Researchers have collated the figures for the number of editions, translations and copies sold of the world s most popular books these are the most loved tomes. She had her diary published, which was her intent, and it has become the second most widely read book in the world, after the bible. May 09, 2012 most read books in the world as of may 2012 published by statista research department, may 9, 2012. Top 166 books published in 2017 that people have added on goodreads. What is the most widely read book in the world answers. Scholars can debate endlessly over which book is the best of all time, but finding out which ones have enjoyed the most commercial success should be a more concrete endeavor. The bible is easily one of the bestselling books of all time, but exact sales numbers are hard to nail down. All records listed on our website are current and uptodate. If only it were really that easy to become one of the most widely read authors in the world. It is published in 209 languages around the globe with a monthly circulation of a massive 45 million copies. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book. We have found and listed 20 of the most translated texts throughout history. The most popular novel on this list was spanish novel don quixote which came in at fourth place with 500m copies sold, followed by j. These are the 12 most popular books of all time indy100.
Oct 19, 2015 in fact, the very first book printed in english was a translation. The illustration appeared in an edition of the book that was published in the 1800s. The watchtower is published from the christian religion of jehovahs witnesses jehovah is gods name, according to the bible and jehovahs witnesses are christians, followers of jesus christ. With two billion copies of her books sold, christie ranks third in the world s most widely published books, right after shakespeares plays and the bible. The bible and quotations from chairman mao still vie for the top spot, with more than 6 billion published copies each. As of june 2017, the series has been translated into 80 languages, placing harry potter among history s most translated literary works. The top 10 most read books in the world list challenges. As more people seek education, the demand for knowledge increases and authors are striving to fulfill the demand.
This article discusses the world s bestselling books. Read up on the worlds rarest and most valuable books. Apr 11, 2007 what are the top 10 most printed books of all time. It was published from 1964 to about 1976 and widely distributed during the cultural revolution. Feb 27, 2011 the most published book in the world is the bible, though some argue that the koran is more widely published. More copies have been distributed of the bible than of any other book. The most translated website in the world is the website of jehovahs witnesses jw. A new milestone for the world s most translated website. Sep 07, 2010 inspired by the huffington posts attempt to list the top 15 bestselling books of all time, we offer a humble revision, expanding the list to 25 total. After the bible, imitation of christ is the most widely translated and circulated book in the history of christianity. The novel, which is very regularly regarded as one of the best literary works of all time, tells the. It is the most widely known book in the englishspeaking world no one in the englishspeaking world can be considered literate without a basic knowledge of the bible e. The most recently published book in the top ten of the most widely read books in the world, the da vinci code was a global phenomenon in.
How the world s most notorious atheist changed his mind flew, antony, varghese, roy abraham on. From the sublime to the ridiculous in one short step, i say this who has read. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed. A survey by the bible society concluded that around 2. The most expensive books in the world readers digest. Although there are many more women throughout history who have proven to be powerful authors, this list is limited to those who are living, with a focus. The struggling, famished writer is a bit of a hackneyed stereotype but research shows its a truism, nonetheless. Most published works by one author guinness world records. Unsurprisingly, childrens books and fairy tales dominate the list of the most translated books throughout history. Top 10 most read books in the world over the past 50 years.
And where does the book alcoholics anonymous place on that list. List of literary works by number of translations wikipedia. The worlds most widely distributed book watchtower online. The most published nonreligious text is chairman mao s book of quotes because in communist china people either were forced to buy it or bought it to show support of the communist party. The guinness book of world records reportedly ranks her as historys most prolific novelist, who wrote under six pen names. Amazons most sold charts rank books according to the number of copies sold and preordered through, amazon books stores, and books read through digital subscription programs once a customer has read a certain percentage roughly the length of a free reading sample. Jun 06, 2011 here, the 10 most powerful women authors.
Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of. In my version of the the list, the bible remained the top seller in the world, with sales figures ranging widely. British newspaper the guardian recently released a rather daunting article stating tha. Thousands of books are written, published and distributed every day. One of the worlds most popular books united church of god. Regardless of what you think of all the entries, if our want to understand the world around you and the people in it, reading these books cover to cover would be a good start. Her first book, the mysterious affairs of styles featuring hercule piorot was published after some difficulty in 1939. These have played a very important role in the society and systems. It became an instant bestseller and helped launch her career. The worlds most circulated magazine is again an illustrated religiousspiritual magazine. Other top writers in unescos ranking include masters of scifi, suspense and romance as well as three writers of childrens books.
It s only been two months since our last update of this article. It is safe to say that the bible is the bestselling book of all time, as it has. The alltime most popular books in the world revealed posted by stylist team published 5 years ago. Each issue has a print run of more than 42 million copies. As you can see from the graphic below created by designer jared fanning, the bible leads the countdown by a large margin. The bible is the world s bestselling book, having sold more than five billion copies. Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the world s bestselling and most widely distributed book. Although its written origins go back 3,500 years, it is still very much alive. But, just like with every other book you read, never abandon your. The 21 bestselling books of all time howstuffworks. A widely circulated post on the internet attributes that dubious honor to a certain south african writer named mary faulkner, who died in 1973 at the age of 70.
Every church has hundreds upon hundreds, if not thousands of bibles. Some titles may have had more copies printed than some of these books, but a vast number of those books were not sold, so well assume that they did not get read. Griese in the september the huffington post published an. Each year, some 60 million copies of the entire bible or portions of it are distributed. Harper lees new novel go set a watchman, the followup to to kill a mockingbird, is set to become one of the fastestselling books of all time. Watchtower and awake, the most published and widely. Thomas more considered it one of the three books that everyone should own. We use cookies to give you the best possible experience on our website. The fictional book became such a hit that author j. The worlds most widely distributed book watchtower. That includes video and audio content as well as written articles. Quotations from the works of mao tsetung is the second most widely read book in the world. Oct 12, 2003 from don quixote to american pastoral, take a look at the 100 greatest novels of all time the 100 greatest nonfiction books the 2015 version of the 100 best novels. Publishing as it is known today depends on a series of three major inventionswriting, paper, and printingand one crucial social developmentthe spread of literacy.
What are the top 10 most printed books of all time. The most widely read magazine in the world is the handdistributed, brooklynbased monthly publication of. The bible tops the list of the most read books in the world. The bible, however, is exceptional even among classical works. Rowling illustrated and published seven handmade copies before officially releasing the title as a book of children s stories. Combined uk sales for the trilogy are in excess of 12m copies, with rights to the book sold around the world and published in languages. What is the most published book in the world answers. Today, the worlds most translated book is the bible. It is a monthly american magazine, first published in 1879. The pilgrims progress, from this world, to that which is to come was first published in holborn, london by nathaniel ponder, a nonconformist, at the beginning of 1678 in an edition of 191 pages.
Top 10 most read books in the world based on number of books printed and sold over the last 50 years. The watchtower is the most widely distributed magazine in the world, with a circulation of more than 25 million. However, we wanted to share some exciting news the website now has content available in a staggering 1,000 languages, including 100 sign languages. The most prolific and popular novel of all time, don quixote, is a testament to how great storytelling has no expiration date. The top 10 most read books in the world show list info. Nov 15, 20 researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 most read books in the world. And for more classic reading content, check out these 40 books every women over 40 should have on her bookshelf.
William caxton, who introduced the printing press to england, printed the recuyell of the historyes of troye in 1473, which he had translated from the french original of raoul lefevre. The holy bible, quotations from chairman mao tsetung, harry potter, the lord of the rings, the alchemist, the da vinci code, the night saga, gone with the wind, think and grow rich, and the diary of anne frank. Mystery writer agatha christie has the distinction of the world s most translated author with 7,233 translations almost 3,000 more than the next most popular, jules verne. Jun 11, 2014 the 20 most translated texts in history the content in this article is compiled from data and does not reflect ingco internationals opinions or views. The history of publishing is characterized by a close interplay of technical innovation and social change, each promoting the other. In fact, the very first book printed in english was a translation. The 15 most popular reread books, according to goodreads. The worlds ten most translated authors translation. Did you know the most widely circulated magazine in the.
Ron hubbard usa whose first work was published in february 1934 and the last in march 2006. What is the second best selling book of all time after the bible. The 20 most translated texts in history ingco international. This was the list of the top 10 popular and most read magazines in the world 2019 that have been widely known across the world. It is by far the most widely circulated book on earth. The 20 most translated texts in history the content in this article is compiled from data and does not reflect ingco internationals opinions or views. Top 10 most read magazines in the world 2019 trending. It sold widely, remained in print for many years, and was translated into more than a dozen languages. In this list for most published books, we dig into millions of published books around the world to find the most popular among them. Are you looking for a book written in your target language.
The bible has also been translated more times, and into more languages, than any other book. Chapman created the list by examining how many individual copies of the books had been printed and sold over the last 50 years. The most published works by one author is 1,084 by l. Most published and widely translated magazines in the world. The first novel in the series, harry potter and the philosopher s stone, has sold in excess of 120 million copies, making it one of the bestselling books of all time. This is the most recently published book to snag a spot this high on the reread list, so kudos to the book thief. The following list of the magazines in the world by circulation is based upon the number of copies distributed, on average, for each issue. Today the bible is especially popular wherever english is spoken. Finally, the number one most read book in the world is the holy bible with a whopping, 3,900 million. The books that created a huge commotion from their first publication and still continue to be a. It is published by the jehovahs witnesses through the watch tower bible. The watchtower has a circulation larger than any other magazine in the world. A book is a loaded gun, ray bradbury famously wrote in.
The book was twice adapted into film, in 1978 and 1992. Most read books in the world as of may 2012 published by statista research department, may 9, 2012. One, the bible of course, two, chairman mao s little red book. Indeed, some of the most influential and widely read books in the world initially faced censorship. If you look at the note at the bottom of the infographic, you can see that jehovahs witness texts are also widely translated and distributed across. Both magazines are published by jehovahs witnesses and are distributed in 236 lands.
We can just look at the sales numbers and rank them. Writer james chapman created a list of the most read books in the world based on the number of copies each book sold over the last 50 years he found. The two most widely published books in the world april. The two most widely published books in the world april 2009.
The answer is quite surprising at first, but not that unexpected when you think about it. The world s most widely distributed book the bible is the most widely read book in history. The first novel in the series, harry potter and the philosophers stone, has sold in excess of 120 million copies, making it one of the bestselling books of all time. The watchtower public edition is the most widely circulated magazine on earth. Its only been two months since our last update of this article. A new milestone for the worlds most translated website. The top 10 most published books of all time les listes. The watch tower is the most widely read magazine in the world, it is handdistributed, and a brooklynbased monthly publication of jehovahs witness. The magazines are vital in providing exclusive news, reports and columns that are not usually the commodities taken up by the other media. Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the worlds bestselling and most widely distributed book. Have you read the mostcirculated book in the history of.
1581 1560 403 516 1322 298 1248 1197 1055 436 536 89 1145 1061 747 266 1589 334 1261 999 1321 31 194 584 1384 1018 1324 278 708 1190 306 820 59