Winter is coming and with it the need for hats. Sorting hats, that is, to determine what Hogwarts house you would be in (if you weren’t already in a Westerosi house). If you are wondering if this stemmed from a random in-office discussion then you are correct! You must be a Ravenclaw.
Join us as we determine which house the Game of Thrones characters would get sorted into. So everyone can enjoy the game, we’ll be avoiding spoilers by sticking with characters from the first three seasons of the show.
Another note: we won’t be figuring out every single character’s Hogwarts house because there’s kind of a billion of them. We encourage readers to fill in the blanks in the comments!
Ned Stark
The Stark family patriarch has as many kids as a Weasley and as much faith in the inherent goodness of people as a Dumbledore. If you push him he’s going to push back and odds are you’re not going to like how it turns out for you. He lasts as long as he can when surrounded by Slytherins, but in the end his faith that a Slytherin will keep his word is what proves to be his undoing.
He’s also probably good at Quidditch. Not that we’ll ever find out now.
House: Gryffindor
Daenerys Targaryen
Sold into slavery in exchange for an army, young Daenerys kept faith in herself and emerged as not only the general of said army but the only person in the world with dragons. Daenerys’s dragons herald the return of magic to the entire world and Daenerys herself continually parlays this into victories over those she wishes to conquer. And those she wishes to free.
But what does the future hold for Queen Daenerys? Can she rule without becoming a tyrant?
House: Gryffindor…for now.
Cersei Lannister
King Robert Baratheon’s sneering, spiteful queen is nobody’s friend—not even pre-teen Sansa Stark is fooled for long—and Cersei would have it no other way. Trust is a vulnerability and those who seek to sideline her tend to find themselves sidelined without even knowing who or why.
And yet, Cersei is not moved to these actions by ambition, a Slytherin’s defining trait, but out of loyalty to those she loves: her brother, her children, her self. She is content to toy with Ned Stark until he threatens her, and he doesn’t last long after that. She marries Robert and gets pledged to Loras Tyrell because she dare not move against her father. And her loyalty to her brother is…unquestioned.
House: Hufflepuff
Margaery Tyrell
The beautiful and accommodating Margaery Tyrell strives to be a friend to all, from the lowliest peasant to the highest king, regardless of how much of a psychopath they might be. But make no mistake, even when that friendliness seems genuine, Sansa, there’s an ulterior motive at work. Margaery learned exactly what she needed to know in order to endure becoming queen at Joffrey’s side. The Lannisters may have visibly won the game of thrones, but only Margaery and her grandmother seem to know that the game isn’t over.
House: Slytherin
Arya Stark
Of all the characters in Game of Thrones, Arya is perhaps the one we’ve actually seen undergo a “sorting hat” trial. Witnessing her father’s betrayal and death solidified her worldview in a way that few things can.
Still, Arya is tough to place. Her bravery is undisputed, but it is her loyalty to her family and her desire to avenge the good-hearted that motivate her actions.
Or is it? Arya is still growing as a person and although she recites the names of those she will kill every night, the more she recites them the more those names lose meaning. By the time Arya is ready to mow down all those who have wronged the Starks, vengeance may be the only thing she knows how to feel.
House: Hufflepuff…barely.
Tyrion Lannister
For a man who has defied death about once per season and found himself with his hands on the strings of all Westeros, Tyrion is astoundingly easy to place. He’s loyal, but only to those who he feels deserve it, and he can count that without even needing an extra nose. His ambitions and sense of bravery are also small in comparison to those around him. Books, traveling, efficient administration, and debauchery, that’s all he wants. Tyrion is definitely a…
House: Ravenclaw
Stannis Baratheon
What kind of asshole spends an evening raising a man to knighthood for saving his life, then taking his fingers for being a smuggler? One who believes in duty and rules to such an entitled extent that it poisons his mind. That obsession may have been born of loyalty to his brother Robert, but Stannis did not hesitate to take advantage of his brother’s death, or slay his younger brother Renly, even though he wished to be blind to said homicide. Stannis started a Hufflepuff, but he’s since become…
House: Slytherin
Catelyn Stark
Robb, listen to your mother next time she advises…oh. Never mind. Although seemingly divorced from the events of Westeros, Catelyn Stark is the only one in Robb’s camp with enough experience and foresight to give accurate guidance to his strategies. The Ravenclaw-ish Catelyn proves so consistently correct, in fact, that it almost feels as if Robb starts to ignore her advice just to have something new to do.
He’s eventually forced to deter her because Catelyn does more than formulate plans, she acts on them. It makes her sick to free Jaime, but she does because she knows it will serve a greater good. She doesn’t want to treat with Renly, but she knows the alliance is desperately needed. And she’s the only one who realizes what is about to occur at The Twins. She jumps into action immediately, trying to counter it and salvage something from the situation, and for a split second it feels like she might just succeed.
Catelyn spends her life fighting, giving in to despair only when she knows that her end has come.
House: Gryffindor
Samwell Tarly
Samwell screams Hufflepuff when he first shows up, and he is certainly loyal and kind when you give him a chance to be, but if he didn’t have to be outside ranging or sword-fighting, you’d find him shut away with a good book or six.
House: Ravenclaw
Theon Greyjoy
This jerk was raised by Ned Stark’s loving but firm hand and how does Theon repay Robb, his brother in spirit? By betraying him the first chance he gets and burning Robb’s castle down.
It would be easy to cast Theon as a Slytherin from those actions, but look more closely. Although Theon acts with ambition and selfishness when seizing Winterfell, he is distinctly uncomfortable having to play the tyrant conqueror day in and day out. When he kills at Winterfell it’s because he’s lashing out in anger or because he’s forced to by his peers. His guilt over betraying Robb and the family who raised him is plain, and when it comes time to “kill” Bran and Rickon, he ends up faking their deaths. The loyalty Theon feels to the Starks is ingrained.
And it’s the opposite between Theon and his real father. Theon rides into Pyke having assured himself that his father is obligated to demonstrate his loyalty to his family, and is shocked to his core to discover that this is not the case.
And as we will soon find out, loyalty is all Reek has to cling to.
House: Hufflepuff
Hodor
House: Hodor
Stubby the Rocket is the mascot of Tor.com and is like Hogwarts but for space.
Very interesting argument about Cersei. Arya however should be Gryffindor, since I think she is more defined by her bravery than loyalty. Revenging your dead parent may be inspired by loyalty but it’s much more an act of courage to fight anything in your path to reach your goal.
Aw, c’mom, guys. All those Hufflepuffs??? Really?
Ned Stark – so loyal it gets him killed – Hufflepuff
Daenerys Targareon – mother of dragons, khaleesi, etc. – Gryffindor
Cerei Lannister – whack-job sneak, raiser of psycopaths (she’s practically Narcissa Malfoy’s twin sister) – Slytherin
Margaery Tyrell – beauty in a duplicitious package, being tutored by a true player of The Game – Ravenclaw (or maybe Slytherin)
Arya Stark – brave, bold, and dangerous – Gryffindor
Tyrion Lannister – smart and resilient and but given to moments of true kindness, and a tendency to love unwisely – Ravenclaw or Hufflepuff
Stannis Baratheon – stick straight and principled — with a sense of duty and rightness that is never tempered by, say, humanity. He gave loyalty without question to his older brother, and now expects it to be given to him. He’s all that can be bad about – Gryffindor
Samwell Tarly – I gotta agree with Stubby on this one. Sam’s a Ravenclaw. He looks like a Hufflepuff, but he is definitely a Ravenclaw.
Theon Greyjoy is the poor, sad kid who didn’t get a letter to Hogwarts. He’s a squib, trying to survive in a world of really nasty wizards. He’d really, really like to be a Slytherin, but to no avail.
Hodor is the ultimate Hufflepuff. Hard-working and loyal and generous to a fault – Hodor!
Cersei is only loyal to herself. That’s all.
Um, no. She totally is. I don’t know if it comes across in the show but she is bitter as hell that her life is limited by her gender (she’s Tywin’s oldest child and would otherwise inherit Casterly Rock) and does everything she can to gain and maintain power (with varying results.)
Yeah, I don’t agree with that assessment of Cersei in the slightest. She is all about ambition, and she is most assuredly not completely loyal to her brother either.
I disagree with almost all of these! You’re really reaching for traits to make each character fit into obviously predetermined houses. All the characters you like go into the popular houses, and the ones you don’t like go into Hufflepuff. Seriously? I think you’d be much better off reprasing the famous quote: “In the game of thrones, you’re a Slytherin or you die.”
@2 scaredicat – Completely agree about Ned Stark (and most others). If there was a textbook Hufflepuff, it is Ned.
As for Sam, I will go by Cedric Diggory and agree that Sam is a Hufflepuff.
And, Theon as Argus Filch? I can see that.
Who the hell is that picture of Stannis of?
Why is Tommy Wiseau from The Room used in place of Stannis?
Small squibble (ha) about Theon – when he kills at Winterfell, it’s because he’s a jerk. He would’ve killed Bran and Rickon if he’d found them. Instead he kills two innocent kids, which is even worse.
Blaming it on peer pressure is letting him off way too easy.
He might be a squib, but he’s definitely not a Hufflepuff.
Arya is definitely Griffindor :P
Dany shouldn’t be in these houses at all – I’d hazard a guess she’s from Beauxbatons.
And I would cast Petyr Baelish as the Golden Snitch. But that’s just me.
~lakesidey
Daenerys wants to conquor Westeros, and perhaps a few other places as well. Surely that is enough ambition to put her in Slytherin!
Especially as the Targaryens made so much of the purity of their bloodline, resorting to incest to avoid intermarriage with lesser breeds…
My favorite character, Varys, teeters between Ravenclaw and Slytherin for me. It’s all about wit with him, and while there are hidden bits of a Hufflepuffy loyalty to him when he’s not playing people against one another, it’s all for a greater purpose, a greater good, in his mind, and the dark paths he walks, the dark deeds he performs, lead him more squarely into the cunning side of Slytherin… perhaps it’s just my love of the character that i give him the benefit of the doubt that he’d deserve/earn recognition as a Ravenclaw.
Oh, Varys is definitely a Ravenclaw. Can’t you see him as a boy (a boy with a kinder, gentler back-story than GRRM’s version…), working out the riddles to get into the Ravenclaw Tower? He’s a master of riddles and man of secrets.
You look at Hufflepuff in the dictionary and Stannis’s picture looks back at you. Solid, uninspiring, rock hard plodder focused on doing what he views as his duty. No way is he a Griffindor. If anything else, he’s Slytherin for using dark magic to meet his goals.
“when it comes time to “kill” Bran and Rickon, he ends up faking their deaths.” – Uh, no. He doesn’t just fake their deaths, he kills two little boys who had nothing at all to do with any of it aside from the fact that he was sleeping with their mother (and presumably their parents, I can’t remember – or did he just try and pay them off instead?).
Also, it had nothing to do with loyalty, he would have killed them if he could have…
@7, Theon can’t be Filch, Walder Frey is already Filch.
I disagree with a lot of these, but Cersei in Hufflepuff is the worst offender! Cersei is totally motivated by her ambition – sure, she wants to protect her children, but it’s her own pride and selfishness that got them into danger in the first place!
And Ned is totally a Hufflepuff – he’s a good, loyal man trying to do his duty in a crapsack world. He’s brave as well, but that’s not his defining trait.
Arya is Gryffindor – Cat is also Gryffindor (she can be Ravenclaw at times, sometimes not)
Stannis is a problem – it depends on what you think his motivations are. If he’s motivated by duty, he’s a Hufflepuff, but if he’s motivated by ambition, then he’s a Slytherin. He has shades of Gryffindor as well.
Margaery is Ravenclaw or Slytherin (again, based on character interpretation). The show makes her more of a Slytherin, however.
Agree with Tyrion for Ravenclaw, and with Dany for Gryffindor.
Samwell Tarly is basically Neville Longbottom.
GRRRRRRRRRYFFINDOR!
I’m going to be one of Those People:
No Jon Snow? I understand not doing the lesser characters, but I think he’s a main character.
“You know nothing, Jon Snow.” Definitely not Ravenclaw.
He’s too earnest to be a Slytherin, and his intentions are always good, even if he doesn’t make the wisest decisions about them.
So, Hufflepuff or Gryffindor? Even though his loyalty is questioned at times (trying not to give too many spoilers here), I’d have to say that’s his defining characteristic.
So, I’d say, Jon Snow is a Gryffindor.
One of the greatest things about Game of Thrones is that its characters are so complex. Very few of them can be categorized as all good or all bad, so why would you think they could be sorted by such arbitrary characteristics as bravery, loyalty, ambition, and smarts? In this world almost everyone has a good amount of Slytherin in them (not Ned Stark), most have a good helping of Gryffindor (not Joffrey), almost all have a degree of Hufflepuff (not Theon), and quite a few are quite Ravenclaw (not Cersei). Many characters have a good helping of all four (Jon Snow, Tyrion, and Arya stand out). Some are most defined by some other trait that doesn’t fit the Hogwarts model at all (Stannis, Bran). And many are constantly changing or revealing more parts of their nature (Jaime, Sansa).
I’m just here to point out that you are using “cast” incorrectly to refer to a set of characters and not “the set of actors to whom the parts of a particular play are assigned.”¹
¹ “cast, n.”. OED Online. March 2014. Oxford University Press. http://www.oed.com/view/Entry/28530?rskey=kuDLSp&result=1 (accessed March 21, 2014).
With all due respect, you’ve misunderstood the essence of Hufflepuff house. Their defining traits are loyalty, fair mindedness, compassion and hardwork. They don’t mind not being at the forefront. Who does that resemble in Game of Thrones? Ned Stark, he is a Hufflepuff. Of course he is brave, but you can be a brave Hufflepuff and loyal Gryffindor, but it’s your defining trait that sorts you. Arguably is was Ned’s sense of honour and integrity that led to his betrayal and execution.
Cersei Lannister is not fair minded, she is manipulative and snobby. Theon Greyjoy is disloyal to the Starks and has very little compassion, the first thing he did when Ned executed Will was to laugh and kick his head- hardly Hufflepuff.
Regarding Jon and Robb (which I know you haven’t included) I think Jon is the Hufflepuff to Robb’s Gryffindor. Both are brave and courageous, but Jon has an ingrained sense of principles in that he refuses to sire a bastard because he doesn’t want him/her to feel left out. Robb is the natural leader/general and Lord of Winterfell, so I think he belongs in Gryffindor.
Arguably is was Ned’s sense of honour and integrity that led to his betrayal and execution.
Actually, it was Ned’s betrayal of his honor and integrity that got him executed. If he hadn’t agreed to lie, he would never have been on the Sept that day.
Not disagreeing with this statement and I find it one of the more tragic and ironic parts of the series, but, in a way, it was his honor that led him to give Cersei a chance to save the children, which then did lead to his plan getting foiled.
Poor guy got it from both ends…
Hodor goes into house Hagrid. A true buddy movie in the works if ever there was on.
Cersei Lannister Hufflepuff? I guess you haven’t watched Game of Thrones…or you know nothing about Harry Potter…like Jon Snow. Like seriously HUFFLEPUFF AND CERSEI?!
Theon Greyjoy is definitely a Gryffindor. He’s definitely not a Hufflepuff (a Hufflepuff wouldn’t have betrayed the Starks in the first place) or a Ravenclaw. I understand why some might think he’s a Slytherin, but consider this: He didn’t betray the Starks for power; he did it because he wanted the love of his father and wanted a real family. He also felt guilty about betraying the Starks later. Theon has shown bravery in multiple ways: First, he chose to fight the Bolton army of 500 men with an army of just 20 men, knowing perfectly well that he would die. Secondly, he killed Myranda and rescued Sansa/Jeyne Poole from Winterfell, even though it was extremely risky.
Theon is the Ron Weasley of Game of Thrones: Insecure, makes bad decisions, but is ultimately brave and a good person.
Sure, if your definition of a good person involves murdering two innocent children so that people don’t laugh at you….
Theon was always a dick. (hah, no pun intended…)
I think you misunderstand the qualities of Hufflepuff and just throw the word “loyalty” around too lightly. Cersei is definitely a Slytherin. She is manipulative af and only cares about herself and her family. Yeah, she’s “loyal” to them but so are Slytherins! Slytherins are just very selective about who they’re loyal to and usually they are of their own kind. Cersei has always wanted to be queen like we saw her in her flashback getting her prophecy so hell nah don’t tell me she plays fair or whatever. Ned is not a Gryffindor sorry, he screams Hufflepuff. While Gryffindor and Hufflepuff do share qualities like having a strong moral code, sticking up for friends and loved ones, and doing what’s right, what distinguishes Gryffindors from the rest are their quick tempers. They’re eager to jump into battle and usually just for the glory. This means they don’t plan ahead and can often find themselves in trouble. Ned never wanted to be Warden of the North and only took the position after his brother died. He doesn’t flaunt his status or relish his time in the spotlight at all. He’s humble and sees the kingdom as a giant family. Definitely a Hufflepuff. Arya and Theon on the other hand are total Gryffindors. Wtf do you mean Theon was “loyal” to the Greyjoys?? What about being loyal to your real family: the people that raised you as one of their own? He’s a total show off and takes Winterfell while faking Bran and Rickon’s deaths without thinking of the consequences. He never plans ahead but is finally able to do the right thing (as Gryffindors usually do) in the end when he kills Myranda and saves Sansa. But besides that the young Theon was proud to boast off his family name to women and didn’t value hard work at all. He believed he deserved everything because of his pompous nature. A total Gryffindor thing to do – like how they always think THEY deserve the House Cup. Arya is also hot-headed and jumps into things without thinking. Steal Joffrey’s sword and throw it in the water? Sure. Take a one way ticket to Braavos? Totally. Kill Ser Meryn Trant with a stolen fave even though the creepy cult leaders definitely told you that it would be breaking a billion rules and not even think that you might get caught and literally blinded???? Arya’s there all right. She wants to be a knight as a little girl and values bravery more than anything. You can have the traits of different houses but those traits aren’t exclusive to just one of them. And in the end what matters more is what you aspire to be and what characteristics you believe are the most important.