The famous German publishing company Bibliographisches Institut was founded in Gotha by Joseph Meyer in 1826. He moved the works to Hildburghausen in 1828 and then to Leipzig in 1874. Its production over the years included such well-known titles as Meyers Lexikon; an encyclopaedia which was published from 1839, Brehms Tierlebe; a work on animal life published from 1863 – 1869 with the 4th edition being published during the years, 1911 – 18. Duden; dictionaries which covered every aspect of the language were published from 1880 and Meyers Reisenbucher; a series of guide books were published from 1862 -1936. Meyers Klassiker; a work on home and foreign literature and the Meyers Handatlas and Der Grosse Weltatlas were among many of the publishing houses other successes.
The buildings of the company were completely destroyed by the bombing raids on Leipzig in 1943 and 1944 and the company itself was expropriated by the communist regime in 1946 and turned into a Volkseigener Betrieb. The shareholders moved the concern to Mannheim in Western Germany in 1953 and it became Bibliographisches Institut AG. Titles like Meyers (Enzyklopädisches) Lexikon, Der Grosse Duden, Schlag Nach! and Meyers Grosser Weltatlas appeared again. At the same time VEB Bibliographisches Institut, operating in the same field, stayed in Leipzig and published the Meyers Neues Lexikon and Duden etc.
In 1984 Bibliographisches Institut AG amalgamated with its biggest competitor in the market of reference works, F.A. Brockhaus of Wiesbaden to become Bibliographisches Institut & F.A. Brockhaus AG.
After the German reunion the company regained its former properties in Leipzig in 1991.
