Colour Change Charm

• Incantation: Unknown. (A non-canon incantation is used in supplementary materials; see Behind the Scenes).
• Pronunciation: Not applicable.
• Wand Movement: Not specified in the books.
• Light: Not specified in the books.
• Effect: Changes the colour of the target object or creature.
• Type: Charm.

The Colour Change Charm is a standard piece of magic taught at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and is a required component of the Charms curriculum for the Ordinary Wizarding Level examination.

• During their fifth-year O.W.L. practical Charms exam, both Harry Potter and Ron Weasley were required to perform this charm. Harry successfully turned a rat bright orange, which pleased the examiner, Professor Tofty. Ron managed to turn his rat “a sort of yolky yellow.”
• In 1996, a headline in the Daily Prophet revealed that the Ministry of Magic was considering placing Colour Change Charms on all its owls. This was proposed as a security measure to allow for the tracking of inter-departmental memos during the height of the Second Wizarding War.

The Colour Change Charm is evidently a spell of moderate difficulty, achievable by a competent fifth-year student under exam conditions. It is a fundamental part of a witch or wizard's general magical education. No specific counter-spell or reversal incantation is mentioned in the novels. It is possible that a general-purpose counter-spell like `Finite Incantatem` would be effective, or that the charm could be undone by simply casting it again to restore the original colour.

The name of the charm in English is purely descriptive, stating its direct function of changing colour. As no official incantation is provided in the books, no etymological analysis is possible from the primary canon.

• The incantation Colovaria is used for the Colour Change Charm in several video game adaptations, including LEGO Harry Potter: Years 1-4 and Harry Potter: Hogwarts Mystery. The name is likely a portmanteau of the Latin words color (“colour”) and variare (“to vary” or “to change”). (video game)
• In the film adaptation of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, the practical O.W.L. examinations are condensed into a brief montage. The specific instance of Harry using the Colour Change Charm on a rat is not depicted. (film)