The
Brockhaus Enzyklopädie is a
German-languageGerman is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
encyclopediaAn encyclopedia is a comprehensive written compendium that holds information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge. Encyclopedias are divided into articles with one article on each subject covered...
published by
BrockhausBrockhaus may refer to:* Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus , German encyclopedia publisher and editor** Brockhaus Enzyklopädie, German-language encyclopedia**Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Russian-language encyclopedia...
.
The first edition originated in the
Conversations-Lexikon mit vorzüglicher Rücksicht auf die gegenwärtigen ZeitenThe Conversations-Lexikon mit vorzüglicher Rücksicht auf die gegenwärtigen Zeiten , Leipzig, 1796 to 1808, 8vo, 6 vols., 2,762 pages, was an encyclopedia edited by Dr Renatus Gotthelf Löbel, who intended to supersede Johann Hübner, and included geography, history, and in part biography, besides...
by Renatus Gotthelf Löbel and Christian Wilhelm Franke, published in
LeipzigLeipzig is, with a population of 515,459, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany.-Origins:Leipzig's name is derived from the Slavic word Lipsk, which means "settlement where the lime trees stand"....
1796-1808. Paralleling other 18th century encyclopedias, the scope was expanded beyond that of earlier publications, in an effort to become comprehensive. This
Lexikon included geography, history, and in part biography, as well as the more typical mythology, philosophy, natural history, and so on.
The 21st edition contained about 300,000 entries on 24,000 pages, with about 35,000 maps, graphics and tables.
The
Brockhaus Enzyklopädie is a
German-languageGerman is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
encyclopediaAn encyclopedia is a comprehensive written compendium that holds information from either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge. Encyclopedias are divided into articles with one article on each subject covered...
published by
BrockhausBrockhaus may refer to:* Friedrich Arnold Brockhaus , German encyclopedia publisher and editor** Brockhaus Enzyklopädie, German-language encyclopedia**Brockhaus and Efron Encyclopedic Dictionary, Russian-language encyclopedia...
.
The first edition originated in the
Conversations-Lexikon mit vorzüglicher Rücksicht auf die gegenwärtigen ZeitenThe Conversations-Lexikon mit vorzüglicher Rücksicht auf die gegenwärtigen Zeiten , Leipzig, 1796 to 1808, 8vo, 6 vols., 2,762 pages, was an encyclopedia edited by Dr Renatus Gotthelf Löbel, who intended to supersede Johann Hübner, and included geography, history, and in part biography, besides...
by Renatus Gotthelf Löbel and Christian Wilhelm Franke, published in
LeipzigLeipzig is, with a population of 515,459, the largest city in the federal state of Saxony, Germany.-Origins:Leipzig's name is derived from the Slavic word Lipsk, which means "settlement where the lime trees stand"....
1796-1808. Paralleling other 18th century encyclopedias, the scope was expanded beyond that of earlier publications, in an effort to become comprehensive. This
Lexikon included geography, history, and in part biography, as well as the more typical mythology, philosophy, natural history, and so on.
The 21st edition contained about 300,000 entries on 24,000 pages, with about 35,000 maps, graphics and tables. It is the largest
German languageGerman is a West Germanic language, thus related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. It is one of the world's major languages and the most widely spoken first language in the European Union. Around the world, German is spoken by approximately 105 million native speakers and also by...
printed encyclopedia in the 21st century. A
digitalA digital system is a data technology that uses discrete values. By contrast, non-digital systems use a continuous range of values to represent information...
multimediaMultimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which only use traditional forms of printed or hand-produced material...
encyclopedia based on the Brockhaus Enzyklopädie is available under the name
Brockhaus Multimedial Premium, which is similar to
Microsoft EncartaMicrosoft Encarta is a digital multimedia encyclopedia published by Microsoft Corporation since 1993. , the complete English version, Encarta Premium consisted of more than 62,000 articles, numerous photos and illustrations, music clips, videos, interactivities, timelines, maps and atlas, and...
.
In February 2008, Brockhaus said that they might never again publish a print edition. This announcement briefly boosted print sales again and plans to switch to an on-line only edition were canceled. However, in 2009 Bibliographisches Institut & F.A. Brockhaus AG (Bifab) sold the Brockhaus brand to
BertelsmannBertelsmann AG is a transnational media corporation founded in 1835, based in Gütersloh, Germany. The company operates in 63 countries and employs 106,083 workers...
(renamed themselves to Bibliographisches Institut AG), and sacked 50 employees of its Leipzig-based editorial staff, a move that was widely interpreted as the end of Brockhaus Enzyklopädie, caused by the competition of Internet-based reference works such as
WikipediaWikipedia is a free, web-based, collaborative, multilingual encyclopedia project supported by the non-profit Wikimedia Foundation. Its name is a portmanteau of the words wiki and encyclopedia...
.
History
In 1808, the rights to the publication were bought by
Friedrich Arnold BrockhausFriedrich Arnold Brockhaus was a German encyclopedia publisher and editor, famed for publishing the Conversations-Lexikon, which is now published as the Brockhaus encyclopedia....
, who paid 1,800
thalerThe Reichsthaler was a standard Thaler of the Holy Roman Empire, established in 1566 by the Leipzig convention. It was also the name of a unit of account in northern Germany and of a silver coin issued by Prussia.-Reichsthaler coin:...
s. Thirteen editions were issued during the 19th century. The articles, often very brief, were considered excellent and trustworthy, especially on German subjects, gave references to the best books, and included biographies of living men.
At first the name of the encyclopedia remained
Konversationslexikon or
Allgemeine deutsche Real-Encyklopädie für die gebildeten Stände; only with the 13th edition did the name Brockhaus appear in the title, and the present edition is titled
Brockhaus Enzyklopädie.
Christian Wilhelm Franke was to finish vol. vi of the Leipzig publication by December 1808, and the already projected supplement, in 2 volumes, by 1811. Brockhaus himself edited the 2nd edition (1812-1819, 10 vols.), and, when vol. iv was published, the 3rd (1814-1819). Dr. Ludwig Ham assisted in editing the 4th and 5th editions until he left Leipzig in April 1820, when Professor F.C. Hasse took his place. Brockhaus died in 1823, and his two eldest sons, Friedrich and Heinrich, edited the 6th edition with Hasse's assistance in September 1823. Hasse edited the 7th edition. Dr. Karl August Espe edited the 8th and 9th editions.
Dr. August Kurtzel, aided by Oskar Pilz, edited the 10th edition, assisted by Heinrich Edward Brockhaus, and Heinrich Rudolf Brockhaus, the younger son, assisted in the 11th edition. Kurtzel died on April 24, 1871, and Pilz was sole editor until March 1872, when Dr. Gustav Stockmann joined, who was alone from April until joined by Dr. Karl Wippermann in October.
On February 13, 2008, Brockhaus announced that it would switch its business, starting April 15, 2008, to the internet due to the disappointing sales figures of the 21st edition of the
Brockhaus Enzyklopädie, making the content of the encyclopedia available online, supported by Internet advertising revenues.
Impact
"No work of reference has been more useful and successful, or more frequently copied, imitated and translated, than that known as the
Conversations-Lexikon of Brockhaus," wrote the 1911 Encyclopaedia Britannica. The work was intended, not for scientific use, but to promote general intellectual improvement by giving the results of research and discovery in a simple and popular form without extended details. This format, a contrast to the
Encyclopædia BritannicaThe Encyclopædia Britannica is a general English-language encyclopaedia published by Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., a privately held company. The articles in the Britannica are aimed at educated adult readers, and written by a staff of about 100 full-time editors and more than...
, was widely imitated by later 19th century encyclopedias in Britain and the United States. The seventh edition of the
Conversations-Lexikon formed the basis of the
Encyclopedia AmericanaThe Encyclopædia Americana is one of the largest general encyclopedias in the English language. As the name suggests, it is produced in the United States and is aimed mainly at the North American market; it is, however, also sold in Asia and elsewhere...
(1829-1833), the first significant American encyclopedia.
In 2009, Brockhaus had a brand recognition of 93% in Germany.
Edition history
- 1st (1796-1808)
- 2nd (1812-1819)
- 3rd (1814-1815)
- 4th (1817-1819)
- 5th (1819-1820)
- 6th (1824)
- 7th (1827)
- 8th (1833-1837)
- 9th (1843-1848)
- 10th (1851-1855)
- 11th (1864-1868)
- 12th (1875-1879)
- 13th (1882-1887) Brockhaus Conversations-Lexikon
- 14th (1892-1895) Brockhaus Konversations-Lexikon
- 15th (1928-1935) Der Große Brockhaus
- 16th (1952-1957) Der Große Brockhaus
- 17th (1966-1974) Brockhaus Enzyklopädie
- 18th (1977-1981) Der Große Brockhaus
- 19th (1986-1994) Brockhaus Enzyklopädie
- 20th (1996-1999) Brockhaus Die Enzyklopädie
- 21st (2005-2006) Brockhaus Enzyklopädie (starting fall 2005)
- (2007) Special edition of the 21st edition, with book design by Armin Mueller-Stahl
Armin Mueller-Stahl is an Academy Award-nominated German film actor.-Early life:Mueller-Stahl was born in Tilsit, East Prussia , the son of Editta and Alfred Mueller-Stahl, a bank teller. He was a noted concert violinist while he was a teenager...
(starting fall 2007)
External links