This topic is rather controversial. In an interview, J.K. Rowling stated that there are a thousand students in Hogwarts. This is supported by the fact that there were two hundred Slytherins supporting their house team in a Quidditch match. Also, in PoA, it is stated that there were at least a hundred carriages that carried students from the train station to the castle. To continue, there were 1200 seats in the Yule Ball.

However, there are a few problems with this number. First, there are only twelve professors in Hogwarts, and it would be impossible for them to teach a thousand students unless they have time turners (which they don't). In addition, if there are a thousand students, there would be around 150~200 students to sort every year (with Harry's class being the exception - their birth year was at the height of Voldemort's power, so many of their would-have-been classmates probably died prematurely. That might explain why Harry's class only has forty students). However, in PoA, it states that the sorting finished while Harry was having a quick chat with McGonagall and Pomphrey. Also, the sortings throughout the books doesn't seem to last very long.

In my interpretation, the number is around 400~600. The books are more canonical than the interviews to me, and this number seems to fit best overall.

 

It's never stated explicitly. She has said approximately a thousand IIRC, but if you extrapolate from Harry's year, its closer to 300.

 

But you should consider the fact that Harry's birth year was the height of Voldemort's power during the First Wizarding War. It was when the death toll was at the highest - with the most murders, casualties, disappearances, etc. Probably a lot of Harry's would-have-been classmates died with their families during the war. So, I don't think it would be too much of a stretch to say that Harry's class was a very below average in numbers, maybe even an all time low in comparison to other years. I think it would be more around 500~600, with around 80 students per year. That way, the numbers fit with the statistics from the books.

 

At the height of Voldemort's power it wasn't a war as such. It was basically a terrorist group. Aside from the disappearances and murders the only people really engaging the death eaters would have been the aurors and the Order.

It's certainly possible that Harry's year were culled in such a fashion but it doesn't fit well with my headcanon.

So now I have to write a fic where there are shitloads more students in Hogwarts for personal satisfaction.

Harry will of course use this Canon change to get up on all the new hoes.

 

Heh, most definitely. As you see, we posted at the same time, and mine was a much simpler estimate. I defer to your post, which was more thorough.

 

We see roughly 10 students per house, 40 students per year. Even doubling that to 80 per year is barely over 500 students. And, if we extrapolate farther, 7 years represents roughly 7.5% of the wizard population, which puts the number at an unbelievable and unaccountable low, unless there's a dozen other lesser british schools

 

I think we all need to just agree that the answer to this problem is both a combination of magic and the fact that math is not JK's strongest subject.

 

Except that they'd really only need one Time Turner for all of them assembled at staff meetings, held each day at noon and 6 pm. Sorta explains why they all look so old, too.

 

But McGonagall is described as having raven black hair. Flitwick might look old but he probably is.

 

Didn't Rowling say somewhere that there are more students in Harry's house and year group than are named have been named in canon?

 

Not many though. There's a Gryffindor girl called Laurasia who really must have been completely invisible because in seven years Harry never noticed her once.

Didn't even see fit to invite her to DA.

 

It never states specific numbers. If you take Harry's year as standard then you should have 30-40ish students per year.

EDIT: I'm dumb and didn't see the new page

 

Wait Laurasia exists outside of that one Big D oneshot?

 

Not according to the wiki. And while it is as bad a source as you can get, it tends to invent new canon, not forget some.

 

Laurasia was in JKRs notebook where she listed all the people in Harry's year. It was revealed a few yers back and Big D immediately wrote parting the continents.

 

How does Hogwarts compare in class sizes to the foreign schools?

 

Considering we can't even be sure about the class size of Hogwarts, it'd be damn near impossible to know the other school's info.

 

Actually, we do know something on the matter from the old Pottermore:

Unfortunately with the new Pottermore all the old material (and artwork) has disappeared, which means you have to go to the Pottermore wiki to find it.