Wizarding population of UK

[pengolodh_sc at yahoo.no]

No: HPFGUIDX 30253

--- In HPforGrownups at y..., raolin1 at h... wrote:
> --- In HPforGrownups at y..., pengolodh_sc at y... wrote:

[snip]

> Ah, how could I possibly resist responding to someone who goes
> by the name of Pengolodh -- if nothing else just to mention that!

Well, it is my first screenname, dating back to 1998, although I also 
operate under the names of rhodhry, kirdan (naval architect in 
training as I am) and prince_galrion.

> Er, anyway...  if I understand you correctly, you came to a
> number that was more or less twice mine by assuming that wizards
> live (on average) twice as long as Muggles.  And this is based
> on Dumbledore's age?  

That, and the fact that Dumbledore is still young-acting, indicating 
that he should have a long way to go still (assuming no external 
intervention, such as a curse from the hands of Voldemort, or 
suchlike), and the fact that Professor McGonagall's is 70, but the 
impression I got of her from the books made me put her down as 
roughly 40 (including the mention of the fact that she is black-
haired - I know of very few women who have black hair at age 70 by 
natural means, and Professor McGonagall does not strike me as the 
type to colour her hair).  JKR has also said that wizards do have a 
significantly longer life-expectancy than muggles, although I do not 
remember offhand whether she directly quantified it.  

> > We do not know that Hogwarts includes students from the
> > Republic of Ireland, since Seamus very easily could be from
> > Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom.
> 
> 
> Actually, we do know that.  The little JKR "biography" book
> (not the unofficial one, the one that they say is "official")
> that is in interview format clears that up.  

[snip]

Between you, John and that book, I'll just have to yield on this 
issue.


> My assumption, which likely is not really valid, is that the
> expansion of the age brackets and the inclusion of the Irish
> students cancel each other out, leading to a net-0 difference,
> or close enough to it.

No, I doubt that.  The Irish population is ca. 4 million, while that 
of UK combined is roughly 60 million, meaning that the Irish 
population is roughly 1/15th that of the UK population.  This si 
roughly 70 students in difference in a Hogwarts with 1000 students, 
and 700 in difference in a population of 10000.  

[snip]

Best regards
Christian Stubø