Canon questions (was Blaise, Boy or Girl? )

[dfrankiswork at netscape.net]

No: HPFGUIDX 26822

Rowena:
>    So basically what this means is translators assumed
> Blaise was a girl. Would it be all right if I went on
> thinking of him as a boy?

It's OK by me.  But in all fairness we should ask ourselves the 
question, To what extent are translations canon?  IIRC, JKR 
criticised the Italian version for its translation of Dumbledore as 
Silencio.  I believe the sex of Blaise Zabini is an open question 
unless we get confirmation that the German or Hebrew translators 
consulted JKR.  Normal British usage of the rather uncommon name 
Blaise would be that s/he is a boy.

Handwriting: The British editions contain no handwriting, apart from 
the schoolbooks.  What is the status of the handwriting in the US 
editions?

David, who has only come across one person called Blaise (apart from 
Pascal, of course)