It is no secret that the Harry Potter series is heavily influenced by the classics. JK Rowling studied Latin as a subsidiary subject at the University of Exeter, and often draws upon classical myth, rhetoric, and nomenclature in her writing. In particular, Rowling usually draws her magical words from classical Latin, and many of the translations shed light on the effects (both magical and literary) of these incantations. To celebrate Rowling’s imminent birthday, let’s investigate the Latin behind these spells, charms, and curses.

　　《哈利波特》系列受古典文学的影响很深，这一点人尽皆知。J.K罗琳在爱赛特大学时辅修了拉丁文，而且经常在她的写作中借鉴经典的神话、修辞和命名法。特别的是，罗琳经常从古典拉丁文中提取她的魔法词汇，许多译文都阐释了这些咒语在魔法和文学层面的影响。

　　Accio

　　飞来咒

　　This summoning spell literally means ‘I summon’ or ‘I fetch’.

　　这个召唤咒字面上表示“我召唤”或“我拿来”。

　　Confundo

　　混淆咒

　　This spell, used to confuse an opponent, literally means ‘I stir up’, ‘I confuse’，or ‘I bring an end to by upsetting. The range of translations reflects the scope of the spell, which can be used either to effect mild or fatal confusion.

　　这个咒语用来混淆对手，字面意思为“我煽动”，“我使…迷惑”或“我终结了……”。译文的范围反映了这个咒语的能力，它能产生的混淆能力可能温和也可能致命。

　　Crucio

　　钻心咒

　　This translates as, ‘I torture’. This spell is used to cast the Cruciatus curse, a torturing spell that is one of the three unforgivable curses in Harry Potter.

　　这个被译为“我折磨”。这个咒语用来施放使人痛苦的诅咒，一个折磨人的咒语，被认为《哈利波特》里三大不可饶恕咒之一。

　　Wingardium Leviosa

　　漂浮咒

　　This is a basic levitation charm. The first word is a blend of the English ‘wing’ with a creative adaptation of the Latin comparative of arduus, meaning ‘steep.’ The second word also requires a stretch of linguistic imagination, being an adaptation of the Latin levo, meaning ‘I lift’. There has been some disagreement as to the pronunciation of the spell.

　　这是一个基本的漂浮咒。第一个词混合了英语单词“翅膀”和拉丁语词汇arduus比较级的创造性改编形式，arduus意为“陡峭的，急剧的”。第二个词也需要一个引申义，“我举起”。这个咒语的读音有一些分歧。