were bursting from their shoulders —”
Ron, at the welcome feast with Fleur:
“Excuse me, are you wanting ze bouillabaisse?”
It was the girl from Beauxbatons who had laughed during Dumbledore’s speech. She had finally removed her muffler. A long sheet of silvery-blonde hair fell almost to her waist. She had large, deep blue eyes and very white, even teeth.
Ron went purple. He stared up at her, opened his mouth to reply, but nothing came out except a faint gurgling noise.
“Yeah, have it,” said Harry, pushing the dish toward the girl.
“You ‘ave finished wiz it?”
“Yeah,” Ron said breathlessly. “Yeah, it was excellent.”
The girl picked up the dish and carried it carefully off to the Ravenclaw table. Ron was still goggling at the girl as though he had never seen one before. Harry started to laugh. The sound seemed to jog Ron back to his senses.
“She’s a veela!” he said hoarsely to Harry.
“Of course, she isn’t!” said Hermione tartly. “I don’t see anyone else gaping at her like an idiot!”
But she wasn’t entirely right about that. As the girl crossed the Hall, many boys’ heads turned, and some of them had become temporarily speechless, just like Ron.”
Fleur having her wand examined before the tournament:
“Mademoiselle Delacour, could we have you first, please?” said Mr. Ollivander, stepping into the empty space in the middle of the room.
Fleur Delacour swept over to Mr. Ollivander and handed him her wand.
“Hmmm…” he said.
He twirled the wand between his long fingers like a baton, and it emitted a number of pink and gold sparks. Then he held it close to his eyes and examined it carefully.
“Yes,” he said quietly, “nine and a half inches… inflexible… rosewood… and containing… dear me…”
“An ‘air from ze ‘ead of a veela,” said Fleur. “One of my grandmuzzer’s.”
So Fleur was part veela, thought Harry, making a mental note to tell Ron… then he remembered that Ron wasn’t speaking to him.
“Yes,” said Mr. Ollivander, “yes, I’ve never used veela hair myself, of course. I find it makes for rather temperamental wands… however, to each his own, and if this suits you…”
Mr. Ollivander ran his fingers along the wand, apparently checking for scratches or bumps; then he muttered, “Orchideus!” and a bunch of flowers burst from the wand tip.
“Very well, very well, it’s in fine working order,” said Mr. Ollivander, scooping up the flowers and handing them to Fleur with her wand.”
FAQs
Answer: Veela are described as non-human. They appear as women with gold, white hair, and bright skin that almost glitters and glows. However, as they breed with wizards, that would make any offspring like Fleur Delacour part wizard or human and part non-human.
Answer: Veela are nymph-like creatures that can control men with their beauty and their dancing. They are introduced in Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire during the Quidditch World Cup when they appear on the field as the mascots for the Bulgarian national Quidditch team.
Answer: It is discovered that Fleur Delacour, the competing champion from Beauxbatons, is part Veela. Her grandmother was full Veela, making her one-quarter.