It is by far the most widely circulated book on earth. The bible and quotations from chairman mao still vie for the top spot. History has proven over the years that this book is indestructible. Other than the bible, which is the far and away the best selling christian book of all time with sales in the billions, here is my list for your consideration. Also, nobody likes people like john galt or those who try to follow him. The worlds most widely distributed book watchtower online. Similarly, many notable book series that sold very widely are poorly documented land of. The book of psalms easily wins, probably because it is both the longest book in the bible 150 chapters and it covers every human emotion and every circumstance in life.
Its estimated to have sold around 6 billion copies worldwide precise figures are nearly impossible to conclude, for. Also, it is worth noting that some religious and political books such as the bible, quran, and quotations from chairman mao are believed to. The best selling and fastest growing version of the bible in the united states is the niv. Oct 28, 2010 the bible is printed in more than 2000 languages and more copies of the bible are been sold every year than any other book ever published jamal, memorizing books is wot uneducated and silly people are made to do by people in authority. As more people seek education, the demand for knowledge increases and authors are striving to fulfill the demand. In my version of the the list, the bible remained the top seller in the world, with sales figures ranging widely.
According to guinness world records as of 1995, the bible is the bestselling book of all time, with an estimated 5 billion copies sold and distributed. Oct 05, 2015 well, it is easy to claim that if you package a thousand different versions and then claim the sale of each one counts as a sale. Additionally, since the bible is sold worldwide, calculating exact numbers becomes tricky. Today the bible is available in more languages that ever before. The guinness book of world records estimates that more than 5 billion copies of the bible have been printed. Oct 10, 2016 sure, the bestselling book of alltime is, of course, the bible. The bible is often said to be the worlds best sold book but search the. The familiar observation that the bible is the bestselling book of all time obscures a more startling fact. Similarly, many notable book series that sold very widely are poorly documented or consist of multiple subseries. The bible has been translated into 349 languages, and a survey conducted by the bible society concluded that between 1815 and 1975, around 2.
The bible tells a story from the first book, genesis, to the last book, revelation, that people long to be true. Yes, the bible is still the best seller in the world and it is the only book inspired by god 2peter 1. The top selling weight watchers book is the weight watchers new complete cookbook, fourth edition. And then it is only a vague guess, probably inflated by the xtains. This article discusses the worlds bestselling books. Feb 02, 2018 of course, the bible stills remains the worlds most purchased tome, at 6 billion copies sold, according to guinness world records. All my life ive been told the best selling book in the world is the bible. Stockbyte getty images 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. This page provides lists of bestselling individual books and book series to date and in any. Now the new israel bible just hit number one on amazon, designed to appeal to both christians and jews. Researchers have collated the figures for the number of editions, translations and copies sold of the worlds most popular books these are the most loved tomes. These are the 12 most popular books of all time indy100.
This book contains over five hundred recipes spanning 482 pages. Sep 22, 2006 if you dont count that harry potter books then you cant count the bible either, because they are counting it as all the versions, new and old, king james, picture, gideon etc. Is atlas shrugged the second most popular book next to the bible. Between 1815 and 1975, it was estimated that there could have been 5 billion bibles printed.
It is clearly one of the most controversial books in modern times though perhaps not so much for its content as the actions of some who interpret it. So if you hate reading booksbibles in dual column layout this is a great. Why is the bible still the worlds best selling book. Or it could be thought of as the best selling collection of books of all time, as it actually has dozens of books by a great number of authors over millenia. The quotations from chairman mao tsetung, also known as the little red book, has produced a wide array of sales and distribution figures with estimates ranging from 800 million to over 6. Although, to be fair, it should be pointed out that it has had hundreds of different translations, so its best selling status could be.
In my version of the the list, the bible remained the top seller in the world, with sales figures ranging. 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. Although bible sales in america have been robust for the past decade, the business is still fraught with anxieties. The familiar observation that the bible is the bestselling book of all time. So many have tried to disclaim the authority and truth of this book and have tried to destroy it but because god is in control this book will forever be.
Oct 19, 2015 the bible remains the worlds most translated book, with at least one book now available in a staggering 3,312 languages. Is the bible still the bestselling book in the world. The huffington post article actually named 16 books that have sold the most copies worldwide, noting that the bible is the top seller in the world. Aug 28, 2015 the last niv study bible, published by zondervan in 1985, sold more than 9 million copies. It is the oldest book on this list, so its had a long time to accrue sales. The first edition printed from movable type came off the. This list does not preach at all, but is simply a brief examination of the stories from the bible that make it a well known and talkedabout book in world literature. The bible is absolutely the greatest book ever written and as the word of god clearly states every knee shall bow one day. I was maybe hopping for a better metric then the number of book sold if it exists.
Sure, the best selling book of alltime is, of course, the bible. There are annual sales of 40 million bibles from study bibles to. But in spite of the bans and the persecution the bible still enjoys the greatest popularity of any book ever produced in human language. It also proves that gods word is a moneymaker for todays christian publishers. However, many more copies have been given away for free, meaning the actual number of bibles in circulation is unknown. The new testament is available in 2,191 languages, while the old and new testaments together can be read in 670 languages. The bible sells best because it is living, powerful and universally desired. It quickly became one of the best selling christian books of all time. Why is the bible always the number one zondervan academic. The bible, the bestselling book, is also the worlds most shoplifted book. Jul 10, 2019 the bible 100 million copies are sold each year. 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 imitation of christ by thomas a kempis 1418 sales unknown, but widely regarded as the bestselling christian title after the bible. Theres no doubt about it the bible is one of the worlds bestselling books.
Because of the wealth of resources devoted to the project, it was the most faithful and scholarly translation to date. Its the most widely read, most fiercely debated, and most often quoted book in history. Chapman created the list by examining how many individual copies of the books had been printed and sold over the last 50 years. Although its written origins go back 3,500 years, it is still very much alive. The new york times best sellers may 24, 2020 authoritatively ranked lists of books sold in the united states, sorted by format and genre.
The bible tops the list of the most read books in the world. The bible is the most widely distributed and best selling book in the world. As it is mentioned in the comments, many produced bibles were probably never read. The bible is often said to be the worlds best sold book but search the best seller lists and you wont find it anywhere, top to bottom. In any case, our list goes from the least popular best seller to. Oct 17, 2012 one group claimed the bible as the worlds bestselling book. May 25, 2017 more than 2,100 languages have at least one book of the bible in that language. The bible is printed in more than 2000 languages and more copies of the bible are been sold every year than any other book ever published jamal, memorizing books is wot uneducated and silly people are made to do by people in authority. In order to create our list of the top bible translations in 2018, we checked resources such as the christian book expo, thoughtco, calvary chapel eastside church and bible sources for the most. Harper lees new novel go set a watchman, the followup to to kill a mockingbird, is set to become one of the fastest selling books of all time.
Another group upheld it as the worlds mostread books. The bible is the worlds bestselling book, having sold more than five billion copies. Still, to a lot of rowlings fans, all seven harry potter novels are like bibles to them. It is also the most widely and given some of the liberties taken, wildly translated book of all time, too. The bible, with an estimated over 6 billion copies sold publishers say there is no way to track exact copies sold in its lifetime, is by far the bestselling and most translated book in the world. Is bible the worlds bestselling or mostread or most. The bible, the quran, and quotation from chairman mao, often reported as the mostprinted and mostdistributed books worldwide have hundreds of millions of copies to their credit. May 23, 20 yes, the bible is still the best seller in the world and it is the only book inspired by god 2peter 1. To make the bible the most printed book you have to add up all its flavors. As for layout, this nlt edition of the book is still laid out like a traditional novel book and not dual columns per page, like most bibles. Each year, some 60 million copies of the entire bible or portions of it are distributed. Lets begin with the prayer of jabez by bruce wilkinson. One of the bibles most popular translations is the niv new international versions and newer versions, like the esv english standard version also sell remarkably well. Over 100 million bibles are sold or given away for free every year in the world, according to the economist.
Jul 23, 2017 hi all, here is my opinion based on facts and partly on assumptions. According to guinness world records, the bible is the bestselling book of all time, with over 5 billion copies sold and distributed. I hope the below estimations show that the quran is in fact the most read book. There is, of course, no way to tally sales from the 1600s, so although some sources suggest that this has sold 500 million copies, theres no way anyone could. While the novel enjoys surges in popularity now and then, especially in spain, the sales number is a guess. The bible, which ranks as the worlds most read book, has sold 3. According to guinness world records as of 1995, the bible is the best selling book of all time, with an estimated 5 billion copies sold and distributed. The second bestselling book of all time crisis magazine. Jun 24, 2012 even though the bible has been translated, published, read, studied, analyzed, bought, sold and given away freely since then, particularly in the english speaking world, it is still banned in many communities. The bible is easily one of the bestselling books of all time, but exact sales numbers are hard to nail down. The bible has survived many vicious attacks by powerful people.
Nov 15, 20 chapman created the list by examining how many individual copies of the books had been printed and sold over the last 50 years. It addresses inward, private thoughts and feelings, as well as outward, publicly expressed words and actions. Jan 06, 2019 all my life ive been told the best selling book in the world is the bible. The third group considered it as the mostprinted and mostdistributed book. Christian books still dominate alltime bestsellers lists. But the king james version is still near the top of the list.
For example, during the middle ages in certain christian lands, the possession and reading of the bible in the vernacular the language of the common people was increasingly associated with heresy and dissent, says the book an introduction to the medieval bible. Harry potter becomes bestselling book series in history with. Sep 07, 2010 the huffington post article actually named 16 books that have sold the most copies worldwide, noting that the bible is the top seller in the world. This book was released in 2000 and it just absolutely exploded. Brett buckner is an independent correspondent and can be. A survey by the bible society concluded that around 2. Is atlas shrugged the second most popular book next to the. The bible, which ranks as the worlds mostread book, has sold 3. Jun 28, 2016 other than the bible, which is the far and away the bestselling christian book of all time with sales in the billions, here is my list for your consideration. Bestselling books are ranked by number of copies sold, not my personal ratings. Currently, the bible is the most sold book in the world, followed by quran and quotations from the chairman mao mao zedong. Although it is impossible to obtain exact figures, there is little doubt that the bible is the worlds bestselling and most widely distributed book. The bestselling books of 2018 so far publishers weekly. The bible is the best selling book of all time and still going strong.
The 21 bestselling books of all time howstuffworks. The bible has sold billions of copies and is the best selling book of all time. Exact print statistics for such books are, in fact, not available, or inaccurate because many unrelated publishers have printed these books over several centuries. Published in 1611, the king james bible spread quickly throughout europe. Apr 16, 2019 published in 1611, the king james bible spread quickly throughout europe. Dickson goes on to explain what he says in his book. Best selling book in the world proud of every wrinkle. If you would like to learn more about the bible and its author, jehovah god, i highly encourage you to visit. Today ive narrowed down that list to the five most ridiculous books to ever become christian bestsellers. Thousands of books are written, published and distributed every day.
The bible still remains at the top as the most read book in the world. The bible is the most influential book in american history and contemporary american life. The bible, however, is exceptional even among classical works. The bible is the alltime bestselling book but do you know what the nextbestselling book is. Oct 26, 2010 the bible still the best selling book. Researcher james chapman has compiled this look at the top 10 mostread books in the world. Is the bible still the best selling book of all time answers. Bible most owned, least read book in history ledgerenquirer. Many devout christians are quick to assert that the holy bible is the worlds bestselling book, for all time.
We made a little comparison with the best selling bible translations in 2017, and, trust us, the results dont differ much. This page includes a list of the 25 bestselling books of alltime as well as the 25 bestselling book series of alltime. He found that the bible far outsold any other book, with a whopping 3. Bloomsbury did not immediately respond to an email from syfy wire, while a rep for rowling declined to comment. Could it be true that the bible is the bestselling book. In 1995, one version of the bible, the good news version that is ed by the bible societies, had sold nearly 18 million copies.
1478 1455 12 1105 226 5 857 576 1283 457 200 199 634 157 1351 1291 1476 908 180 971 1346 808 751 1395 429 1002 32 510 181 847 944 914 1317 334 972 1390 449 554 329 467 7 125 426 1257