About this list

dbnl, 121 Books

This list was compiled by the Digitale Bibliotheek voor de Nederlandse Letteren (dbnl) through a survey conducted among members of the Maatschappij der Nederlandse Letterkunde (Society for Dutch Literature), which includes a representative group of literary scholars, historians, writers, publishers, and publicists. The survey aimed to identify the most valuable and representative works in Dutch literature over time, effectively forming a Dutch literary canon. Participants were asked to nominate authors and titles they considered classics, as well as to highlight any unjustly forgotten works. Out of 1,485 questionnaires sent, 299 responses were received. The results revealed that Multatuli emerged as the most canonical author, particularly for his work "Max Havelaar", which frequently occupied the top position. Medieval literature was also well represented in the list, while the 18th century received comparatively less attention. The survey highlights ongoing discussions about the Dutch literary canon and emphasizes the importance of promoting Dutch literary heritage, with recommendations to make classic texts more accessible through modern media and education.

* Note: I removed a couple of items on this list because they were not books. There were songs

This list was originally published in 2002 and was added to this site over 1 year ago.