The Asturian translation of Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone—titled Harry Potter y la piedra filosofal—has proved to be one of the hardest books for translation collectors to acquire. The first and only Asturian translation was published by Ediciones Trabe and released on December 15, 2009. This was a little-known translation released in the Asturias region of Northern Spain. Indeed, the translation is so unknown even fans in the Asturias region are unaware of its existence. Trabe are committed to translating many of the most important works of world literature into Asturian (including A Clockwork Orange and The Lord of the Rings) and Harry Potter was a natural choice for them after they were able to acquire the rights to the first book for just €500. It was previously believed that there were 700 copies of the book printed based on estimates from the translator, however, I was able to confirm with the owner of the publishing house, Samuel Castro, that there were only 500 copies of the book printed. Because Asturian isn’t an official language and because of their limited speaker base (250,000) Trabe usually print only 300-500 copies of a new book.

The translation was done by Xesús González Rato who is considered to be one of the most important and best translators in the Asturian language. Rato had previously translated other important work for Ediciones Trabe such as Asterix, The Rabbit Who Wants to Fall Asleep, The Neverending Story, and Ender’s Game. Trabe put a lot of trust in his knowledge to produce an exceptional Harry Potter translation—indeed, one professional Asturian linguist told me that it was an “excellent translation.”

When it was released the book sold very well as it was was attractive for both Asturian language readers and for Harry Potter collectors—books were sold to the rest of Spain, and many abroad to Germany, France, and the USA. The cover illustration was created digitally by the owner of Trabe, Samuel Castro. His intention was for the cover to try and show all the important details of the book—some even half-hidden (like the centaur in the forest)—and give them vivid colours to make the illustration as eye-catching and realistic as possible. It has since become iconic for translation collectors.

Probably because of its limited print run and the fact that it hasn’t been reprinted the Asturian translation has become one of the most valuable and highly desired books for Harry Potter collectors to acquire. The first copy auctioned on eBay by Peter Kenneth, The Potter Collector, achieved a price of £750. Since then prices have significantly risen and as of 2024 the book has an estimated value of £3,000-5,000.