Question: The sorting hat considered putting Harry in Slytherin. But if your parents or a past generation was put in Gryffindor, then wouldn't he have to be in Gryffindor? If not, then is it by luck that the Weasleys have been in the same house for so long?
moviefan2345
10th Mar 2011
Chosen answer: No, there's no specific requirement that any individual has to be in the same house as their paren'ts or siblings. It's not uncommon that that's the case, admittedly, particularly as character plays a major part in the sorting process, so individuals brought up in the same household might end up in the same house simply by virtue of bearing similar character traits, but there are a considerable number of examples of family members being in different houses. Sirius Black, for example, was sorted into Gryffindor, despite his family's traditional presence in Slytherin. The Patil twins, who one might reasonably expect to end up in the same house, ended up being sorted differently, Parvati into Gryffindor and Padma in Ravenclaw (in the book, in the movie they are both in Gryffindor). So while it's quite common that house assignment runs in families, it's by no means a certainty.
Tailkinker ★