Ignatia Wildsmith

Ignatia Wildsmith (1227 - 1320) was a wizarding inventor and the creator of Floo Powder. During her childhood, she attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry and was sorted into Ravenclaw.

Early life
Ignatia Wildsmith was born in 1227, somewhere in the British Isles.

In her youth, she attended Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry from around 1238 to 1245 where she was sorted into Ravenclaw.

Adulthood
After her graduation from Hogwarts, Ignatia presumably studied further into Herbology and discovered the magical properties of the Floo plant. From it, she devised a magical powder, Floo Powder, which, when thrown into a fire, could transport wizards from one fireplace to another via a network of fireplaces

Death and post-mortem
Ignatia died in 1320, aged around ninety-three. In her honor, her achievement, the invention of Floo Powder, was recorded on a Chocolate Frog Card.

On September 1, 1991, Prefect Robert Hilliard welcomed the Ravenclaw first years to Ravenclaw Tower with a short speech in which he mentioned inventor Ignatia Wildsmith as one of the many notable Hogwarts students who had been sorted, like them, into Ravenclaw.

Etymology
Ignatia is a feminine form of the Late Roman name Ignatius which was derived from the family name Egnatius, which is of unknown meaning. The spelling was altered to resemble the Latin word for "fire", ignis.

Wildsmith is most likely an occupational surname that denoted a "wheelwright" or "maker of wheels".