Abbreviations

Here's a list of the abbreviations we use throughout this site. We don't use page numbers since various editions have different pagination, but we do include chapter numbers whenever possible. PS3, then, refers to the third chapter of Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone.

If you want more information about these sources, visit the "Sources of Lexicon Information" page.

Related resources:
What is canon? from the Lexicon FAQ

The Harry Potter books by J. K. Rowling:
SS - Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone
PS - Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone
Why does the Lexicon use SS for its book one references, not PS? That's because Steve is from the United States and the US versions are the ones he used when he indexed and cataloged the first book. So what, you might say? It's important that you know which version we get our information from, since they aren't exactly the same. For example, we often refer to "the Minister of Magic" throughout the Lexicon, even though the British versions say "Minister for Magic."

Note that since the Lexicon staff has access to the U.K. editions of the books, some references are to PS while others are to SS.
CS - Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets
PA - Harry Potter and the Prizoner of Azkaban
GF - Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire
OP - Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix
HBP - Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince
DH - Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows

FB - Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them
QA - Quidditch Through the Ages
More typically in fan circles, the books are abbreviated SS/PS, CoS, PoA, GoF, OoP, HBP, and DH. Way back when the Lexicon started, Steve made a decision to make the abbreviations a little shorter since at that time, the Lexicon was simply a list of words with definitions, and Steve wanted each entry to fit on one line. Of course, the Lexicon has expanded, oh, just a little since that time, but the shortened abbreviations remain.

Other sources:
BN - interview with Barnes and Noble.com
BP - interview on the Blue Peter television show
CR - interview on the Comic Relief website
fw# - Famous Wizard card by number; these cards appear in more than one video game and in other sources
HPM - "Harry Potter and Me" BBC December, 2001
NPC - Q&A at the National Press Club, October 20, 1999
Nr - interview with Newsround
NR2 - interview with Newsround September 19, 2002
RAH - interview conducted by Stephen Fry shortly after the release of OP, July 2003, at the Royal Albert Hall.
RC - interview with Raincoast Books March 2001
Sch1 - interview with JKR on Scholastic.com, February 2000
Sch2 - interview with JKR on Scholastic.com, October 2000
SN - interview with the Southwest News
TCG - Harry Potter Trading Card Game
PS/f - filmed version of PS
PS/dvd - the DVD version of PS/f
CS/f - filmed version of CS
CS/dvd - the DVD version of CS/f
PA/f - filmed version of PA
PA/dvd - the DVD version of PA/f
GF/f - filmed version of GF
GF/dvd - the DVD version of GF/f
OP/f - filmed version of OP
OP/dvd - the DVD version of OP/f
HBP/f - filmed version of HBP
HBP/dvd - the DVD version of HBP/f
CS/g, SS/g - the video games, some of the information for which was created by Rowling
WBD - Chat for World Book Day
RAH - Royal Albert Hall online event, interviewed by Stephen Fry
JKR - J. K. Rowling's official web site
DP - Daily Prophet newsletters given out by Bloomsbury in 1998 and 1999 to members of the Official Harry Potter Fan Club (since disbanded)
EBF - Edinburgh Book Festival interview
BFT - Black Family Tree drawn by Rowling for a Book Aid International auction (Feb 2006)

Other abbreviations:
JKR - (when not used as a reference) J. K. Rowling
HPfGU - Harry Potter for Grown Ups (you might find this abbreviated as HP4GU here and there too)
FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions

standard indexing abbreviations:
c. - circa (around the date given)
c.f. - compare with
ed. - editor
e.g. - for example
esp. - especially
ff. - and following
i.e. - in other words
L. - Latin (when used in explaining the origins of a word or name)
MLW - MLW
NSOED - New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
[Hey, if it's good enough for ISO specifications, it's good enough for us - MLW)
q.v. - see...
SVA - SVA