Leipziger Buchmesse in Zahlen Leipzig Book Fair in figures

A Trade Fair experiencing change
“Mother of all Fairs” has also contributed greatly to Leipzig’s excellent
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reputation as a city of books: books have been traded during the fair since
the end of the 15th century, with the number of titles being exhibited
outstripping that of its great rival Frankfurt am Main for the first time in
1632. Leipzig then became the proud capital of the printed word for 200
years from the middle of the 18th century, with the intellectual and com-
mercial, artists and merchants, book princes and the Börsen verein book-
sellers association all mingling to create a unique culture.
Leipzig lost its pre-eminence as a trading centre for books after 1945.
But the Book Fair survives and transforms the “secret capital” of the GDR
into a centre of reunification for a short time early each year. Until 1989,
the Messehaus am Markt remained a Mecca for book lovers from East
and West and a veritable chink in the wall separating both. The end of the
division of Europe also marked the end of an era of universal exhibitions
in Leipzig itself, with one of the most modern exhibition venues in Europe
being erected in record time before the portals of the city, an event loca-
tion that hosts around 30 specialised exhibitions and trade fairs every
year. The move in 1998 also represented a new chapter for the Leipzig
Book Fair. The future of reading is many-faceted. With its close involve-
ment with the public and consistent investment in new topics, the most
important spring forum in the sector in the German-speaking world
mirrors the uninterrupted fascination that has always been associated
with books.