List of world exhibitions

The list of world exhibitions includes all events known as world exhibitions excluding the International Horticultural Exhibitions (AIPH) recognized by the BIE. The Bureau International des Expositions ( BIE for short ) has been the official institution for awarding world exhibitions since 1928. The list therefore divides the exhibitions into categories according to the recognition by the BIE.

Categories

BIE-WA	BIE-registered world exhibition. All exhibitions in this category that took place before 1928 were retrospectively recognized by the BIE.
BIE-IA	BIE recognized international exhibition
-	non-BIE recognized world exhibition

list

year	country	place	category	Surname	Landmarks / novelties	Visitors in millions	Area in ha	countries
1851	United Kingdom	London	BIE-WA	Great Exhibition	Crystal Palace (crystal palace )	6th	10.5	28
1853	United States	new York	-	Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations (1853)	New York Crystal Palace ( Crystal Palace )		1.1
1853	United Kingdom	Dublin	-	Great Industrial Exhibition		1.1
1855	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1855	Bordeaux classification , concrete boat , espresso machine , matches	5.2	16	34
1862	United Kingdom	London	BIE-WA	London World's Fair 1862	Adding machine , sewing machine , Lenoir - gas engine (distinction)	6.1	9	36
1865	United Kingdom	Dublin	-	International Exhibition of Arts and Manufactures
1867	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1867	Hydraulic elevator , reinforced concrete , gas engine , aniline paints , ice cream soda, suction wind harmonium , flying piston engine , Velocipede by Michaux	9.2	66.8	32
1873	Austria	Vienna	BIE-WA	World Exhibition 1873	rotunda	7.3	233	35
1876	United States	Philadelphia	BIE-WA	Centennial International Exhibition	Telephone , sewing machine , typewriter , Thonet chair	10.2	115	35
1878	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1878	Electric light , refrigerator , forerunner of the record player	16.2	77	36
1879	German Empire	Berlin	-	Berlin trade exhibition	First electrically operated railway
1879	Australia	Sydney	-	Sydney International Exhibition (1879)		1	6.1
1880	Australia	Melbourne	BIE-WA	Melbourne International Exhibition (1880)	Royal Exhibition Building	1.3	25.5	32
1883	Netherlands	Amsterdam	-	Internationale Koloniale en Uitvoerhandel Tentoonstelling
1884	United States	New Orleans	-	New Orleans Universal Exposition and World's Fair
1885	Belgium	Antwerp	-	World Exhibition Antwerp 1885
1886	United Kingdom	London	-	Colonial and Indian Exhibition		5.5
1888	Australia	Melbourne	-	Centennial Exhibition of Melbourne
1888	United Kingdom	Glasgow	-	International Exhibition (Glasgow 1888)		5.7
1888	Spain	Barcelona	BIE-WA	Expo 1888 de Barcelona	Arc de Triomf	2.3	46.5	30th
1889	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1889	Eiffel Tower , Gallery des Machines	32.3	96	54
1893	United States	Chicago	BIE-WA	World Columbian Exposition	Zipper , Ferris wheel , electric chair , dishwasher	27.3	278	46
1894	Belgium	Antwerp	-	Oud Antwerp
1894	Italy	Milan	-	Esposizioni riunite del 1894 (Esposizione industriale ed artistica)	First aerial tramway for passenger transport
1894	United States	San Francisco	-	California mid-winter exposure
1895	United States	Atlanta	-	Cotton States and International Exposition				14th
1896	German Empire	Berlin	-	Berlin trade exhibition		7th	90
1897	Belgium	Brussels	BIE-WA	Brussels World's Fair 1897	Colony Palace	7.8	132	27
1900	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1900	Escalator , film , heliogravure , Crimean sparkling wine , Brillantine , Lohner-Porsche (first electric hybrid car), metro , trolleybus , Grand Palais , Petit Palais , Gare d'Orsay , Pont Alexandre III , Krasnoyarsk railway bridge	48.1	216	40
1901	United States	Buffalo	-	Pan-American exposure	X-ray machine	8th	140
1902	Italy	Turin	-	Prima Esposizione Internazionale d'Arte Decorativa Moderna
1904	United States	St. Louis	BIE-WA	Louisiana Purchase Exposition	Louisiana Monument	19.7	515	63
1905	Belgium	Liege	BIE-WA	Liège International - 1905		7th	21.1	39
1906	Italy	Milan	BIE-WA	World Exhibition in Milan 1906	Acquario Civico di Milano	7.5-10	100	50
1907	United Kingdom	Dublin	-	Irish International Exhibition		2.75	21st
1907	United States	Hampton Roads	-	Jamestown exposure			53
1909	United States	Seattle	-	Alaska-Yukon-Pacific Exposition	Postage stamp machine
1910	Belgium	Brussels	BIE-WA	Brussels International - 1910		13	88	26th
1911	Italy	Turin	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Turin 1911		7.4	120	30th
1913	Belgium	Ghent	BIE-WA	World Exhibition 1913 Gent		9.5	130	24
1915	United States	San Francisco	BIE-WA	Panama-Pacific International Exposition	Palace of Fine Arts , Tower of Jewels	18.9	254	24
1915	United States	San Diego	-	Panama-California exposure		3.7	260
1922	Brazil	Rio de Janeiro	-	Exposição do Centenario do Brasil		3		14th
1924	United Kingdom	Wembley	-	British Empire Exhibition		27
1925	France	Paris	-	Exposition Internationale des Arts Décoratifs et industriels modern	Hôtel d'un Collectionneur	15th	23.1	18th
1926	United States	Philadelphia	-	Sesquicentennial exposure	Sound film , electric typewriter
1929	Spain	Barcelona	BIE-WA	Exposició Internacional de Barcelona	German pavilion	5.8	118	29
1929	Spain	Seville	-	Exposición Ibero-Americana
1930	Belgium	Antwerp	-	Exposition international coloniale, maritime et d'art flamand
1930	Belgium	Liege	-	Liège 1930
1931	France	Paris	-	Paris colonial exhibition		7-9
1933/34	United States	Chicago	BIE-WA	A Century of Progress		38.9	172	21st
1935	Belgium	Brussels	BIE-WA	Brussels World's Fair 1935	Traffic lights	20th	125	24
1936	Sweden	Stockholm	BIE-IA	Internationella Luftfartsutställningen i Stockholm ILIS 1936			0.5	8th
1936/37	United States	Cleveland	-	Great Lakes Exposition		7th	54.6
1937	France	Paris	BIE-WA	World Exhibition Paris 1937	Palais de Chaillot	34	101	44
1938	Finland	Helsinki	BIE-IA	Second International Aeronautic Exhibition SILI 1938		15th	15.2	25th
1939	Belgium	Liege	BIE-IA	Exposition Internationale de la Technique de l'eau			50	8th
1939	United States	New York City	BIE-WA	1939 New York World's Fair	Futurama, Trylon, Perisphere	44.9	486.4	33
1939	United States	San Francisco	-	Golden Gate Exposition or Golden Gate International Exposition			160
1942	Italy	Rome	called off	E.42, see Esposizione Universale di Roma
1947	France	Paris	BIE-IA	Urbanism			6.35	14th
1949	Sweden	Stockholm	BIE-IA	Universal Sport Exhibition (Linguiade)				37
1949	Haiti	Port-au-Prince	BIE-WA	Exposition Internationale de Port-au-Prince (1949)		0.07	30th	19th
1949	France	Lyon	BIE-IA	Rural habitation			110
1951	France	Lille	BIE-IA	International Exhibition of Textile		1.5	15th	22nd
1953	Israel	Jerusalem	BIE-IA	Conquest of the Desert		0.6	4.6	13
1953	Italy	Rome	BIE-IA	Roma 1953 Agricultural Exhibition		1.7	12
1954	Italy	Naples	BIE-IA	Mostra d'Oltremare - Campi Flegrei			100	25th
1955	Italy	Turin	BIE-IA	International Sport Exhibition		0.12		11
1955	Sweden	Helsingborg	BIE-IA	H55 Helsingborg Exhibition 1955				10
1956	Israel	Beit Dagan	BIE-IA	Exhibition of Citriculture			55	20th
1957	Germany	Berlin	BIE-IA	Interbau - Berlin 57	Reconstruction of the Hansa district	1	53	13
1958	Belgium	Brussels	BIE-WA	Expo 58	Atomium	41.5	200	48
1961	Italy	Turin	BIE-IA	International Labor Exhibition		5	50	19th
1962	United States	Seattle	BIE-WA	Expo 62	Space Needle	6.6	29.9	24
1964	United States	New York City	-	1964/1965 New York World's Fair	The Unisphere
1965	Germany	Munich	BIE-IA	International transport exhibition		3.2	50.2	36
1967	Canada	Montreal	BIE-WA	Expo 67	Habitat 67 , atomic clock	50.3	365	62
1968	United States	San Antonio	BIE-IA	Hemisfair '68	Tower of the Americas	6.4	39	23
1970	Japan	Osaka	BIE-WA	Expo '70	Tower of the Sun and the Moonstones, Ball Pavilion by Karlheinz Stockhausen	64.2	330	77
1971	Hungary	Budapest	BIE-IA	Expo 71		1.9	35	52
1974	United States	Spokane	BIE-IA	Expo 74		5.6	40	10
1975	Japan	Okinawa	BIE-IA	Expo '75	Aquapolis	3.5	101.2	33
1981	Bulgaria	Plovdiv	BIE-IA	Expo 81				61
1982	United States	Knoxville	BIE-IA	1982 World's Fair	Sunsphere	11.1	29	16
1984	United States	New Orleans	BIE-IA	1984 Louisiana World Exposition		7.3	34	15th
1985	Bulgaria	Plovdiv	BIE-IA	Expo 85 (Plovdiv)		1	5.8	73
1985	Japan	Tsukuba	BIE-IA	Expo 85 (Tsukuba)		20.3	100	48
1986	Canada	Vancouver	BIE-IA	Expo 86		22.1	70	54
1988	Australia	Brisbane	BIE-IA	World Expo 88		18.6	40	36
1992	Spain	Seville	BIE-WA	Expo 92	La Cartuja	18.5	168	108
1992	Italy	Genoa	BIE-IA	Genoa Expo 92		1.7	6th	54
1993	South Korea	Daejeon	BIE-IA	Expo 93		14th	90.1	141
1995	Austria Hungary	Vienna and Budapest	called off	Expo 95	Canceled after a referendum in Vienna in 1991.
1998	Portugal	Lisbon	BIE-IA	Expo 98	Vasco da Gama tower	11	40.5	143
2000	Germany	Hanover	BIE-WA	Expo 2000	Pavilion of Hope	18th	160	155
2004	France	Seine-Saint-Denis	called off
2005	Japan	Aichi	BIE-WA	Expo 2005	ASIMO	22nd	173	121
2008	Spain	Zaragoza	BIE-IA	Expo 2008		5.7	25th	107
2010	People's Republic of China	Shanghai	BIE-WA	Expo 2010		73	528	192
2012	South Korea	Yeosu	BIE-IA	Expo 2012		8.2	199	105
2015	Italy	Milan	BIE-WA	Expo 2015		21st	200	145
2017	Kazakhstan	Astana	BIE-IA	Expo 2017	"Sphere" (glass ball)
2020 (probably 2021)	UAE	Dubai	BIE-WA	Expo 2020
2023	Argentina	Buenos Aires	BIE-IA	Expo 2023			25th
2025	Japan	Osaka	BIE-WA	Expo 2025
year	country	place	category	Surname	Landmarks / novelties	Visitors in millions	Area in ha	countries

literature

Specialist literature

• Simply gigantic - 150 years of fascination with the world exhibition 1851–2000 , special issue of the magazine “Damals - Das current magazine for history and culture”, Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt (DVA), Stuttgart 1998, ISBN 3-421-05156-9
• Alexander CT Geppert: World Theater: The History of the European Exhibition System in the 19th and 20th Century. A research report , in: Neue Politik Literatur 47.1 (2002), pp. 10–61.
• Alexander CT Geppert: Fleeting Cities. Imperial Expositions in Fin-de-Siècle Europe. Palgrave Macmillan, Basingstoke 2010. ISBN 978-0-230-22164-2
• Alexander CT Geppert: World Exhibitions , in: European History Online , ed. from the Institute for European History (Mainz) , 2013, accessed on: September 2, 2013.
• Winfried Kretschmer: History of the world exhibitions . Campus, Frankfurt am Main / New York 1999, ISBN 3-593-36273-2
• Eric Mattie: World's Fair . Belser, Stuttgart / Zurich 1998, ISBN 3-7630-2358-5
• Monika Meyer-Künzel: The predictable benefit. Urban development through world exhibitions and the Olympic Games . Dölling and Galitz, Hamburg 2001, ISBN 3-933374-89-8
• World Exhibition in Paris 1900. Official catalog of the exhibition of the German Reich ( Memento from September 27, 2007 in the Internet Archive ) Reichskommissariat / JAStargardt, Berlin 1900. (PDF; 50.1 MB)
• Eric Larson: The devil in the White City , Vintage Press, 2004, ISBN 978-0-375-72560-9 ; 447 p., Approx. 20 ills. (On the history of the Columbian World Exhibition in Chicago in 1893 in combination with the story of a mass murderer who was up to mischief in Chicago at that time)
• Beat Wyss: The Paris World Exhibition 1889: Images of globalization . Suhrkamp / Insel, Frankfurt a. M. 2010, ISBN 978-3-458-17485-1

Reading lists

• Alexander CT Geppert, Jean Coffey, Tammy Lau: International Exhibitions, Expositions Universelles and World's Fairs, 1851-2005. A Bibliography . ( available online , PDF; 913 kB).
• Digital literature collection on world exhibitions of the 19th century , Heidelberg University Library.

Web links

Commons : world expositions  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

• Bureau International des Expositions, Paris
• worldexpositions.info Photographs and descriptions of several world exhibitions from 1992 + independent Expo guide 2010

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Bird's-Eye View of the World's Columbian Exposition, Chicago, 1893 . 1893. Retrieved July 17, 2013.
2. ^ History of Milan (Italian), accessed December 3, 2011
3. ↑ History of the cable car ( memento from November 5, 2010 in the Internet Archive ), accessed on December 3, 2011
4. ^ The Unisphere , D Guides - New York City.
5. ↑ EXPO '95 in Vienna and Budapest. Final report ( Memento of August 31, 2011 in the Internet Archive ) (PDF, 79 pages; 166 kB), dated July 1991. Detailed report from the idea to the rejection and the (corporate) legal consequences. Retrieved May 29, 2010.
6. ↑ Official website of BIE, Expo 2005 chapter
7. ↑ First Expo in the ex-Soviet Union - Kazakhstan is giving itself a green paint , NZZ, April 21, 2017
8. ↑ Dubai postpones Expo 2020 to next year. Accessed March 30, 2020 (German). 
9. ↑ Official website of Expo 2020 in Dubai
10. ↑ Expo 2023 Buenos Aires on the BIE website , accessed on November 23, 2018. (English)
11. ↑ Osaka wins the World Exhibition 2025. ORF , November 23, 2018, accessed on the same day.