Summary

  • Harry's sassy attitude is more pronounced in the American version of the story, adding to his endearing traits.
  • Cultural jargon differences include Hagrid's "motorbike" becoming a "motorcycle" and Hermione's "fringe" being replaced with "bangs."
  • The biggest change was the title, from UK's Philosopher's Stone to US's Sorcerer's Stone, as American publishers thought "sorcerer" was more magical than "philosopher."

While the rest of Harry Potter's book titles remained the same, the first novel of the series underwent some serious change to be successful in the States, prompting viewers to wonder if Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone was better. Thankfully, the plot of The Chosen One's first story stays unchanged between novels, though there are a few key differences throughout the text. Several of the changes made were to transform British phrases and words like "trainers" into "sneakers" or "notes" into "bills." That being said, other amendments didn't seem to have just one source.

Watch on Max

With the Harry Potter film series, audiences got yet another iteration of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, which, in turn, made further adjustments. Now, with the Harry Potter reboot TV series in development at HBO, Harry's tale will undoubtedly see more variations. This will see switch-ups in the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone cast, which should be the plot of season 1. For those catching up with the book series before the TV show premieres, some key differences should be noted for the Philosopher's Stone vs. Sorcerer's Stone.

Related
10 Scenes In Philosopher's Stone That Become Important Later In Harry Potter
The later part of the Harry Potter series is full of surprising plot twists, many of which found their roots way back in Philosopher's Stone.

Harry's Sass

Harry's Sass Is More Pronounced In Sorcerer's Stone

Daniel Radcliffe as a sullen Harry Potter and Emma Watson as an eager Hermione Granger, raising her hand, in Potions class in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

It may not be well represented in the movies, by Harry's sassy attitude is one of his more endearing traits when it comes to Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone. But apparently, Harry's cheek is more pronounced in the American version of the story. For example, during their first potions class, Snape calls on Harry to ask him a ream of tedious questions that he clearly doesn’t know the answer to. Hermione, on the other hand, is eager to answer his questions.

In the Sorcerer's Stone film, Harry simply glances over at Hermione and says “I don’t know, sir." In the American version of the Harry Potter book, Harry says. “Clearly, Hermione knows the answer. You ought to ask her." In the UK version of J.K. Rowling's novel, he says, “I think Hermione knows the answer, why don’t you try her?" The UK version and the Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone movie take a more polite tone, but Harry’s attitude in the US version is more fun and falls in line with his later behavior in the books.

Hagrid's Ride

This Change Reflects Cultural Vocabulary

Rubeus Hagrid on his motorbike in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Hagrid’s motorcycle is one of the first magical objects seen in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone. Readers later learn that this is the bike of Sirius Black, who loans it to Hagrid in order to get Harry to the Dursley's safe and sound. However, depending on the version of the book, Hagrid‘s bike has two different names. Again, this is a subtle difference and is only changed due to different cultural jargon. In the UK version, Hagrid‘s ride is referred to as a 'motorbike', while in the US addition, they call it a 'motorcycle'.

Hermione's Appearance

The Description Reflects British And American Word Choices

Hermione‘s appearance is also slightly altered in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone as well. Besides being dubbed the “brightest witch of her age," Hermione’s description in the books is, “lots of bushy brown hair, and rather large front teeth". Throughout the novel, there are also references to her “fringe” and some other key features. In Harry Potter and the Sorcerer‘s Stone, readers won’t find the same exact description, as the term "fringe" is replaced by the word “bangs” instead. Once again, this is simply a switch from British to American English.

Mrs. Weasley's Christmas Gift

"Jumper" Has Different Meanings In Different Countries

Harry Potter on Christmas Morning opening his Invisibility Cloak and wearing his Weasley sweater

Harry's first Christmas at Hogwarts is a happy one. It’s the first time that he gets a few presents of his own, the best of which is the Invisibility Cloak. He also gets a few other things, like a few pence from his aunt, Petunia Dursley, and a dazzling sweater from Mrs. Weasley.

In the UK version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, he receives a "jumper" from Mrs. Weasley. This is simply a Britishism being changed for a US audience - as in the US, a 'jumper' is a type of sleeveless dress. However, in the UK, a 'jumper' is what Americans would call a 'sweater'.

Related
Harry Potter: 8 Ways The Sorcerer's Stone Is Actually A Christmas Movie
Is Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone a Christmas movie? These are some solid reasons to back up the case for it being a perfect holiday movie!

Hogwarts Acceptance Letter

The Letters Feature Slightly Different Wording

Owls deliver hudreds of letters to Harry at Privet Drive in Harry Potter & The Philosophers Stone

Harry's Hogwarts acceptance letter is also written a bit differently in each version. The letter that Hagrid tries to deliver to Harry comes with his standard acceptance letter signed by McGonagall as well as a list of supplies. It’s separated into three sections: Uniform, Course Books, and Other Equipment.

In Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, the "course books" for the Hogwarts Curriculum are referred to as "set books." In addition, the letter is signed "Prof M McGonagall" in the UK version and "Professor M McGonagall" in the US edition. The books are another cultural difference, although there seems no real reason to shorten 'Professor.'

Luggage On Platform 9 3/4

Cart Vs. Trolley

Harry Potter pushing his trolley down King's Cross in Harry Potter and the Philospher's Stone.

Harry conspicuously wheels his own luggage rack in King’s Cross Station to get to Platform 9 3/4. This rack containing his spellbooks and his owl, Hedwig, is called a "cart" in the US Edition of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, while in the UK version, Harry is pushing a "trolley".

Likewise, the Hogwarts candy cart is called the trolley in the UK version, though, they did choose to keep that verbiage in the US version of the movie as well. This was likely to give more of a British flair to the language, as it's not a change that would cause confusion.

Dean Thomas' Description

Dean Thomas Created An Editing Error

Dean Thomas sitting next to Fred and George in the Great Hall in Harry Potter

One of the most glaring differences between Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone is Dean Thomas’s description. In the UK, the book simply says, “[...] three people left to be sorted. Turpin, Lisa became […]". While the US version adds in another character, and reads, “[...] three people left to be sorted. 'Thomas, Dean,' a Black boy even taller than Ron [...] 'Turpin, Lisa' became […]".

In fact, it wasn't just Dean's description that was cut from the books - Rowling later revealed (via MuggleNet) that he was originally a much bigger part of the story. This alteration also created an error in the US versions, as Dean's sorting was added in, but the number of students left to be sorted was kept at three, rather than being changed to four.

Dean Being Sorted

Dean Is A Gryffindor

To add further to the Dean Thomas (Alfred Enoch) mystery in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, it wasn't just his name and description that was omitted from the British version of the book. For some reason, they also cut out which house he was sorted into as well.

In the US version, it is stated that he joins Harry in the Gryffindor house, clearly aligning him from the start. Yet that doesn't happen in the British version, with the entire character being cut from Sorting - which makes things a little more confusing later on, as Dean appears in the book in Harry's year, but was not mentioned.

Related
“I’ve Got No Proof He Was A Wizard”: The Tragic Backstory Of Harry Potter’s Dean Thomas 
Dean Thomas was considered a Muggle-born throughout the Harry Potter books and movies, but his original backstory would have changed all that.

Sherbet Lemons

Sherbert Lemons Are Not Common In America

This is a fairly small detail, but the sweet, Sherbet Lemons just so happen to be a firm favorite of Professor Dumbledore, which he mentions throughout the franchise. In the British version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, the sweet is called a sherbet lemon, which is a hard, sour, lemon-shaped sweet that has lemon fizzing powder. However, these sweets aren't common in America, and because of that, it was changed to a lemon drop for more people to understand what was being discussed when this particular confection came up.

The Font Of Certain Passages

Letters Reflect A Character's Handwriting

A image of a page of text in Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone depicts the different fonts used for one letter and the regular story text

Any time a letter is written in the US version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, the font is changed to a different script depending on who is writing the letter. There are plenty of different fonts throughout the entire book, with Hagrid having his own rough "handwriting" compared to Professor McGonagall’s elegant scripture.

In the UK version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, the letters are simply changed to an italic font with no other special fonts used to represent each character. This may have been an issue of practicality, as the publisher may not have wanted to put the extra effort into creating fonts for specific characters for the first book in a series that wasn't guaranteed to be popular.

Hogwarts Text Books

The Number Of Magical Herbs Grows In The US Version

Luna Lovegood and Hermione Granger holding books in the Harry Potter Movies

One Hogwarts textbook has a different name between the UK and the US version of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone. Towards the end of the novel, Harry is studying for his finals and looking up the word 'Dittany' in the textbook 1,000 Magical Herbs and Fungi. In the UK version, 100 Magical Herbs and Fungi is the title of the textbook.

This is one of the few books that has yet to find its way onto Muggle bookshelves, however, like Quidditch Through the Ages or Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them. Regardless, it seems that the US version is the preferred title for most fans.

Quidditch Descriptions

Quidditch Items Are Compared To Different Sporting Equipment

When Oliver Wood first teaches Harry about the noble Wizarding sport of Quidditch in Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, the description of Quidditch items like the Quaffle and Beater's bats changes.

When Harry first encounters a Quaffle, he describes it as being the size of a 'soccer ball' in US versions. Of course in the UK version, it's identified as being 'football' sized. Again, when Harry picks up a Beater's bat to knock away a Bludger, the US edition says the instrument can be compared to a 'baseball' bat, whereas the UK edition calls it a 'rounders' bat.

Philosopher Versus Sorcerer's Stone

The Title Is Changed

Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone book cover

By far the most popular question that readers have is whether the proper title is Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone or Sorcerer's Stone, as cases can be made for both. It seems strange enough that book publishers are willing to change such minimal details in the books in order to make it more understandable for children in the UK and the US. However, having completely separate book titles is something that is rarely done.

The simple fact of the matter is that US publishers changed the title of the first Harry Potter book because they thought that the word "sorcerer" sounded more enticing and magical than the word "philosopher." At the time, the belief was that American kids would have more familiarity with the term "sorcerer" than they would "philosopher", therefore, making it more likely for them to pick up the first Harry Potter book at the store.

  • Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone Movie Poster
    Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
    Release Date:
    2001-11-16
    Director:
    Chris Columbus
    Cast:
    Daniel Radcliffe, Rupert Grint, Emma Watson, John Cleese, Robbie Coltrane, Warwick Davis, Richard Griffiths, Ian Hart, John Hurt, Alan Rickman, Fiona Shaw, Maggie Smith
    Rating:
    PG
    Runtime:
    152 Minutes
    Genres:
    Adventure, Family, Fantasy
    Writers:
    J.K. Rowling, Steve Kloves
    Story By:
    213461
    Budget:
    $125 Million
    Studio(s):
    Warner Bros. Pictures, Heyday Films, 1492 Pictures
    Distributor(s):
    Warner Bros. Pictures
    Sequel(s):
    Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire, Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 1, Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows - Part 2