Harry is a common first name in the English-speaking world. It is a diminutive form of Henry, derived from Middle High German Haimirich, meaning 'ruler of the Home'. In Norway, the word harry is used synonymously with vulgar, unsophisticated persons. The reason is that English names like 'Harry' were modern in the urban Norwegian working classes in the beginning of the 20th century, while the upper and middle class preferred Scandinavian, German or occasionally French names. Upper class people started describing people of the lower classes as 'harry'. Recently, Norwegian Cabinet Minister Lars Sponheim stated that it is 'harry' to travel to Sweden to buy cheap food.
Among the many famous people named Harry are: Harry Potter (character) Harry Osborn Prince Harry of Wales Harry Anderson Harry Chapin Harry Caray Harry Gant Harry Nilsson - Nilsson released an album in 1969 entitled Harry. Harry S. Truman Harry Belafonte Harry J. Anslinger Harry Partch This is a disambiguation page: a list of articles associated with the same title. If an internal link referred you to this page, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article.