Edition Leipzig

The idea to create a book publishing house directly connected to a related Außenhandelsunternehmen (Foreign trade institution) was first formulated in 1956. The publishing house Edition Leipzig was then founded in Leipzig in 1960.

The name Edition Leipzig allowed to publish books in Western countries and in particular the old Federal Republic of Germany (FRG/BRD) also from GDR publishers which were the result of expropriations from traditional publishers and for which namesake publishers existed in West Germany as a continuation of the traditional publishers such as Brockhaus, Reclam or Meyer. The West German publishers in question actively boycotted the appearance of their namesake GDR publishers, so that the latter could not market their publishing program especially on the West German market. These GDR publishers were typically also not allowed to take part at the Frankfurt Book Fair.

The elaborations that led to the founding of the publishing house Edition Leipzig began at the headquarters of E. A. Seemann in Leipzig. Edition Leipzig was initially granted hospitality rights in the Akademische Verlagsgesellschaft Geest & Portig (AVG). It was not until 20 June 1960 that Edition Leipzig moved into its own permanent premises at Karlstrasse 20.

At first, books were taken over from other GDR specialist publishers. Standard works which could be easily placed on the market were the first choice. Until 1965, scientific and technical titles prevailed in the GDR. The first book, which was published by Edition Leipzig, was the "Taschenbuch der Mathematik" (Handbook of mathematics) by Ilya Nikolaevich Bronshtein and Konstantin Adolfovic Semendyayev by B. G. Teubner Verlag. Between 1958/1961 and 1969/1970, 10 editions were published through Edition Leipzig and Verlag Harri Deutsch to Western countries, whereas Teubner focused on the local market.

One of the first titles developed by Edition Leipzig itself was the book "Schlag nach: Fakten über die Deutsche Demokratische Republik" (Look it up: Facts about the German Democratic Republic), which in 1961 was launched in 17 languages simultaneously. This was followed by art prints about monuments, picture galleries and state museums of the GDR. A "Technische Grundlagen" (Technical basics) series, published in several languages, was specially designed for Third World countries.

Co-production with foreign publishers was sought early on in order to improve the sales opportunities at the respective foreign markets.

Around 1970–1971, the publishing house had established itself on the market. It produced only its own productions, with thematically related series being grouped together.

This is how the series "Das Bild der Frau" (The image of women) came about with works such as "Die Frau im alten Ägypten" (The ancient Egyptian woman), "Die Frau im Islam" (The Muslim woman) or "Die Frau im Sozialismus" (The socialist woman).

Works such as "Geschichte der Naturwissenschaften" (History of natural sciences) were published in a series called "Wissenschaftliche Sammlung" (Scientific collection).

The animal book series included works such as "Das große Katzenbuch" (The big cat book). The series "Weltstädte der Kunst" (World cities of art) was published in several languages from 1965 to 1981. The series "Kunstdenkmäler in den sozialistischen Ländern" (Art monuments in socialist countries) contains many titles.