What was J.K. Rowling’s first Harry Potter manuscript called before publication?

J.K. Rowling’s first Harry Potter manuscript was titled Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone.

The novel was published in the United Kingdom in 1997 and introduced Harry, Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Hogwarts, and the central conflict with Lord Voldemort. It was Rowling’s debut novel and became the opening volume of the seven-book series.

Readers sometimes answer “Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone,” but that is the title used for the American edition and several related releases. Scholastic changed “Philosopher’s” to “Sorcerer’s” for the United States because editors thought the original wording might seem less accessible to American children. The plot and author are the same; the difference is primarily regional title usage.