14 Dates Significant To All Harry Potter Fans

Potterheads everywhere have marked their calendars for November 18, yet another date significant to all Harry Potter fans because it's officially the glorious day that Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them will be released in theaters. It may seem a long way off, but there are plenty of important Harry Potter-related anniversaries to keep fans happy in the meantime.

From their unyielding loyalty to their insatiable curiosity, Harry Potter fans are unlike any other fans out there. They not only read the books and watch the movies — they also travel to theme parks, visit the Pottermore website regularly to make sure they're still being sorted into the right house, and even vote on the best spell from the series. Harry Potter fans are constantly familiarizing themselves with the immersive wizarding world, and they really know their stuff. A secondary character's backstory, the name of a curse, the date of an important battle — you name it, and true Potterheads know it. Ask them their aunt's birthday IRL, and you might not get the right answer, but they'll never forget the day The Boy Who Lived, well, lived.

Get our your calendar and your pen, because you're going to want to mark these 15 dates all Harry Potter fans should know.

1. July 31, 1965/1980

That's right, two of your favorite people share the same birthday. J. K. Rowling was born on July 31 in 1965, and Harry Potter was born on the same day 15 years later. July 31, 1991, also marked the day Harry found out he was a wizard. And you thought Independence Day was the only holiday in July.

2. October 31, 1981

Throughout the years, Halloween has been a significant date in the world of Harry Potter. In 1981, it was the fateful day James and Lily died but Harry lived, and 10 years later, it was the day Harry, Ron, and Hermione fought off a troll in the girl's bathroom and officially solidified their lifelong friendship.

3. September 19, 1979

When I found out Hermione Granger's was born on September 19, my half birthday, I knew we were kindred spirits. One of the many important birthdays Potterheads know by heart, I definitely have this one memorized.

4. March 1, 1980

Ron Weasley likes older women, apparently. Born on March 1, six months after his future wife, Ron is a Pisces, which given his personality, makes total sense.

5. December 31, 1926

Only Lord Voldemort could completely ruin New Year's Eve. Born on that day in 1926, the Dark Lord aka Tom Riddle would be turning 90 this year. Thankfully, he's long dead and New Year's Eve can be about champagne and fireworks, not Death Eaters and horcruxes.

6. July 24, 1991

When Harry Potter got his first Hogwarts letter on July 24, 1991, readers everywhere began hoping that someday, one of their own would come too. Unfortunately, Hogwarts was really only fictional after all, but fortunately, reading about it is just about as good as living it.

7. June 24, 1995

A year before the Ministry acknowledged Lord Voldemort's return, Cedric Diggory was killed by Peter Pettigrew on evil wizard's order at the final event of the Triwizard Tournament. For many, June 24 is the real start to the Second Wizarding War.

8. June 17, 1996

While fans will know June 17, 1996 as the day that the Second Wizarding War started, I will always remember it as the day that Sirius Black died. Out of all the emotional deaths in the HP universe, this one will always be one of the hardest to swallow, and one of the ones I won't forget.

9. June 26, 1997

On this day nearly 20 years ago, the world was changed forever when J. K. Rowling's Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone hit shelves in the U.K. The first book, only 223 pages long, would set in motion a literary phenomenon that would continue for generations of readers to come.

10. June 30, 1997

I still get a tear in my eye when I think about June 30, that fateful day that Albus Percival Wulfric Brian Dumbledore was killed by Severus Snape at the top of the Astronomy Tower. Oh June 30, you will always pull at my heartstrings.

11. May 2, 1998

No one will ever forget May 2, 1998, otherwise know as the Battle of Hogwarts. Many beloved lives were lost — R.I.P. Tonks, Lupin, Fred and more — but a very important victory was one.

12. July 15, 2011

After nearly 15 years of steady entertainment from the world of Harry Potter, the final installment in the film series, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 was released. A giant tear was shed from fans worldwide... that is, until we found out that Rowling wasn't done with the Potterverse, not even close.

13. September 1, 1991/2015

Last September, Harry and Ginny sent their son James Lupin off to Hogwarts where he was sorted into (gasp!) Gryffindor. Twenty-four years earlier in 1991, James's Harry stepped foot in Hogwarts for his first time, too. Here's hoping James doesn't get into as much trouble (or battled as many trolls) as his father did his first year.

14. November 18, 2016

The latest date to be added to the calendar, Potterheads are in official countdown mode to November 18 this year when we finally get to see Eddie Redmayne bring magizoologist Newt Scamander to life on the big screen. I never thought I'd want to skip summer, but can it be fall already?!

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