Type: Charm
Pronunciation: oh-BLI-vee-ate
Description: Erases specific memories.
Seen/Mentioned: First seen in 1993 when used by Gilderoy Lockhart on Harry and Ron; the spell backfired due to a faulty wand, costing Lockhart most of his own memory. Also, Hermione Granger used this spell to wipe her parents memories in 1997. Again, it was used in 1997 when Hermione Granger used the spell on 2 Death Eaters who had followed Harry, Ron, and Hermione after their escape from Bill Weasley's and Fleur Delacour's wedding.
Etymology: Latin oblivisci, "forget". The spell is most often used against Muggles who have seen something of the Wizarding world.
Notes: Memory Charms are confirmed on J.K. Rowling's website to have been developed by a witch named Mnemone Radford, who became the Ministry's first Obliviator. The Ministry of Magic employees assigned to modifying the memories of Muggles are called Obliviators. The charm can be broken by powerful magic, or extreme duress, as Lord Voldemort was able to torture Bertha Jorkins into remembering details that Barty Crouch Snr had forced her to forget using the charm. In this case, it was also shown that if the charm is too powerful, it can cause the target to develop a bad memory. This spell differs from the False Memory Charm.
