Here's Why Harry's Son Is Named After Snape

Harry Potter fans are divided on whether they are #TeamSnape or officially anti-Snape, but we are likely united in shock after reading Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows to see that our hero Harry Potter named his second son after the Hogwarts professor he was so often at odds with. But finally, J.K. Rowling explains why Harry names his son Snape — on Twitter, of course, because Rowling is the reigning queen of social media.

In the epilogue of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows, we see Harry talking to his son on the iconic Platform 9 3/4 as the child is heading off to study at Hogwarts. And here comes the shock: His son is named Albus Severus Potter. Um, what? Of course we know that Albus is an homage to the heroic headmaster Dumbledore (RIP), but Severus? After Snape? As Harry explains to his son:

Albus Severus, you were named for two headmasters of Hogwarts. One of them was a Slytherin and he was probably the bravest man I've ever known.

The Twitter discussion started when a reader, @FrazzyJazzy7, asked Rowling directly: "Why did you pick Snape to name Harry's kid after? I'm genuinely curious as he was nothing but abusive towards everyone." (We're with you.)

Rowling responded, because of course she did, she's awesome.

But still, readers weren't placated by this response. After all, yes Snape's love story with Lily gave us some of the most heartbreaking moments in the series ("Always"), but otherwise Snape was pretty awful to Harry. Rowling even admitted that yes, Snape took out his anger on Harry:

Luckily, Rowling went even deeper into the name decision after a social media fervor broke out:

Hopefully with The Cursed Child, which will focus on young Albus Severus Potter, coming soon, we'll get even more tidbits about his name and his future before long.

Image: Warner Bros; Giphy