World Book and Copyright Day, or World Book Day, is celebrated every year today, April 23. World Book and Copyright Day is celebrated to promote and recognise the benefit of reading books, publishing and copyright. World Book Day is organised by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). April 23 is an important day for literature as it marks the birth and death of several prominent authors. While Manuel Mejia Vallejo and Maurice Druon were born on April 23, William Shakespeare, Miguel de Cervantes, and Josep Pla died on April 23.
UNESCO decided to celebrate a day and dedicate it to reading and books in the UNESCO's General Conference held in Paris 1995 to discover the pleasure of reading and gain a renewed respect for the irreplaceable contributions of those, who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity. Unlike some other days started by the UN, there are no themes for World Book Day.
As part of World Book Day, UNESCO and the international organisations representing the three major sectors of the book industry - publishers, booksellers and libraries, select the World Book Capital for a year. Guadalajara (Mexico) has been named World Book Capital for the year 2022. The city of Madrid (Spain) has been the first city to be named World Book Capital in 2001.
“By championing books and copyright, UNESCO stands up for creativity, diversity and equal access to knowledge, with the work across the board – from the Creative Cities of Literature network to promoting literacy and mobile learning and advancing Open Access to scientific knowledge and educational resources,” a statement on the UNESCO World Book Day website read.
It further added: “With the active involvement of all stakeholders: authors, publishers, teachers, librarians, public and private institutions, humanitarian NGOs and the mass media, and all those who feel motivated to work together in this world celebration of books and authors, World Book and Copyright Day has become a platform to rally together millions of people all around the world.”