Harry Potter Around the World Africa The Americas Asia Europe Iceland Middle East

Nahuel and Dario find Harry Potter in Buenos Aires, Argentina Photograph by Victoria Arwen Reprinted with permission of Harrymaniacos!

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The Harry Potter series by J. K. Rowling has become a global phenomenon over the past few years. As of 2001, the first book, Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, has been published in 39 countries and has been translated into 31 different languages.

This web site is based on a book exhibit that was originally developed at the Cooperative Children's Book Center, School of Education, University of Wisconsin-Madison, in the Spring of 2000. It has been has been re-created on our web site to show how Harry Potter looks in nations around the world, as well as to provide links to international web pages to give a sense of the books' global appeal.

We give special thanks to Victoria Arwen, Rina Cypris, Barbara Harrison, Navid Jafari, the Korean Harry Potter Club, Jamie Ahlman Ng, Ben Read, Joanna Sin, and the Sriwittayapaknam School for help with photographs, translation, and transliteration.

Portrait of Hermione by Anna, age 8, Estonia From Estonian Children's Illustrations of Harry Potter

Links of General International Interest Japan Braced for More Pottermania German Courts Keep Potter Fans Waiting Harry Potter International Potter a Hit in Non-English Speaking Countries International Cover Art: A Lesson Plan Harry Potter in Translation

 

How to Acquire Foreign Editions The best source, of course, is having a friend or relative in another country who can send you a copy. When that is not possible, you can always try going directly to the web page of a particular foreign publisher (we've provided links). Many of them make it possible to purchase books directly from them or provide links to online books stores in their countries.

A reader looks at a bookstore display in Shanghai Photograph by the Associated Press