Special Release

18 april 2016 no status In 1991 2,459 and in 2014 5,554 titles of books; in 2009 as many as 6,953 titles of books World Book Day Slovene Book Days: book production in Slovenia was growing between 1991 and 2009; since then it has been in decline.

UNESCO designated 23 April the World Book and Copyright Day because 23 April 1616 is the day when Miguel de Cervantes, William Shakespeare and Inca Garcilaso de la Vega died. Based on the best program to promote books and reading, UNESCO has been bestowing to cities the title of the World Book Capital since 2001; this year it is the Polish city of Wroclaw, while in 2010 it was Ljubljana.

In Slovenia the World Book Day was expanded into a five-year festival called the Slovene Book Days.

Book production in the past century

Book production in Slovenia has been monitored since 1919. At that time 389 titles of books and brochures were issued in the Slovene language, i.e. about 30 titles per 100,000 population. In addition to these books, publishers issued 20 titles of translated works and 28 titles of books in foreign languages; at that time 46 Slovene publications were issued abroad. As regards the type, 55 were literature, i.e. around 4 titles per 100,000 population. In the past century book production was lower than in 1919 only during World War II.

In 1974, i.e. more than five decades after 1919, for the first time more than 100 titles of books per 100,000 population were issued: 2,568 titles is 144 per 100,000 population, of which 411 literature, i.e. 23 titles per 100,000 population. In the first year of Slovenia’s independence book production was lower than in 1974: 2,459 titles, of which 422 literature.

And what was the situation in independent Slovenia? Book production was increasing until 2008; in 1999, 200 titles per 100,000 population (38 titles of literature per 100,000 population) were issued. In 2012 (the economic and financial crisis) book production started to decline. According to the National and University Library, in 2015 4,941 titles of books and brochures (239 titles per 100,000 population) were issued in Slovenia, of which 1,542 titles of literature (about 75 titles per 100,000 population).

Chart 1: Titles of printed books and brochures issued in Slovenia

Published on: http://www.stat.si/StatWeb/en/News/Index/5887, printed on 2. 10. 2021. 1/2 Sources: NUK, SURS

Some statistics on writers

As regards the occupation of a writer – which includes people writing books, scripts, storyboards, plays, essays, speeches, manuals, poems, fairy tales, reviews, etc. – not many official statistical data are available. In 2014, the Statistical Register of Employment included 284 people who performed this occupation as their main occupation and participated in compulsory social insurance. For comparison, the Slovene Writers’ Association has 314 members. The data on the 284 formally employed writers reveal that in 2014:

61% of writers in Slovenia were female and 39% were male; Over 34% of them were employed (70% of them female writers) and over 65% of them were self- employed (just over half of them female writers); 76% of them had tertiary education, 23% had upper secondary education and 1% had basic education or less (only male writers); Most of the employed writers were 35–44 years old; their gender structure was as follows: 3 male writers and 18 female writers were 25–29 years old; in the age group 30–44 most of the writers were female, while in higher ages most of the writers were male.

Reading of books in Slovenia and the EU

The data on reading habits are taken over from the Eurobarometer on cultural access and participation, which was conducted in April and May 2013 and indicates how many books are read per person and why some people never read books.

In the 12 months before the interview 67% of people in Slovenia read at least one book; the share was the highest in Sweden (90%) and the lowest in Portugal (40%); the EU average was 68%. And why some people read little or do not read at all? In Slovenia 48% of them answered that they do not have time (lack of time was selected on average by 44% of people in the EU-27) and 26% selected lack of interest (in the EU- 27 25%). The main reasons for not visiting public libraries were lack of interest (33% of people in Slovenia, the same as in Sweden) and lack of time (35%). The EU-27 average was a lot different: 43% lack of interest, 27% lack of time.

Author/s: Ida Repovž Grabnar

Statistical Office of the Republic of Slovenia Litostrojska cesta 54, 1000 Ljubljana, Slovenia

Information Centre: phone: +386 1 241 64 04 fax: +386 1 241 53 44 [email protected] www.stat.si/en © Statistični urad Republike Slovenije Use and publication of data is allowed provided the source is acknowledged.

Published on: http://www.stat.si/StatWeb/en/News/Index/5887, printed on 2. 10. 2021. 2/2