Is Dunk related to Hodor? A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms theory explained

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I’ve seen this theory floating around that Dunk, the main character in A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms, might actually be related to Hodor from Game of Thrones. It’s not just because they’re both big guys, either – there’s actually some speculation about their family history.

This series takes place a century before the events of Game of Thrones and tells the story of Duncan the Tall, a humble knight, and his young companion, Aegon Targaryen – known as Dunk and Egg.

You can definitely expect to see a lot of names you recognize and connections to the other shows, but there’s this really popular theory that links Dunk to Hodor, who was one of everyone’s favorite characters in Game of Thrones. It’s pretty wild!

Why Dunk could be Hodor’s ancestor

Hodor’s birth name is Walder (known as Wylis in the TV series), and he’s the great-grandson of Old Nan. Many believe that Dunk met Old Nan when she was young while visiting Winterfell, they became close, and Hodor is a result of that connection – Dunk’s great-grandson.

The emotional “hold the door” scene in Game of Thrones Season 6 revealed how Walder became Hodor. However, the books offer a deeper look into his history. When Bran consumes weirwood paste and explores the past, he witnesses events at Winterfell that explain Hodor’s origins.

A slender, brown-haired girl reached up on her tiptoes to kiss a very tall young knight.

There isn’t a strong link between this girl with brown hair and Old Nan, but the detail about a ‘young knight as tall as Hodor’ really stands out.

In the books, Hodor is said to be seven feet tall, and Dunk is just under that height. This makes them both exceptionally tall – very few people in Westeros are described as being that size.

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I’m so excited about the Dunk and Egg stories! It’s amazing to learn that they actually travel to Winterfell in the fourth novella. George R.R. Martin shared on his blog back in 2014 that the story is set there and features a really cool group of Stark women – wives, widows, mothers, and grandmothers – he cleverly called ‘the She-Wolves.’

“The She-Wolves of Winterfell” was just a temporary title for the next story featuring Dunk and Egg. It won’t be released until after George R.R. Martin finishes writing The Winds of Winter.

We’re not sure of the exact timing, but this would likely happen around 80 years before the events in Game of Thrones, making the idea seem reasonable.

Don’t expect to see this connection confirmed in the A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms show anytime soon. George R.R. Martin still needs to write the story where Dunk travels to Winterfell, and it’s currently uncertain if the show will even cover that part of the books.

It’s not only Hodor, though; Dunk is also connected to another well-known character from Game of Thrones.

To learn more, you can find details on House of the Dragon Season 3, the upcoming series about Aegon’s Conquest, and a complete list of Targaryen rulers.

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2026-01-19 01:20