Mir Publishers (russian: Издательство "Мир") was a major
publishing house
Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...
in the
Soviet Union
The Soviet Union,. officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR),. was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 to 1991. A flagship communist state, ...
which continues to exist in modern
Russian Federation
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
. It was established in 1946 by a decree of the
USSR Council of Ministers
The Council of Ministers of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics ( rus, Совет министров СССР, r=Sovet Ministrov SSSR, p=sɐˈvʲet mʲɪˈnʲistrəf ɛsɛsɛˈsɛr; sometimes abbreviated to ''Sovmin'' or referred to as the '' ...
and has headquartered in
Moscow
Moscow ( , US chiefly ; rus, links=no, Москва, r=Moskva, p=mɐskˈva, a=Москва.ogg) is the capital and largest city of Russia. The city stands on the Moskva River in Central Russia, with a population estimated at 13.0 millio ...
,
Russia
Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and Northern Asia. It is the largest country in the world, with its internationally recognised territory covering , and encompassing one-eig ...
since then. It was completely state funded, which was the reason for the low prices of the books it published.
Its scope was domestic and translated special and tutorial literature in various domains of science and engineering: mathematics, physics, chemistry, biology, agriculture, transport, energy, etc. Many Soviet scientists and engineers were its contributors. The staff provided translation from original Russian. In addition, during the Soviet times it was known for translated foreign scientific and popular science books as well as
science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel uni ...
. Many of Mir's books were and are used as textbooks for studies of science in many countries.
[Foreign trade, Issues 7-12](_blank)
Ministerstvo vneshneĭ torgovli (U.S.S.R. Ministry of Foreign Trade), 1984, ''... Large orders for the books of the Mir Publishers were received from the Afghan, Indian, Mexican, English, French, Italian, Dutch and other firms. Foreign firms placed large orders for text-books, manuals and dictionaries ...''[Indian book industry, Volume 30](_blank)
Institute of Book Publishing, Federation of Indian Publishers, Sterling Publishers, 1984, ''... Various textbooks, teachnical manuals and aids brought out by Mir Publishers are becoming increasingly popular in India. Upon the request of Indian Book Industry, Vladimir Kartsev, D.Sc. (Tech.), Mir's director, tells about this Soviet publishing house's work ...''[Directory of book trade in India](_blank)
National Guide Books Syndicate, 1973, ''... Many of the titles already issued by the Mir Publishers have been accepted as textbooks and manuals at educational establishments in India and other countries ... textbooks for universities, technical schools and vocational schools; literature on the natural sciences and medicine, including textbooks for medical schools and schools for nurses; popular science and science fiction ...''
The publishing house survived after the
dissolution of the Soviet Union and was eventually privatised and later expanded its scope by incorporating a number of state publishing houses: Kolos (Колос), Transport (Транспорт), Khimiya (Химия), Metallurgiya (Металлургия), Legprombitizdat (Легпромбытиздат), and Energoatomizdat (Энергоатомиздат).
In 2008, the company faced a bankruptcy case.
The case was closed by the Moscow Arbitral Court on June 2, 2009 because the publishing house had paid completely the debt to the creditors.
''Note'': its old domain, mir-publishers.net, is
squatted
Squatting is the action of occupying an abandoned or unoccupied area of land or a building, usually residential, that the squatter does not own, rent or otherwise have lawful permission to use. The United Nations estimated in 2003 that there ...
.
Book series
English language
* Advances in Science and Technology in the USSR: Biology Series
* Advances in Science and Technology in the USSR: Chemistry Series
* Advances in Science and Technology in the USSR: Mathematics and Mechanics Series
* Advances in Science and Technology in the USSR: Physics Series
* Advances in Science and Technology in the USSR: Technology Series
* Higher Mathematics Series
* Little Mathematics Library
* Science for Everyone
Science for Everyone (Mir Publishers) - Book Series List
publishinghistory.com. Retrieved 3 March 2021.
French language
* Science soviétique
Spanish language
* Ciencia Popular
* Los Científicos a los Escolares (CE)
* Física al Alcance de Todos
* Lecciones Populares de Matemáticas
References
{{reflist, 2
External links
Mir Books , Books from the Soviet Era
Online copies of books published by Mir Publishers
at Wayback Machine
The Wayback Machine is a digital archive of the World Wide Web founded by the Internet Archive, a nonprofit based in San Francisco, California. Created in 1996 and launched to the public in 2001, it allows the user to go "back in time" and see ...
Publishing companies established in 1946
Publishing companies of the Soviet Union
1946 establishments in the Soviet Union