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We all know that students return to Hogwarts on September 1st, but when do they go home for the summer? Is there a date stated in the books that I've forgotten or has this ever been revealed? I couldn't find the answer on Harry Potter Wiki so I figured some of my fellow Potterheads should know. :)
We know from the death of Dumbledore that term ends somewhere in early July (he died June 30th). Seeing as the House Cup is awarded on July 5th in Pottermore, I can make an educated guess that term ends with a few days after this. *consults Book 1* July tenth, perhaps? This may seem vague, but it's all I've got.
According to the Harry Potter Wiki (Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry page, School Year section), Hogwarts starts on September 1, and the school year is bounded by a nine-week summer, which means that the end of term would be late June. Perhaps the year ended later during Harry's 6th year in part because of Dumbledore's funeral?
Most British schools end end around 20th-25th July, but private schools - which almost invariably include boarding schools - tend to end a couple of weeks before this. I'd guess they break up at the beginning of July (of course, that's only if JK's following Muggle school times!)
The wiki does not say where it gets the nine-week holiday from, and the Lexicon says that term ends in the third week of June, but again, there's no reference. Both those dates clash with the date of Dumbledore's death, and I think it would have been mentioned if all the students had to stay past the end of term for the funeral. In fact, going by the Lexicon's estimate, and in some years the wiki's, the students should not have been there the day Dumbledore died, but clearly they are. Thus, I think you can discount both the Lexicon and the wiki on this.
In book six, Harry celebrated his birthday at The Burrow. Harry only spent two weeks at Privet Drive that year, and it doesn't give a reference as to how long Harry had been at The Burrow before his birthday, but I'd say it has to have been a couple of days at least. Thus, term ends at least sixteen days before Harry's birthday, around July the fifteenth. It could well end earlier than that as that leaves only six weeks of summer holidays and private schools generally have more. I'd say some time in early July is the best bet for term ending for the Summer.
Sarah x
Brilliant. Thanks guys. This is just what I needed to know. I never really needed a specific date, just something general. All these dates fix the issue I was haivng. Thanks again. :)
We don't know a lot about the end of the year. We do know that school ends in the beginning of July.
Nidhi