Paris - JK Rowlings, the creator of the wildly popular Harry Potter series of books, was named Tuesday a Knight of the Legion of Honour by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, the Elysee Palace announced.

The Harry Potter books, which have been condemned by conservative clergy, have made the 43-year-old Rowling one of the richest women in Britain, with a fortune estimated at 560 million pounds (804 million dollars).

The Harry Potter series has been translated into more than 60 languages and has sold more than 400 million books around the world. (dpa)