In the book Harry Potter and Philosophy, the editors
write in the introductory article The
Magic of Philosophy:
Philosophers,
both Muggles and non-muggles, love Harry, which is more fitting than one might
imagine. When the first Potter book was published in the United States, the
subtitle The Philosopher´s Stone was changed to The Sorcerer´s Stone. The rationale
was that Americans would be put off by reference to philosophy. Philosophy it
was thought, evokes esoteric and daunting images of the ivory tower. This may
have been a miscalculation.