The Occamy is a serpentine-bodied creature with wings that may reach up to fifteen feet in height. The Occamy is extremely aggressive to anyone who approaches it, and lives off of rats, birds, and occasionally monkeys. It is extremely protective of its eggs, which are made of the most pure and soft silver. It is found in the Far East and India. It is commonly mistaken for, but is not a dragon.
Etymology[]
The word "occamy" is derived from the name of the English philosopher Occam, who invented the methodological principle "Occam's Razor", which asserts that when evaluating two competing explanations for a situation one should accept the one that requires least assumptions to be made (or, in other words, nothing should be presumed to exist that is not absolutely necessary for explanation).
As such, the naming of this creature as an "occamy" is a joke on the part of J. K. Rowling, since the existence of the occamy itself (and just about every other creature described in Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them) has no reason to exist and came into being solely for the sake of fleshing out the aforementioned book.[1]
Appearances[]
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (Mentioned only)
- Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them (movie)
- Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Mentioned only)