Overview

The Taboo was a powerful jinx which designated a word as a key to revealing the speaker’s location.

Effects

The Taboo worked in a way similar to the Trace spell, the difference being that it was triggered when a specific word was spoken. It worked regardless of the age of the speaker and could disable weaker protective magical enchantments. However, it could not affect more powerful ones, such as the Fidelius Charm.

This spell controlled individuals as it provided a way to track down those who said certain words, which could cause great stress and terror. Thus, it was considered to be dark magic.

History

After seizing control of the British Ministry of Magic in 1997, Voldemort made his own name taboo. Since the only individuals who dared speak Voldemort’s name were members of the Order of Phoenix or their allies, anyone who broke the taboo would be hunted down as criminals. The Taboo allowed the Death Eaters and the Snatchers to track down their enemies.

Hermione Granger broke the Taboo while the trio were at Tottenham Court Road, which led two Death Eaters to their location, disguised as construction workers. Kingsley Shacklebolt broke the Taboo and had to fight off several Death Eaters before going on the run, which alerted the Order to the Taboo’s existence. Since then, the Order members refer to Voldemort with different names as a way to avoid detection.

Harry Potter broke the Taboo while they were camping during their hunt for Voldemort’s Horcruxes, leading to their capture by the Snatchers. Besides, it might be responsible for several other captures and deaths.

Credits/References

Written by Erland Lundberg
Base code by Andrew Sutherland, edited by Iselin Merilä and Desmond Gray.