How many days until World Book Day?

About World Book Day

World Book and Copyright Day, commonly known as World Book Day, is a UNESCO-recognized international observance promoting reading, publishing, and the protection of intellectual property rights through copyright. The date is fixed at April 23, chosen because it coincides with the death dates of several significant literary figures, most notably William Shakespeare and Miguel de Cervantes, both of whom are traditionally recorded as having died on this date in 1616, though some scholars note complications with this coincidence due to differences between the Julian and Gregorian calendars in use in England and Spain at the time, meaning the two deaths may not have occurred on the same absolute day despite sharing the same recorded calendar date. UNESCO formally established the observance in the mid-1990s, building on an earlier, more regionally specific book-giving tradition from Catalonia, Spain, associated with Saint George's Day, which itself had already linked the date to a custom of gifting books. Observance varies considerably by country, with some nations, particularly the United Kingdom and Ireland, celebrating a separate national World Book Day on a different date entirely, distinct from the UNESCO-recognized international date, leading to some public confusion between the two similarly named but separately scheduled observances. Common activities marking the international day include book giveaways, reading promotion campaigns, library and school events, and initiatives highlighting the importance of copyright protection for authors and creators. A common misconception is assuming World Book Day falls on the same date everywhere; the UK and Ireland's nationally observed World Book Day is deliberately scheduled on a separate date from UNESCO's April 23 international observance, making the two easy to conflate despite being genuinely distinct.

Dates on this page are checked against public calendar sources. Spot something wrong? Let us know.