We've All Been Saying 'Voldemort' the Wrong Way

According to 'Harry Potter' author JK Rowling, that is
By Jenn Gidman,  Newser Staff
Posted Sep 10, 2015 9:40 AM CDT
Updated Sep 13, 2015 6:51 AM CDT
We've All Been Saying 'Voldemort' the Wrong Way
In this publicity image released by Warner Bros. Pictures, Ralph Fiennes portrays Lord Voldemort in a scene from "Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2."   (AP Photo/Warner Bros. Pictures)

Potato, potatoh, tomato, tomatoh, Voldemore, Voldemort—we may have to call the whole thing off over our pronunciation of the Harry Potter villain if what JK Rowling says is true (and we guess she would know). The series' author took to Twitter last night to address a fan who commented, "One piece of Harry Potter trivia I always forget to mention: the "t" is silent in Voldemort, according to @jk_rowling." Rowling appeared to confirm this assessment, writing back, "… but I'm pretty sure I'm the only person who pronounces it that way." This led to more excitement on Twitter than what you'd find at a Quidditch match, with fans bemoaning their faulty phonology and debating whether the silent "t" is really meant to be, per Mashable.

Francophiles piped in to back up the Rowling pronunciation, pointing out that "vol de mort" means "flight of death" in French (and the "t" is silent in the French pronunciation of "mort"). Others noted that the guy who recorded the first couple of Harry Potter audiobooks originally dropped the "t," though that changed after the first movie (which pronounces the "t") was released. The debate about this isn't a new one, with some saying Rowling has reportedly said she made the name up. Voldemort himself took to social media last night to address the issue by retweeting a 2010 comment he had made, which appears to settle it once and for all: "Yo my names Voldemort & the t is silent, but don't say my name or imma get violent." (Rowling has had to soothe French nerves in the past over the Voldemort moniker.)

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