(born
C. 1973 ) is a
Fictional Character in
J. K. Rowling 's ''
Harry Potter '' novels, first appearing in ''
Order Of The Phoenix '' (2003).
Tonks (who despises her first name) is a vivacious young woman in her twenties who is an
Auror and
Order Of The Phoenix operative, as well as a
Metamorphmagus . She can alter her appearance at will and makes heavy use of this knack, not only as a phenomenal gift in the art of disguise but for the lighter purposes of experimenting with her appearance and entertainment. She is not good at household spells and is also notoriously clumsy.
By heritage Tonks is a
Half-blood , being daughter to
Pure-blood Andromeda (née Black) Tonks and
Muggle-born Ted Tonks.
Tonks will be played by actress
Natalia Tena in the movie adaptation of
Harry Potter And The Order Of The Phoenix , due out in 2007.
Tonks was not a member of the original Order due to her young age. She schooled at
Hogwarts , and must have been a very good student to meet the standards required for her later profession - although she was not made a
Prefect due to her inability to behave herself. She was a classmate of Charlie Weasley, as she entered Hogwarts the same year he did, in 1984. It is not known what house she was in.
Tonks left Hogwarts in the summer of 1990, then applied for Auror training. She subsequently underwent three years of
Ministry Of Magic 's Auror training, where she's known to have passed Concealment and Disguise effortlessly but met trouble with Stealth and Tracking. She qualified as an Auror in 1994.
Tonks is a born Metamorphmagus, which means that she can change her appearance at will. This is the main reason why she passed Concealment and Disguise so easily during her training. Although her features can change, her actual appearance is that of a pretty, pale-skinned young woman with dark eyes (courtesy of her Black heritage), and brown hair. She first appeared with purple hair in the fifth book, and later changed it to bright pink.
Tonks is introduced as an Order member and secondary character in ''
Order Of The Phoenix ''. At the time, she and a senior Auror,
Kingsley Shacklebolt , were covert spies in the
Ministry . Indiscreet action would have cost them their positions due to the prevailing (and misguided) anti-Dumbledore policy, but they were able to supply intelligence.
Tonks fought the
Death Eaters at the
Department Of Mysteries together with
Alastor Moody ,
Sirius Black ,
Remus Lupin and
Kingsley Shacklebolt . She was injured by her aunt,
Bellatrix Lestrange , and despite Moody's ministrations had to be taken to
St. Mungo's hospital. She was fully healed and released, and a short time later got together with
Alastor Moody ,
Remus Lupin and some of the Weasleys to confront
Vernon Dursley about Harry's treatment at
Number Four Privet Drive .
During '' changed some time after the battle from an unknown form to a large, hairy, four-legged creature. Such changes were held to be evidence of extreme shock or strong emotions. It was presumed that this was due to the death of
Sirius Black , her cousin, that she felt responsible for as she had failed to finish off Bellatrix Lestrange, whom she had dueled with and been incapacitated by prior to Lestrange's murder of Sirius. Harry even speculated that she might have been in love with him - not the least since her Patronus resembled Sirius'
Animagus form.
After
Albus Dumbledore 's death, it was revealed that her strange behaviour was due to
Remus Lupin refusing her love. She did not care that he was a
Werewolf , which meant that he was not only potentially dangerous but unable to find work because of the extreme prejudice against werewolves, and consequently was poor. Nor did she care he was much older than she was. He, however, believed that she deserved someone younger and safer and able to provide her with more. It is now believed by many that Tonks's patronus was a werewolf and also that her hair had turned mousy as a reflection of Remus Lupin's grey-streaked brown hair. At Dumbledore's funeral at the end of ''
Half-Blood Prince '', they are seen holding hands and her hair is also once again pink, indicating that her depression has passed.
''Nymphadora'' literally means "Gift of the
Nymphs ". Nymphs are guardian spirits in Greek mythology who rule trees, sacred
Grove s, streams and the ocean. During the
Renaissance , northern Europeans equated the classical nymphs with their own legends of
Elves .
Shakespeare 's ''
A Midsummer Nights Dream '' sees traditional English elves like
Robin Goodfellow alongside
Greek nymphs as servants of
Diana (
Titania ). If we therefore read "gift of the nymphs" as "gift of the elves", this echoes the ancient myth of babies stolen by elves and replaced by hideous monsters called
Changeling s. The metamorphic Tonks could be described as a "changeling".
'Nymph' is also the name of the immature stage of a dragonfly or damselfly before it molts, metamorphosing into a winged adult.
Tonks is the daughter of a pure-blood witch, Andromeda Black-Tonks (who was born into the old Black family) and a Muggle-born wizard, Ted Tonks.
The Black Family greatly valued
Blood Purity and therefore disowned Andromeda for marrying Ted. For this reason, Andromeda is considered a blood traitor by the old wizarding families. As a product of this union, Nymphadora Tonks is a half-blood. The prejudiced pure-blood families look down upon non pure-blood magic users - the Black's family house-elf,
Kreacher , refuses to take orders from Nymphadora Tonks.
Tonks gets on well with
Harry ,
Hermione , and
Ginny - she is in fact very similar in mannerisms and personality to Ginny. Many fans have concluded that her (and Hermione's) role is in part to act as an older sister for Ginny, the only girl in a family with seven children. In ''Half-Blood Prince'', Tonks revealed that she is in love with Remus Lupin, but was frustrated and depressed as he felt he was too old for her.
Neither of her parents have appeared in the novels so far, and almost nothing is known about their personalities, or whether they are even alive. Tonks mentions that, while Andromeda had a talent for cleanliness, Ted was "a right old slob". Andromeda is also responsible for naming their child Nymphadora, a name the latter utterly detests.
Andromeda was
Sirius Black 's cousin, making Sirius Tonks's first cousin once removed. Andromeda was Sirius' favorite cousin, but unfortunately Tonks never had a chance to really get to know him, as he was imprisoned for most of her life. Andromeda's sisters,
Narcissa Malfoy and
Bellatrix Lestrange are Tonks's aunts.
Draco Malfoy is her first cousin, and Lucius Malfoy and Rodolphus Lestrange are her uncles by marriage.
A full version of the Black Family tree can be found here -
The Black Family Tree
