Albertus Willem Sijthoff

Sijthoff was born in 1829 to an established family in Leiden. He was educated at the Stedelijk Gymnasium in Leiden, which had established a reputation as the "city of books." His father was a prominent baker who died in 1843.

Sijthoff worked in the book and newspaper printing office of J.G. La Lau, and the Hague bookselling firm of K. Fuhri. After working in Paris as a resident typographist, Sijthhoff first spoke to colleagues about starting his own printing business on October 20, 1850. The A.W. Sijthoff company was established in Leiden in 1851.

Sijthoff rose to prominence in the trade of translated books. He wrote a letter, dated November 12, 1899, to Queen Wilhelmina of the Netherlands regarding his opposition to the petition to become a signatory to the Berne Convention for the Protection of Literary and Artistic Works. He felt that the international copyright restrictions would stifle the publishing industry in the Netherlands.

Sijthoff was a member of the Society of Dutch Literature. He was knighted in the Order of Orange-Nassau, the Order of the Oak Crown and the Order of the Polar Star.