What happens at Bolvangar?

Children are cut from their daemons

Daemons Quiz: His Dark Materials and Soul Companions

This daemons quiz explores the animal companions at the heart of Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials. Play an interactive set of 10 questions on Lyra and Pantalaimon, shape-changing childhood daemons, settling, Mrs Coulter's golden monkey, Lord Asriel's snow leopard, witches, Bolvangar's cruel experiments and Iorek Byrnison's armor.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Author
Who wrote His Dark Materials?
Daemon
What is a daemon in the books?
Pan
What is the name of Lyra's daemon?
Change
What can children's daemons do?
Settle
When does a daemon settle into one form?
PanForm
Which animal does Pan finally settle as?
Coulter
What form does Mrs Coulter's daemon take?
Asriel
What is Lord Asriel's daemon?
Cut
What happens at Bolvangar?
Bear
What does armored bear Iorek Byrnison have instead of a daemon?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Who wrote His Dark Materials?
Answer: Philip Pullman
The first book came out in 1995.
Q2: What is a daemon in the books?
Answer: A person's soul in animal form
It lives outside the body.
Q3: What is the name of Lyra's daemon?
Answer: Pantalaimon
She calls him Pan.
Q4: What can children's daemons do?
Answer: Change shape
They shift between animals.
Q5: When does a daemon settle into one form?
Answer: Around adolescence
It reflects the person's nature.
Q6: Which animal does Pan finally settle as?
Answer: Pine marten
It happens in the last book.
Q7: What form does Mrs Coulter's daemon take?
Answer: A golden monkey
It is silent and cruel.
Q8: What is Lord Asriel's daemon?
Answer: A snow leopard
Her name is Stelmaria.
Q9: What happens at Bolvangar?
Answer: Children are cut from their daemons
The process is called intercision.
Q10: What does armored bear Iorek Byrnison have instead of a daemon?
Answer: His armor
Bears make armor as their soul.

Daemons Quiz – His Dark Materials and Soul Companions

In Philip Pullman's His Dark Materials, which begins with Northern Lights in 1995, every human has a daemon, a soul that lives outside the body in animal form. Person and daemon cannot move far apart without pain.

Children's daemons change shape freely, then settle into one form around adolescence. Lyra's daemon Pantalaimon finally settles as a pine marten, while Mrs Coulter's is a golden monkey and Lord Asriel's a snow leopard.

At Bolvangar, cruel scientists cut children from their daemons in a process called intercision. Witches can send their daemons far away, and armored bears like Iorek Byrnison have no daemons, treating their armor as their soul.

What This Quiz Teaches

Book fans will enjoy these questions.

What daemons are
How they change
Who owns which daemon
What happens at Bolvangar
Who lives without one

Did You Know?

Daemons are often of the opposite sex to their humans.
Lee Scoresby's daemon is a hare named Hester.
Touching another person's daemon is taboo.
The series was adapted for BBC and HBO television.
The Book of Dust continues Lyra's story.