what canon means

[Steve Vander Ark]

> 
> The LOON-adopted Timeline is widely accepted, but it is *not*
> Canon!  I believe the evidence of Nick's Deathday cake is
> inconclusive, and other factors like the full moon on the night
> Wormtail escapes and Dudley's potentially anachronistic Playstation
> are more critical.  (See my posts in the main HP4GU List on the
> Timeline issue.)

I think you misunderstand the term canon. You are right, the use of 
the c.1991 timeframe or any real-life time frame creates 
inconsistencies, but that it what is stated in the book, so it is 
canon. 

Canon doesn't mean that a fact is completely without 
inconsistencies. It means that it's clearly stated that way in the 
books. Although there are inconsistencies with it (there are 
inconsistencies all over the books on many topics), that date is 
very clearly stated. 

That doesn't meant that no debate is possible--heck, that's what we 
DO!--or that it will keep it's classification of being "canon" 
forever. Whether it will hold up over the next seven books will 
depend on what JKR says or writes to prove or disprove it. It is 
canon for now, imperfect though it may be, simply because it says it 
in the books. Hermione being born in 1980 falls into the same 
category. It says so in the books, therefore it's canon, even though 
there are extemely good arguments either way. We'll just have to 
wait and see. And when JKR decides and lets us know, what she tells 
us will be canon regardless of the excellent arguments the other way.

Incidentally, the Playstation was available in Japan in 1994, so 
that isn't an anachronism. It fits the characters perfectly for 
Dudley to have received one before anyone else. And if we go with 
the astronomical/day of the week evidence, no set of years at any 
time will work. I know, I've tried to make it all fit and it simply 
doesn't.

Steve Vander Ark
The Harry Potter Lexicon
http://www.i2k.com/~svderark/lexicon