Estonians spend more time reading books than any other people in the European Union.
A survey conducted in 15 EU countries between 2008 and 2015 found that Estonians read for an average of 13 minutes a day – more than any other nation surveyed. Finland and Poland followed closely on 12 minutes a day, while readers in France spent just two minutes a day on books. In Italy, Austria and Romania, the figure was five minutes. Conducted by Eurostat, the survey covered people aged between 20 and 74.
The share of people whose main daily activity was reading was highest in Finland, at 16.8 per cent of the population, followed by Poland on 16.4 per cent and Estonia on 15 per cent. Greece and Luxembourg shared fourth place, both on 11.9 per cent. At the other end of the table were France, with just 2.6 per cent, Romania on 6.2 per cent, Austria on 7.2 per cent and Belgium on 7.9 per cent.
In 2016, households across the EU spent more than €90 billion, or 1.1 per cent of total household expenditure, on books, newspapers and stationery. That amounted to 0.6 per cent of the bloc’s GDP – roughly €200 per citizen, according to the survey.
That Estonians are devoted readers will surprise few. In a country of just 1.3 million people, bookshops can be found in almost every large shopping centre, while independent bookstores continue to hold their ground in both Tallinn and Tartu. More striking still, given the size of the market, is the sheer number of publishers in Estonia – estimated at nearly 900.
