World Book Day

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 in Spain on 7 October 1926, Cervantes' birthday, before being moved to his death date, 23 April, in 1930. In Catalonia, the celebration coincided with Saint George's Day (Catalan: Diada de Sant Jordi) in honour to its patron saint and, as a result, the Book Day merged with the original festivity and continues with great popularity in Catalonia, where it is also referred to as 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. (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 11 days after Cervantes died, on 3 May of the Gregorian calendar, and Cervantes died on 22 April but was buried a day after, on 23 April.) ==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 23 April, World Book and Copyright Day. 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. 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 autumn. So in 1930 King Alfonso XIII approved the change in celebration of Book Day to 23 April, the supposed date of the death of Cervantes. and 2011 to avoid a clash with Easter. 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. The annual celebration on 23 April is World Book Night, an event organized by independent charity The Reading Agency. United States In Kensington, Maryland, the International Day of the Book is celebrated with a street festival on the Sunday closest to 26 April. In 2020, the 15th Annual Kensington Day of the Book Festival was cancelled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is commemorated in many parts of India to encourage readership and raise awareness about the importance of disseminating knowledge. Malta In Malta, the day is known as Jum il-Ktieb (Book Day) and is celebrated on 23 April around the national libraries. Moreover, the National Literacy Agency in Malta celebrates a World Book Week. In 2026 this was celebrated between 2 and 6 March. ==Gallery==

File:Printing3 Walk of Ideas Berlin.JPG|Modern Book Printing, fourth sculpture (from six) of the Berliner Walk of Ideas. Unveiling: 21 April 2006. File:World Book Day in Tunisia 2012.jpg|Tunisian students perform reading on the street, on the 2012 World Book Day File:Book tent DSC07255 C.jpg|Book fair in Helsinki, Finland, on World Book Day 2011 File:5 minut dla książki 2013 03.jpg|"5-minute reading" campaign (rather, the 5-minute reading content just printed one sheet of paper) at Łódź, Poland, in 2013 ==See also==