Muggle-born
A Muggle-born (No-Maj-born in the United States),[1] once known as a Magbob and also known by the pejorative Mudblood,[2] was a witch or wizard who was born to two non-magical parents. Their magical abilities did not seem to be at all affected by their Muggle parentage. On the contrary, many Muggle-borns were among the most talented witches and wizards of their age, such as Lily Evans and Hermione Granger.
The proportion of the wizarding population that was Muggle-born was on the rise throughout the Harry Potter series, and as a result of their growing population pure-blood families shrank in size and number.[3]
Magical origins[edit]
Muggle-borns inherited magic from a distant ancestor; they were descended from Squibs who had married Muggles and whose families had lost the knowledge of their wizarding legacy. The magic resurfaced unexpectedly many generations later.[4]
Because of the heritable traits of magic, Muggle-born siblings were possible, as in the case of Colin and Dennis Creevey. However, this was not always the case, as Lily Evans's sister Petunia was a Muggle.
When Muggle-born witches and wizards reached the age of eleven in the British wizarding community, their Hogwarts acceptance letters were delivered in person by a member of the staff, instead of by owl post (the usual postal system for wizards and witches). The purpose was to reassure the parents or guardians about the sudden news, and explain to them about the concealed magical society. They would also assist the family with the preparation for going to their desired wizarding school and for the buying of school supplies.[5]
