World Book Day

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World Book Day
UNESCO World Book and Copyright Day 2012 poster.png
UNESCO World Book and Copyright Day 2012 poster
Official nameWorld Book and Copyright Day
Also calledWBD
Observed byAll UN Member States
TypeInternational
Date 23 April
Next time23 April 2025 (2025-04-23)
Frequencyannual

World Book Day, also known as World Book and Copyright Day or International Day of the Book, is an annual event organized by UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) to promote reading, publishing, and copyright. The first World Book Day was celebrated on 23 April in 1995, and continues to be recognized on that day. A related event in the United Kingdom and Ireland is observed in March. [1] On the occasion of World Book and Copyright Day, UNESCO along with the advisory committee from the major sectors of the book industry, select the World Book Capital for one year. Each designated World Book Capital City carries out a program of activities to celebrate and promote books and reading. [2] In 2024, Strasbourg was designated as the World Book Capital. [3]

Contents

Date selection

The original idea was conceived in 1922 by Vicente Clavel, director of Cervantes publishing house in Barcelona, as a way to honour the author Miguel de Cervantes and boost the sales of books. It was first celebrated on 7 October 1926, Cervantes' birthday, before being moved to his death date, 23 April, in 1930. [4] The celebration continues with great popularity in Catalonia, where it is referred to as Sant Jordi's Day or The Day of Books and Roses.

In 1995, UNESCO decided that the World Book and Copyright Day would be celebrated on 23 April, as the date is also the anniversary of the death of William Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega, as well as that of the birth or death of several other prominent authors. [5] (In a historical coincidence, Shakespeare and Cervantes died on the same date—23 April 1616—but not on the same day, as at the time, Spain used the Gregorian calendar and England used the Julian calendar; Shakespeare actually died 10 days after Cervantes died, on 3 May of the Gregorian calendar.)

World Book Day by region

World Book Capital

The World Book Capital (WBC) is an initiative of UNESCO which recognises cities for promoting books and fostering reading for a year starting on April 23, World Book and Copyright Day. [2] Cities designated as UNESCO World Book Capital carry out activities with the aim of encouraging a culture of reading in all ages and sharing UNESCO's values. [6]

UNESCO adopted the 31c/Resolution 29, in 2001, establishing the World Book Capital programme and naming Madrid as the first WBC city in 2001. The advisory committee is composed of UNESCO, the International Publishers Association, the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions, the International Authors Forum and the International Booksellers Federation. [6] it's about the worlds book day and not about the deaths it's all about the promoting to all about reading, readers and importance of reading books

Spain

In Spain, Book Day began to be celebrated since 1926 every October 7, [7] the date that Miguel de Cervantes was believed to have been born. But, it was considered more appropriate to celebrate this day in a more pleasant season for walking and browsing the books in the open-air. Spring was much better than fall. So in 1930 King Alfonso XIII approved the change of celebration of the Book Day on April 23, the supposed date of the death of Cervantes. [7]

Forum on reading aloud held outside the campus library at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, Mexico City for the occasion 04232012Foto lectura voz alta14.jpg
Forum on reading aloud held outside the campus library at the Monterrey Institute of Technology and Higher Education, Mexico City for the occasion

Sweden

In Sweden, the day is known as Världsbokdagen ("World Book Day") and the copyright aspect is seldom mentioned. Normally celebrated on 23 April, it was moved to 13 April in the year 2000 [8] and 2011 to avoid a clash with Easter. [9]

United Kingdom and Ireland

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, World Book Day is a charity event in March, held annually on the first Thursday and coinciding with the release of special editions. [10] The annual celebration on 23 April is World Book Night, an event organized by independent charity The Reading Agency. [11]

United States

In Kensington, Maryland, the International Day of the Book is celebrated with a street festival on the Sunday closest to 26 April. [12] In 2020, the 15th Annual Kensington Day of the Book Festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. [12]

India

World Book Day is also celebrated in India on 23 April every year. [13] It is commemorated in many parts of India to encourage & aware of people for reading & publishing books. [14] [15]

See also

Related Research Articles

March is the third month of the year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. Its length is 31 days. In the Northern Hemisphere, the meteorological beginning of spring occurs on the first day of March. The March equinox on the 20 or 21 marks the astronomical beginning of spring in the Northern Hemisphere and the beginning of autumn in the Southern Hemisphere, where September is the seasonal equivalent of the Northern Hemisphere's March.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mother's Day</span> Celebration honouring mothers

Mother's Day is a celebration honoring the mother of the family or individual, as well as motherhood, maternal bonds, and the influence of mothers in society. It is celebrated on different days in many parts of the world, most commonly in March or May. It complements similar celebrations honoring family members, such as Father's Day, Siblings Day, and Grandparents' Day.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vesak</span> Buddhist festival marking the birth, enlightenment and death of the Buddha

Vesak, also known as Buddha Jayanti, Buddha Purnima, and Buddha Day, is a holiday traditionally observed by Buddhists in South Asia and Southeast Asia, as well as Tibet and Mongolia. It is among the most important Buddhist festivals. The festival commemorates the birth, enlightenment (Nibbāna), and death (Parinirvāna) of Gautama Buddha in Theravada, Tibetan Buddhism and Navayana.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">New Year's Day</span> First day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 1 January

In the Gregorian calendar, New Year's Day is the first day of the calendar year, 1 January. Most solar calendars begin the year regularly at or near the northern winter solstice, while cultures and religions that observe a lunisolar or lunar calendar celebrate their Lunar New Year at less fixed points relative to the solar year.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Nowruz</span> Iranian New Year marking the March equinox

Nowruz or Navroz is the Iranian New Year or Persian New Year. Historically, it has been observed by Persians and other Iranian peoples, but is now celebrated by many ethnicities worldwide. It is a festival based on the Northern Hemisphere spring equinox, which marks the first day of a new year on the Solar Hijri calendar; it usually coincides with a date between 19 March and 22 March on the Gregorian calendar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">International Mother Language Day</span> Annual observance to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity

International Mother Language Day is a worldwide annual observance held on 21 February to promote awareness of linguistic and cultural diversity and to promote multilingualism. First announced by UNESCO on 17 November 1999, it was formally recognized by the United Nations General Assembly with the adoption of UN resolution 56/262 in 2002.

World Poetry Day is celebrated on 21 March, and was declared by UNESCO in 1999, "with the aim of supporting linguistic diversity through poetic expression and increasing the opportunity for endangered languages to be heard". Its purpose is to promote the reading, writing, publishing, and teaching of poetry throughout the world and, as the original UNESCO declaration says, to "give fresh recognition and impetus to national, regional, and international poetry movements".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint George's Day</span> Feast day of Saint George

Saint George's Day is the feast day of Saint George, celebrated by Christian churches, countries, regions, and cities of which he is the patron saint, including Albania, Bulgaria, England, Ethiopia, Greece, Georgia, Portugal, Romania, Syria, Lebanon, Castile and León, Catalonia, Alcoi, Aragon, Genoa, and Rio de Janeiro.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Name day</span> Traditional celebration in Christianity

In Christianity, a name day is a tradition in many countries of Europe and the Americas, among other parts of Christendom. It consists of celebrating a day of the year that is associated with one's baptismal name, which is normatively that of a biblical character or other saint. Where they are popular, individuals celebrate both their name day and their birthday in a given year.

World Intellectual Property Day is observed annually on 26 April. The event was established by the World Intellectual Property Organization (WIPO) in 2000 to "raise awareness of how patents, copyright, trademarks and designs impact on daily life" and "to celebrate creativity, and the contribution made by creators and innovators to the development of economies and societies across the globe". 26 April was chosen as the date for World Intellectual Property Day because it coincides with the date on which the Convention Establishing the World Intellectual Property Organization entered into force in 1970. World Intellectual Property Day is WIPO’s largest intellectual property (IP) public outreach campaign.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Book Capital</span> UNESCO award for cities promoting books

The World Book Capital (WBC) is an initiative of UNESCO which recognises cities for promoting books and fostering reading for a year starting on April 23, World Book and Copyright Day. Cities designated as UNESCO World Book Capital carry out activities with the aim of encouraging a culture of reading in all ages and sharing UNESCO's values. The nomination does not provide a financial prize.

Canada Book Day is a yearly event celebrated in Canada on April 23 to promote reading and books during Canada Book Week. Canada Book Week takes place on the week of April 23.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Buddha's Birthday</span> Birthday of Siddhartha Gautama

Buddha's Birthday or Buddha Day is a primarily Buddhist festival that is celebrated in most of South, Southeast and East Asia, commemorating the birth of the prince Siddhartha Gautama, who became the Gautama Buddha and founded Buddhism. According to Buddhist tradition and archaeologists, Gautama Buddha, c. 563-483 BCE, was born at Lumbini in Nepal. Buddha's mother was Queen Maya Devi, who delivered the Buddha while undertaking a journey to her native home, and his father was King Śuddhodana. The Mayadevi Temple, its gardens, and an Ashoka Pillar dating from 249 BCE mark the Buddha's birth place at Lumbini.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cerlalc</span>

The Regional Center for the Promotion of Books in Latin America and Caribbean(CERLALC) (Spanish: Centro Regional para el Fomento del Libro en América Latina y el Caribe, Portuguese: Centro Regional para o Fomento do Livro na América Latina e no Caribe) is an intergovernmental organization sponsored by UNESCO. The organization's headquarters are located in Bogotá, Colombia. Its main goal is to foster favorable conditions for the development of reading communities in Latin America and the Caribbean.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Friendship Day</span> Day for celebrating friendship

Friendship Day is a day in several countries for celebrating friendship. It was initially promoted by the greeting card industry; evidence from social networking sites shows a revival of interest in Friendship Day that may have grown with the spread of the internet, particularly in India, Bangladesh, and Malaysia. Mobile phones, digital communication, and social media have contributed to popularize the custom. Those who promote the day in South Asia attribute the tradition of dedicating a day in honour of friends to have originated in the United States in 1935.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">World Book Day (UK and Ireland)</span> Annual charity event

World Book Day is a charity event held annually in the United Kingdom and Ireland on the first Thursday in March. On World Book Day, every child in full-time education in the UK and the Republic of Ireland is provided with a voucher to be spent on books; the event was first celebrated in the United Kingdom in 1998.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Saint George's Day (Spain)</span> Annual celebration, April 23

Saint George's Day is celebrated annually on April 23.

World Logic Day is an international day proclaimed by UNESCO in association with the International Council for Philosophy and Human Sciences (CIPSH) in November 2019 to be celebrated on 14 January every year. It was first celebrated on 14 January 2019, before the UNESCO declaration. World Logic Day intends to bring the intellectual history, conceptual significance and practical implications of logic to the attention of interdisciplinary science communities and the broader public.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Day of Books and Roses</span> Annual festival in Catalonia, Spain

The Day of Books and Roses, April 23, is celebrated in Catalonia, Spain. This day is traditionally known as Diada de Sant Jordi in Catalan. On this day, love and literature are celebrated throughout Catalonia. Books and roses are exchanged.

References

  1. "World Book Day 2021: Theme, Quotes, History, Significance | Sa News". S A NEWS. 23 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  2. 1 2 "World Book and Copyright Day". UNESCO. 29 April 2021. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  3. "UNESCO names Strasbourg as World Book Capital for 2024". www.unesco.org. UNESCO. 6 October 2023.
  4. Dalmases, Irene (20 April 2020). "El Día del Libro ha trasladado en ocho ocasiones la fecha de su celebración". La Vanguardia (in Spanish). Retrieved 28 November 2021.
  5. "World Book and Copyright Day - EN | United Nations" . Retrieved 26 April 2021.
  6. 1 2 "UNESCO World Book Capital". UNESCO. 25 July 2013. Retrieved 19 April 2022.
  7. 1 2 "World Book Day April 23". Skip the Line Barcelona. 3 April 2021. Retrieved 23 April 2021.
  8. "Världsbokdagen flyttas". Svensk Bokhandel. 22 October 1999. Archived from the original on 8 April 2012.
  9. "Världsbokdagen "flyttas"". Dagens Nyheter . 11 November 2010. Archived from the original on 6 December 2012.
  10. "Frequently Asked Questions". World Book Day (UK & Ireland). 7 March 2019. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  11. "World Book Night" . Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  12. 1 2 "Kensington Day of the Book Festival - TOK". Town of Kensington.
  13. "World Book and Copyright Day 2021: History, theme, significance and all you need to know". India Today. 22 April 2021. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  14. "World Book Day 2021: Why It Is Celebrated, Other Interesting Facts". NDTV.com. Retrieved 22 April 2022.
  15. NEWS, SA (22 April 2022). "On World Book and Copyright Day Read Sant Rampal Ji's Sacred Books". SA News Channel. Retrieved 22 April 2022.