Boekenweek
Dutch event dedicated to Dutch literature
In the Netherlands, the Boekenweek (Dutch pronunciation: [ˈbukə(ɱ)ˌʋeːk] ; English: Book Week) is an annual "week" of ten days dedicated to Dutch literature. It has been held in March annually since 1932. Each Boekenweek has a theme. The beginning of the Boekenweek is marked by the Boekenbal (book ball), a gathering that is attended by writers and publishers. Events are held across the country during the Boekenweek, such as book signing sessions, literary festivals and debates.
Publications
Each year a well-known writer, usually Dutch or Flemish, is asked to write a book, usually a novella, called the Boekenweekgeschenk (book week gift), which is to be given away during the festival. Book shops give a copy of the Boekenweekgeschenk when a customer buys a book in the Dutch language; libraries also give copies of these books when a new person becomes a member. The Boekenweekgeschenk is published by the Collectieve Propaganda van het Nederlandse Boek (CPNB, Collective Promotion for the Dutch Book). Some authors invited to write for this event have included Maarten 't Hart (1984), Hugo Claus (1989), Cees Nooteboom, and Harry Mulisch (2000). In 2001, the Boekenweekgeschenk was originally written in English by Salman Rushdie and later translated into Dutch.
The public source identifies “Boekenweek” as dutch event dedicated to Dutch literature. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Boekenweek, Dutch and event.
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Contemporary correspondence, administrative files and participant testimony can test how later narratives organized the event or institution. The source revision retrieved here is dated Apr 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q2744530. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1932, 1984, 1989 and 2000.
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This entry incorporates text from “Boekenweek” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.