XIX A. pabaigos–XX A. PRADŽIOS ESTIJOS KNYGŲPREKYBININKAI, LEIDĖJAI IR SPAUDOS DARBUOTOJAI

Abstract

In the second half of the 19th century, the socio-economic and cultural situation in Estonia changed dramatically. Estonian people, who had reached a new level of self-awareness, were faced with a need to establish the foundations of an open national culture. The education provided by schools and the general world outlook were reformed to add breadth and diversity. A very important role in this process was played by books and newspapers. Their content and distribution reflect in the best way the development of the national culture.The improvement of the educational system favoured the spread of literacy, which in turn gave rise for demand of books. The rate of literacy in the Baltic provinces was very high compared with the other provinces of the Russian Empire. According to the results of the 1897 census, 91.2 % of the Estonian population were literate, the corresponding figure for Latvians being 80% and for Lithuanians 54%; at the same time the literate population in Russia was estimated to comprise only 30% and in Ukraine 28% [8, 86].The growing need for reading inspired people to engage themselves in book production and book trade. The Printing Decree,