When is Apparating first mentioned in the Harry Potter books? (both editions)

Question

In this question, we discovered that a few paragraphs of Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets were changed between the UK (Bloomsbury) and US (Scholastic) editions.

One thing I noticed was that the new bit inserted into the US edition mentions Apparating, in an explanatory sort of way ("Apparate! You know, just vanish and reappear at home!") as though Harry, and by extension the reader, have never heard of it before. This made me wonder whether this is the first mention of Apparating in the US edition, and if so, where the first mention was in the UK edition.

• Is this the first time Apparating is mentioned in the US (Scholastic) editions?

• When is it first referred to in the UK (Bloomsbury) editions?

I'm curious to see how much difference there is between the two. It'd be strange if there was a time lapse of 1-2 books between the first mention in one edition and the first mention in the other.

Answer 1

• Please note that my main texts are all Bloomsbury editions, as evidenced by the correct title of the first book.

  • Philosopher's Stone was the first possible occurence:

    A man appeared on the corner the cat had been watching, appeared so suddenly and silently you'd have thought he'd just popped out of the ground. The cat's tail twitched and its eyes narrowed (Philosopher's Stone, Chapter 1 - "The Boy Who Lived").

  • Chamber of Secrets was first definite occurence.

    Dobby must go!' breathed the elf, terrified; there was a loud crack, and Harry's fist was suddenly clenched on thin air. He slumped back into bed, his eyes on the dark doorway to the hospital wing as the footsteps drew nearer (Chamber of Secrets, Chapter 10, "The Rogue Bludger").

  • PoA was the first mention of the word "Apparate":

    'Maybe he knows how to Apparate,' said a Ravenclaw a few feet away. 'Just appear out of thin air, you know.'

    Disguised himself, probably' said a Hufflepuff fifth-year.

    'He could've flown in,' suggested Dean Thomas.

    'Honestly am I the only person who's ever bothered to read Hogwarts, A History?' said Hermione crossly to Harry and Ron.

    'Probably,' said Ron. 'Why?'

    'Because the castle's protected by more than walls, you know,' said Hermione. 'There are all sorts of enchantments on it, to stop people entering by stealth. You can't just Apparate in here. And I'd like to see the disguise that could fool those Dementors. They're guarding every single entrance to the grounds. They'd have seen him fly in, too. And Filch knows all the secret passages, they'll have them covered...' (Prisoner of Azkaban, Ch. 9 - "Grim Defeat")

• Scholastic editions are largely identical, with very few (fully listed) changes:

  • What scenes are significantly altered between the British and American versions of Harry Potter?

  • How different is the UK version of Harry Potter from the US version?

  • Unfortunately, as @Rand pointed out, the answers to these questions contain a link to a full analysis of the US/UK differences (http://www.philnel.com/2012/07/22/hpusa/#chart) which - alas - makes it clear that Scholastic edition added a new instance of "Apparate" to CS, making it appear one book earlier:

    “‘if it’s a real emergency, section nineteen or something of the Restriction of Thingy –’‘But your Mum and Dad…’ said Harry, pushing against the barrier again in the vain hope that it would give way. ‘How will they get home?’‘They don’t need the car!’ said Ron impatiently. ‘They know how to Apparate! You know, just vanish and reappear at home! They only bother with Floo powder and the car because we’re all underage and we’re not allowed to Apparate yet….’”Harry’s feeling of panic turned suddenly to excitement” (Scholastic/US edition of Chamber of Secrets, page 69 - Chapter 5, "The Whomping Willow")

  • I also just checked Sorcerer's Stone (and may your vodka always taste like ashes, for making me read that accursed illiterate title) e-text and it has no words for "apparate" or apparition, which makes CS the earliest instance of the word in US editions.

Answer 2

In the UK ebook versions, the first explicit mention of "apparating" or "apparition" appears to be in Prisoner of Azkaban:

All around them, people were asking each other the same question: ‘How did he get in?’

‘Maybe he knows how to Apparate,’ said a Ravenclaw a few feet away. ‘Just appear out of thin air, you know.’

POA: CHAPTER NINE – Grim Defeat