What honorific title was J.K. Rowling granted after receiving an OBE in 2001?

J.K. Rowling was made an Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 2001.

The award is commonly abbreviated OBE. Rowling received it in the 2001 Birthday Honours for services to children’s literature. An OBE is the second-highest of the five classes in the Order of the British Empire, below a CBE and above an MBE.

Receiving an OBE does not make someone a dame or a knight. Those titles are associated with knighthoods and damehoods, which are different honours. Rowling’s award is therefore correctly described as Officer of the Order of the British Empire, not Member or Commander.

The recognition came before the publication of the final Harry Potter book and before the full film series had concluded. Rowling later received other honors, including the Companion of Honour in 2017, but the 2001 OBE remains one of the best-known early official acknowledgments of her literary work.