History
Over three centuries of scholarly publishing
Ever since its beginnings in 1683, Brill has been based in Leiden, home of the oldest university of the Netherlands. Founded during the golden age of Dutch history and culture, Brill has had a rich publishing history, including the publication of Bayle’s influential Dictionnaire Historique et Critique, the inception of one of the first scholarly journals in Chinese studies T’oung Pao, the publication of the Nag Hammadi codices for UNESCO and a wealth of major reference works in our areas of specialization. The international nature of our publishing program is perhaps best exemplified by the Encyclopaedia of Islam, a work now into its 3rd edition and still founded on the principles of international scholarly collaboration and review.
Brill’s core activities lie in specialized market niches in the humanities and international law and, to a restricted extent, in the sciences. The company supplies a wide range of high quality, professionally relevant literature to libraries and individual academics. Providing service to authors and readers and to all those in the intermediate chain who are of importance is the core competence of Brill.
Brill's history in a commemorative book
Brill’s rich history was described in an illustrated book, which was published in both English and Dutch.
Click here for the free-of-charge electronic version of the book:
If you are interested in ordering the print version of the book, view the English version or Dutch version on our website.