Durmstrang

From Absit Omen Lexicon

Durmstrang Institute is a school mentioned in the Harry Potter series. For canon information about this school, please visit the Harry Potter Lexicon.

This information provides a more specific look at life at Durmstrang and is considered Absit Omen canon.

The discussion thread can be found here.


Durmstrang Institute is a private magic school located in an unplottable site in coastal Norway or Sweden. Its reputation is at the same time quite morbid, but of the highest calibre. Students of Durmstrang are among the best in the world, and they won't let you forget it.


Academics

Three Magical Disciplines

Academics at Durmstrang are meant to create highly specialized experts, ready to begin employment or an apprenticeship. Students are funneled into one of three disciplines, and within each discipline a student is expected to find a niche.

Spellworks

The study of cast magic, either by wand, hand, word or mind. This includes charms, some enchantments, transfigurations, hexes, curses and jinxes. Also things like Occlumency and Legilimency, Animagus Magic, and Apparition.
Spellworks students go on to be Aurors, Enchanters, Curse-breakers, etc.

Tangibles

The study of naturally-occurring, or nature-based magic. Herbology, potion-making, Alchemy, Healing, Magizoology, Astronomy, Astrology, Divination.
Possible careers for this discipline include Alchemists, Healers, Diviners and the like.

Intangibles

The study of intellectual magic, or observational topics. History, Mythology, Magical Politics, Magical Culture, Arithmancy, Runish Studies, Muggle Studies.
These students usually find careers in magoarchaeology, business, politics, and academia.


Naturally, some of these topics are inter-disciplinary, and don't readily fall into one of the three categories. This tends to happen when you categorize things.


It is indeed an ambitious student who pursues two disciplines, and a very exceptional student who actually accomplishes a cross-discipline foray.

Professors

There are no Charms professors or Runes professors, instead professors teach many topics within one of the three disciplines. A Spellworks professor, or an Intangibles Professor, for example. As the students grow older, classes are taught with increasing specificity. General Magics Professors work with the younger students before the students choose their discipline.

Ignan Storm taught at Dumstrang for five years before moving to Hogwarts. His father, Merik Storm, was a revered Headmaster of the school, though had now retired.

Elvina Khoruzhenko (NPC) teaches potions at Durmstrang, commencing her post in 2006.

Course of Study

The students attend Durmstrang Institute for 6 years with the goal of achieving an apprenticeship. For the first two years, they study General Magic. In their third year, they must select which discipline(s) to study. It is possible to study 2, but intensely grueling to take work in all three.

The Strata

There are no Houses at Durmstrang. Older students do gain a sense of community from their selected discipline. But the biggest division between students is the Strata.

When students arrive at Durmstrang for their first year, they are tested by the Professors and placed in one of the three Strata.

Dregs

These are the lowest performing of the students. Placement in this group is a wake-up call, because the professors are not confident they will cut it. Dregs are required to attend extra study sessions. After the initial placement, the Professors have the ability to elevate a student who has improved her performance. Students cannot elevate themselves to Zufreiden. Dregs make up about 20% of the students.

The Zufrieden

This is the largest strata that makes up the majority of the student body. These students are performing at level without impressing anyone. It is very likely they will find an adequate apprenticeship. If they begin to slip in any major way, they may be moved down to the Dregs by a Professor. If they begin to impress, the Oberteils may choose to elevate them. Only staff may demote from here, only students may elevate from here. 70% of the students are usually Zufreiden.

The Oberteils

These are the elite; the best, brightest and most impressive students. These students are given access to special coursework (like Animagus training, or that kind of thing) and are nearly guaranteed to land a very prestigious position upon leaving school. The Oberteils are responsible for promoting and demoting from their own ranks. Staff do not remove students from the Obertiel. Obertiel make up approximately 10% of the school.


Your position was always precarious, and students rose and fell all the time depending on their skills, but also on the politics. Dregs have to impress Professors, and Oberteils and the average Zufreiden had to make nice with the current group of Oberteils.


It is a constant struggle to remain at the top.


In general, the Obertiels all meet to discuss matters of their strata, inducting new students or booting out old ones. This makes movement from their ranks less swift. However, professors move students in and out of dregs more swiftly, at their whim.

Notes

As you can probably tell, Durmstrang is very focused on career preparation. Getting young witches and wizards into productive areas of wizarding society. Some critics of the system say the students may not be as well rounded, but time and time again Drumstrang alumni are successful and influential members of the international Wizarding community. There is of course the shadow over all of it. For a long time the Spellworks discipline seemed to be training criminals and dark artists. And many Dregs are never able to pull out of that Strata and leave school aimless and jobless.

Discipline

Discipline at Durmstrang is harsh. Punishment is swift and decisive and there is very little one can do to talk your way out. However, what the professors choose to enforce and when is up to their whims. Favoritism abounds, and students often mete out their own version of discipline according to the internal social structure. Durmstrang students are by definition obedient - there is no other way to survive.

Sport

Students compete individually in dueling and in teams for Quidditch. Quidditch teams don't align with the Strata (that would be a poor match-up indeed), or discipline (there are only 3).

Uniform

Media:DurmstrangC.jpg

History

Durmstrang is very old.But it wasn't always in the castle - for a time early on it existed in what was once a monastery. It wasn't always the way it is now. In those early days it wasn't founded to be a formal school, but a safe place for masters to teach their apprentices. Later, witches and wizards began to live there just to study and teach. Some would come from very far away to learn there. It was two hundred years later that a school was officially founded. And some hundred years after that, they relocated to the castle under a new recktor - the same who created the Strata. Since then it gained a reputation for being the most exclusive magic school known to Europe.
—Ylva Maras
  • 1294 - Durmstrang competes in the first Triwizard Tournament
  • 1792 - Durmstrang competes in the last Triwizard Tournament before it is cancelled indefinitely.
  • 1958 - Summer, chronic infestation of gnomes burrowing under the foundations of the school which was dealt with by gassing and sending crups in after them. Gnome rights activists protested about this, much to the disagreement of Headmaster Storm, whom was of the opinion these activists wanted to give the gnomes hugs and houses.
  • 1994 - to 1995. Durmstrang competes in the revived Triwizard Tournament
  • 1995 - September, Headmaster Karkaroff does not return to Durmstrang, Auberon Eisenberg takes over as Headmaster.
  • 2003 - April, a simultaneous curse casting experiment by Melanthe Grumman and Ignan Storm results in a collapsed staircase and leaning tower until Ministry architects could rectify it. Ignan was docked the term's pay, and demoted for the trouble. Melanthe graduated soon after.
  • 2008 - September, several important artefacts in the spellworks classrooms were lost while Ignan Storm and Oberteils experrimented with curses. These had to be replaced at great cost to Durmstrang, and were partially funded by former student Melanthe Grumman. The Ministry were unimpressed at the loss, and also Ignan's wish to teach such experimental magic to teenagers.

Absit Omen Durmstrang Alumni

NPCs

  • The Strelnikovs, family of Demitria Strelnikov of Hogwarts. [1]
    • Darya Strelnikov (mother)
    • Maxim Strelnikov (brother)
    • Katrin Kovskya (future sister-in-law)
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