School cut-off date WAS:Riddle and Grindelwald in 1945

[Matt]

No: HPFGUIDX 109469

Udderpd wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
In the PoA Dumbledore refers to Harry and Hermione as two thirteen
year old wizards. Making her the youngest of the trio and her birth
year 1980.
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

"romulusmmcdougal" <romulus at h...> wrote:
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Yes, if you read Dumbledore's meaning that way, then yes they were
both 13 yrs old at the time.  However, there is another way that
Dumbledore can refer to them as "two thirteen year olds".  He can be
referring to them as "two thirteen year olds" in the same manner that
he refers to them as "two 3rd years".

<snip>

[Argument based on PoA screenplay including Ron among "13-yr-olds."]

<snip>

[Argument that it would be more "clever" for Hr's parents to name her
Hermione had she been born in 1979 rather than 1980]
<<<<<<<<<<<<<<

It's hard to tell whether you are trying to say that the story
(backstory?) would be better if Hermione had been born in 1979, or
whether you are actually arguing that Rowling intended for Hermione to
have been born that year.  As far as the author's intent goes, I
thought that the issue had been resolved by the CoS DVD timeline. 
Doesn't it give 9/13/92 as Hermione's 12th birthday?  Perhaps I'm
misremembering.  Anyhow, I can believe that JKR might have slipped up
and had DD refer to Hermione using the wrong age, but I have a hard
time believing that she reviewed the timeline and missed the age
reference.

-- Matt

P.S.  I had thought that Rowling's comment about Hermione's parents
trying to be clever was in reference to the obscurity of the name, not
to any particular significance:

"[I]t's a name from Shakespeare; it's in 'A Winter's Tale'....  [I]t
just seems the sort of name that a pair of professional dentists who
liked to prove how clever they were -– do you know what I mean -– gave
their daughter a nice unusual name that no one can pronounce!  I mean,
parents do that."

from 10/20/1999 Press Club interview, reproduced on Quick Quotes.