Half-giant

A Half-giant is a magical being that is the offspring of a human and a full-blooded giant. These individuals inherit traits from both parents, resulting in beings of immense size and strength who are significantly larger than wizards but smaller than pure giants. They often face significant prejudice within the wizarding world due to the brutal reputation of their giant kin. The two most prominent half-giants in the series are Rubeus Hagrid and Olympe Maxime.

Half-giants possess a unique combination of human and giant traits, which grants them distinct advantages and physical characteristics.

• Physical Stature: They are exceptionally tall and broad. Rubeus Hagrid is described as being twice the height of a normal man and nearly five times as wide. Similarly, Madame Maxime is of a comparable, enormous size, causing the ground to shake when she walks.
• Superhuman Strength: Half-giants possess a degree of the tremendous strength of their giant parent. Hagrid demonstrates this on numerous occasions, such as bending a shotgun barrel into a knot with his bare hands and punching his way through a locked door.
• Magical Resistance: A key trait inherited from giants is a natural and powerful resistance to certain forms of magic. This thick-skinned immunity makes them very difficult to subdue with spells. During an attempt by Ministry of Magic officials to arrest him, Hagrid was able to withstand a barrage of multiple Stunning Spells fired simultaneously by several wizards, which would have incapacitated any ordinary person.
• Magical Ability: Half-giants can be born with the ability to perform magic if they have a magical human parent. Rubeus Hagrid, whose father was a wizard, is capable of performing magic with his wand (concealed within a pink umbrella), though his abilities are somewhat unrefined due to his expulsion from Hogwarts. Olympe Maxime, the Headmistress of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic, is a very capable and powerful witch, demonstrating that half-giants are not inherently limited in magical skill.

The wizarding world at large holds deep-seated prejudice against anyone with giant ancestry. This is due to the violent, brutish nature of full-blooded giants and their historical tendency to ally themselves with Dark Wizards, most notably Lord Voldemort. This stigma forces most half-giants to conceal their heritage. Hagrid kept his parentage a secret for years, fearing it would lead to his dismissal from Hogwarts. When Rita Skeeter maliciously exposed his identity as a half-giant in the Daily Prophet, it caused a public outcry and nearly cost him his job. Olympe Maxime also goes to great lengths to hide her ancestry, angrily denying she is a half-giant when confronted by Hagrid and insisting she merely has “big bones.” Her secrecy is a testament to the pervasive and damaging nature of this prejudice in wizarding society.

• Rubeus Hagrid: The son of a wizard and the giantess Fridwulfa. He served as the Keeper of Keys and Grounds at Hogwarts and later the Care of Magical Creatures professor. He is a loyal friend to Harry Potter and a staunch member of the Order of the Phoenix.
• Olympe Maxime: The elegant and formidable Headmistress of Beauxbatons Academy of Magic. Though she publicly denies her heritage, her immense size and Hagrid's recognition of her as a fellow half-giant confirm her identity. She joined Hagrid on a mission to the giants on behalf of Albus Dumbledore.

In the film adaptations of the series, the great size of Hagrid and Madame Maxime was achieved through a combination of techniques, including forced perspective, oversized sets and props, and the use of body doubles wearing enlarged prosthetic heads and costumes. For example, former rugby player Martin Bayfield served as Robbie Coltrane's body double for Hagrid in long shots (film).