I'll be interested to see the answers on this. I have always used the term
"folk harp" when talking to people to distinguish the harps we play from the
concert pedal harps that most everyone thinks of when they hear "harp". Of
course, then I go on to explaing that it is a much older instrument than the
pedal harp, etc. etc.
The term probably is a 20thC invention, but I'll bet there are some people out
there who know for sure.
Debra Knodel