Guadalajara International Book Fair

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Guadalajara International Book Fair
Entrada principal FIL 2007.jpg
XXI Book Fair 2007
StatusActive
GenreMulti-genre
VenueExpo Guadalajara convention center
Location(s) Guadalajara, Jalisco
CountryMexico
Inaugurated1987
Attendance525,000 (2006)
Organized by University of Guadalajara
Website http://www.fil.com.mx/ingles/

The Guadalajara International Book Fair, better known as the FIL (from its Spanish name: Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara) is the largest book fair in the Americas, and second-largest book fair in the world after Frankfurt's. It is also considered the most important cultural annual event of its kind in the Spanish-speaking world. [1] The purpose of the FIL is to provide an optimal business environment for the book-industry professionals and exhibitors who attend the fair, and for the reading public eager to meet authors and pick up the latest entries in the market.

Contents

Created in 1987, the FIL is put on by the University of Guadalajara and is held at the Expo Guadalajara convention center, which has 40,000 m2 (430,000 sq ft) of floor space. FIL is held every year, starting on the last Saturday in November and continuing for nine days, in Guadalajara, Jalisco, Mexico.

The current managing director of the Guadalajara International Book Fair is Marisol Schulz, and its president from its inception until his death in 2023 was Raúl Padilla López. The book fair won the Princess of Asturias Award for Communication and Humanities in 2020. [2]

Prizes and honours

Carlos Fuentes, Gabriel Garcia Marquez, and Pasqual Maragall awarding the Juan Rulfo Prize to Juan Goytisolo, FIL 2004 Homenaje Goytisolo.JPG
Carlos Fuentes, Gabriel García Márquez, and Pasqual Maragall awarding the Juan Rulfo Prize to Juan Goytisolo, FIL 2004

As a way of rewarding and honouring literary publishing, the FIL awards the following annual prizes and honours:

Invited countries or cultural regions

Marisol Schulz, managing director of the Guadalajara International Book Fair Marisol Schulz en la presentacion del programa de Madrid como invitada a la Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara de 2017.jpg
Marisol Schulz, managing director of the Guadalajara International Book Fair
Interior FIL 2008 Penultimo dia de FIL 2008.jpg
Interior FIL 2008
Popular Italian Orchestra in the esplanade of the FIL 2008 Orchestra Popolare Italiana (FIL 2008).JPG
Popular Italian Orchestra in the esplanade of the FIL 2008

Since 1993, the FIL has invited a country or region to be the guest of honor, providing each an opportunity to display the best of its cultural and literary heritage, as listed in the following table:

YearGuest of Honor Country or Region [3]
1993 Flag of Colombia.svg Colombia
1994 Flag of New Mexico.svg New Mexico
1995 Flag of Venezuela.svg Venezuela
1996 Flag of Canada (Pantone).svg Canada
1997 Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina
1998 Flag of Puerto Rico.svg Puerto Rico
1999 Flag of Chile.svg Chile
2000 Flag of Spain.svg Spain
2001 Flag of Brazil.svg Brazil
2002 Flag of Cuba.svg Cuba
2003 Flag of Quebec.svg Quebec
2004 Flag of Catalonia.svg Catalonia
2005 Flag of Peru.svg Peru
2006 Bandera de Andalucia.svg Andalusia
2007 Flag of Colombia.svg Colombia
2008 Flag of Italy.svg Italy
2009 Flag of Los Angeles, California.svg Los Angeles
2010 Flag of Castile and Leon.svg Castile and León
2011 Flag of Germany.svg Germany
2012 Flag of Chile.svg Chile
2013 Flag of Israel.svg Israel
2014 Flag of Argentina.svg Argentina
2015 Flag of the United Kingdom.svg United Kingdom
2016 Latin America (orthographic projection).svg Latin America
2017 Bandera de la ciudad de Madrid.svg Madrid
2018 Flag of Portugal.svg Portugal
2019 Flag of India.svg India
2021 Flag of Peru.svg Peru
2022 Flag of Sharjah and Ras Al Khaimah.svg Sharjah and Arab Culture
2023 Flag of Europe.svg European Union
2025 Flag of Barcelona.svg Barcelona

History

Main entrance during the 2002 Guadalajara International Book Fair FIL Expo GDL.JPG
Main entrance during the 2002 Guadalajara International Book Fair

2005

2006

2013

2016

2023

References

  1. "The Guadalajara International Book Fair 2017". SuperMemo. November 20, 2017. Retrieved November 26, 2017.
  2. "Guadalajara International Book Fair wins 2020 Princess of Asturias Award". El Universal (in Spanish). 10 June 2020. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  3. FIL: A Cultural Bridge
  4. "Feria Internacional del Libro de Guadalajara".