City of Literature

Recognition conferred by UNESCO

The Portico Library in Manchester

The State Library Victoria in Melbourne

UNESCO's City of Literature programme is part of the wider Creative Cities Network.

The Network was launched in 2004, and now has member cities in seven creative fields. The other creative fields are: Crafts and Folk Art, Design, Film, Gastronomy, Media Arts, and Music.[1]

## Criteria for Cities of Literature[edit]

To be approved as a City of Literature, cities need to meet a number of criteria set by UNESCO.[2]

Designated UNESCO Cities of Literature share similar characteristics:

* Quality, quantity, and diversity of publishing in the city
* Quality and quantity of educational programmes focusing on domestic or foreign literature at primary, secondary, and tertiary levels
* Literature, drama, and/or poetry playing an important role in the city
* Hosting literary events and festivals, which promote domestic and foreign literature
* Existence of libraries, bookstores, and public or private cultural centres, which preserve, promote, and disseminate domestic and foreign literature
* Involvement by the publishing sector in translating literary works from diverse national languages and foreign literature
* Active involvement of traditional and new media in promoting literature and strengthening the market for literary products

Cities submit bids to UNESCO to be designated a City of Literature. The designations are monitored and reviewed every four years by UNESCO.

## About the cities[edit]

Heidelberg University Library and Braidense National Library in Milan

In 2004, Edinburgh became the first literary city. It hosts the annual International Book Festival and has its own poet laureate—the Makar.[3][4]

Ljubljana runs their Library Under the Treetops at various locations across the city, including Tivoli City Park and Zvezda Park. These sites offer a selection of book genres and several domestic and foreign newspapers and magazines.[5]

Manchester is home to the "world-class" Central Library and the "historic gems" of The Portico, John Rylands, and Chetham's.[6]

Melbourne's is home to Australia's oldest public library State Library of Victoria, the Centre of Books, Writing and Ideas The Wheeler Centre and was home to the world's biggest book shop Cole's Book Arcade, opened at the turn of the twentieth century.

Prague's "great intellectual and creative resources," includes the book design, illustration, typography, and graphic design fields. It also has the National Library of the Czech Republic among over 200 libraries, one of Europe's highest concentrations of bookshops, and the Prague Writers' Festival.[7]

Libraries in other literary cities, include: Braidense National Library in Milan, Heidelberg University Library, and the National Library of Ireland in Dublin.[8][9][10]

Dunedin is the "Edinburgh of the South", and home to New Zealand's oldest university. Durban is "fun-loving."[11][12]

Montevideo is a "vibrant, eclectic place" and Québec City is a "gorgeous, seductive place."[13][14]

## Cities of Literature[edit]

The National Library in Prague, the National Library in Dublin, and John Rylands Library in Manchester

There are fifty-three Cities of Literature, spanning thirty-nine countries and six continents.

Twenty-four of the represented cities are European, seven are Asian, and three are North American. Oceania and South America is represented by two cities each, while Africa is to have one designated city.

Aracataca train station, in Colombia, one of the settings of a Gabriel García Márquez novel.

Eight countries have two designated cities, while the UK has five.

The Cities of Literature are:

City  | Country  | Year of inscription

|
|

Angoulême |  France | 2019[15]
Baghdad |  Iraq | 2015[16]
Barcelona |  Spain | 2015[17]
Beirut |  Lebanon | 2019[15]
Bremen |  Germany | 2023[18]
Bucheon |  Korea Republic | 2017[19]
Buffalo City |  South Africa | 2023[18]
Dublin |  Ireland | 2010[20]
Dunedin |  New Zealand | 2014[21]
Durban |  South Africa | 2017[22]
Edinburgh |  United Kingdom | 2004[4]
Exeter |  United Kingdom | 2019[23][24][15]
Gothenburg |  Sweden | 2021[25]
Granada |  Spain | 2014[26]
Heidelberg |  Germany | 2014[27]
Hobart |  Australia | 2023[18]
Iași |  Romania | 2023[18]
Iowa City |  United States | 2008[28]
Jakarta |  Indonesia | 2021[25]
Kozhikode |  India | 2023[18]
Kraków |  Poland | 2013[29]
Kuhmo |  Finland | 2019[15]
Kutaisi |  Georgia | 2023[18]
Lahore |  Pakistan | 2019[15]
Leeuwarden |  Netherlands | 2019[30]
Lillehammer |  Norway | 2017[31]
Ljubljana |  Slovenia | 2015[32]
Lviv |  Ukraine | 2015[33]
Lyon |  France | 2023[18]
Manchester |  United Kingdom | 2017[34]
Melbourne |  Australia | 2008[35]
Milan |  Italy | 2017[36]
Montevideo |  Uruguay | 2015[37]
Nanjing |  China | 2019[15]
Norwich |  United Kingdom | 2012[38]
Nottingham |  United Kingdom | 2015[39]
Óbidos |  Portugal | 2015[40]
Odesa |  Ukraine | 2019[41]
Okayama |  Japan | 2023[18]
Prague |  Czech Republic | 2014[7]
Québec City |  Canada | 2017[42]
Reykjavík |  Iceland | 2011[43]
Rio de Janeiro |  Brazil | 2023[18]
Seattle |  United States | 2017[44]
Sulaymaniyah |  Iraq | 2019[15]
Taif |  Saudi Arabia | 2023[18]
Tartu |  Estonia | 2015[45]
Tukums |  Latvia | 2023[18]
Ulyanovsk |  Russia | 2015[46]
Utrecht |  Netherlands | 2017[47]
Vilnius |  Lithuania | 2021[48]
Wonju |  South Korea | 2019[15]
Wrocław |  Poland | 2019[15]

## See also[edit]

* Creative Cities Network
* City of Crafts and Folk Arts
* City of Music
* City of Film
* Design Cities
* City of Gastronomy
* City of Media Arts

## References[edit]

1. ^ "UNESCO Creative Cities Network".
2. ^ Do you have what it takes to be a City of Literature?
3. ^ "Edinburgh Crowned the Capital of Literature". TheGuardian.com.
4. ^ a b "Edinburgh".
5. ^ "Library Under the Treetops".
6. ^ "Manchester Named as a UNESCO City of Literature".
7. ^ a b "Prague".
8. ^ "Ten Stunning Italian Libraries".
9. ^ "Eight Most Beautiful Libraries in Germany".
10. ^ "Five Libraries in Dublin Every Bibliophile Should Visit".
11. ^ "Dunedin".
12. ^ "Durban".
13. ^ "Montevideo".
14. ^ "Québec City".
15. ^ a b c d e f g h i "UNESCO designates 66 new Creative Cities".
16. ^ "Baghdad".
17. ^ "Barcelona".
18. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "55 new cities join the UNESCO Creative Cities Network on World Cities Day". Retrieved 31 October 2023.
19. ^ "Bucheon".
20. ^ "Dublin".
21. ^ "Dunedin".
22. ^ "Durban".
23. ^ "Exeter".
24. ^ "Exeter Unesco".
25. ^ a b "49 new cities join UNESCO's Creative Cities Network".
26. ^ "Granada".
27. ^ "Heidelberg".
28. ^ "Iowa City".
29. ^ "Kraków".
30. ^ "Leeuwarden".
31. ^ "Lillehammer".
32. ^ "Ljubljana".
33. ^ "Lviv".
34. ^ "Manchester".
35. ^ "Melbourne".
36. ^ "Milan".
37. ^ "Montevideo".
38. ^ "Norwich".
39. ^ "Nottingham".
40. ^ "Óbidos".
41. ^ "Odesa".
42. ^ "Québec City".
43. ^ "Reykjavík".
44. ^ "Seattle".
45. ^ "Tartu".
46. ^ "Ulyanovsk".
47. ^ "Utrecht".
48. ^ "Vilnius".

## External links[edit]

* UNESCO Cities of Literature Website
* Creative Cities Map, UNESCO
* Edinburgh City of Literature
* Melbourne City of Literature
* Iowa City City of Literature
* Dublin City of Literature
* Reykjavík City of Literature
* National Centre for Writing, Norwich
* Kraków City of Literature
* Heidelberg City of Literature
* Dunedin City of Literature
* Granada City of Literature
* Prague City of Literature
* Barcelona City of Literature
* Leeuwarden City of Literature
* Lillehammer City of Literature
* Ljubljana City of Literature
* Lviv City of Literature
* Nottingham City of Literature
* Óbidos Vila Literária
* Seattle City of Literature
* Tartu City of Literature
* Ulyanovsk City of Literature
* Utrecht City of Literature
* Bucheon City of Literature
* Exeter City of Literature
* Vilnius City of Literature
* Gothenburg City of Literature
* Kuhmo City of Literature
* Slemani City of Literature