With the objective to promote reading, publishing, and the protection of intellectual property through copyright, UNESCO (@unescoNOW) has declared today World Book and Copyright Day.
23 April is a symbolic date for world literature, since 23 April 1616 was the date of death of Cervantes, Shakespeare, and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega. 23 April is also the date of birth or death of other prominent authors such as Maurice Druon, K.Laxness, Vladimir Nabokov, Josep Pla, and Manuel Mejía Vallejo.
This is why UNESCO chose this date to pay a worldwide tribute to books and their authors on this date, encouraging everyone, and in particular young people, to discover the pleasure of reading and to gain a renewed respect for the extraordinary contributions of those who have furthered the social and cultural progress of humanity.
The idea for this celebration originated in Catalonia (Spain) where it has become a tradition to give a rose as a gift for each book purchased.
The year 2012 also marks the 80th anniversary of the Index Translationum, an international bibliography of translations. Search the online database.
Also see the World Digital Library (@WDLorg), the International Children’s Digital Library, the Internet Public Library (@theipl), the Library of Congress (@librarycongress), and the United States Copyright Office (@CopyrightOffice).
And be sure to bookmark and use daily SomersaultNOW, the online dashboard for publishing and marketing professionals.