2020 in public domain explained

When a work's copyright expires, it enters the public domain. The following is a list of creators whose works enter the public domain in 2020. Since laws vary globally, the copyright status of some works is not uniform.

Entering the public domain in countries with life + 70 years

With the exception of Belarus (Life + 50 years) and Spain (which has a copyright term of Life + 80 years for creators that died before 1987), a work enters the public domain in Europe at the end of the calendar year following 70 years after the creator's death, if it was published during the creator's lifetime. Russia has a 4-year extension to Life+ 70 (in essence Life+74) for authors who worked during World War II in the Soviet Union.[1] [2] The list is sorted alphabetically and includes a notable work of the creator that entered the public domain on January 1, 2020.

NamesCountryBirthDeathOccupationNotable work
James Truslow AdamsWriterThe March of Democracy
Virginia M. AlexanderPhysician Publications
Hervey Allen United StatesAuthorAnthony Adverse
Masaharu AnesakiHistorianHistory of Japanese Religion
Mary AntinWriterThe Promised Land
Josef Maria Auchentaller AustriaArtistBunte Bände
Alice BaileyWriterWorks
Rodolfo Garcia (pt) BrazilHistorian
Hassan al-BannaimamMudhakkirât al-da'wa wa al-dâ'iya
Philip BarryPlaywrightHoliday
Billy BaskettePianist, composerGood Bye Broadway, Hello France
Rex BeachWriter, Olympic athleteThe Spoilers
H. Bedford-JonesWriterThe John Solomon series
Khalil Beidas18741949 novelistWorks
Federico Beltrán MassesPainter
Friedrich BergiusChemistBergius process
Elsa BernsteinWriterKönigskinder
Musa Bigiev (O. S.)TheologianSelected works
Elisheva Bikhovski IsraelWriter, TranslatorSimta'ot
Writer
Gustavus M. BlechPhysicianPractical Suggestions in Borderland Surgery
Leonard BloomfieldLinguistSelected publications
George BotsfordComposer
Robert BoudriozFilm director, screenwriterThe Man with a Broken Ear
Umberto BrunelleschiArtist, Illustrator
Guillermo Buitrago ColombiaComposerLa Vispera de Año Nuevo
Harry BurleighComposer, singersettings of spirituals
Helen Churchill CandeeWriter, feministAngkor the Magnificent
Reg CarterCartoonistBig Eggo
N. D. Cocea RomaniaJournalist, NovelistVinul de viață lungă
Richard ConnellWriterThe Most Dangerous Game
Carlo Conti Rossini18721949 OrientalistItalia ed Etiopia dal trattato di Uccialli alla battaglia d'Adua
Dorothea Conyers IrelandNovelist
Will CuppyHumoristHow to be a Hermit
Stoyan Danev BulgariaJurist and politician
Norman DaveyEngineer, WriterThe Pilgrim of a Smile
Edgar De LangeComposer
Félix d'HerelleMicrobiologistPublished works
Georgi Dimitrov BulgariaPolitician, revolutionaryGeorgi Dimitrov bibliography
Grigoraș DinicuComposerHora staccato
Ali Douagisketch artistSahirtu minhu al-layali
Alexander Drankov
photographer, cameraman, film producer
William Price DruryWriter, soldier, politicianThe Flag Lieutenant
Inés Echeverría Bello18681949WriterEntre Deux Mondes
Arthur EichengrünChemist50 Jahre Aspirin
novelistSilkkilaiva
James Ensor BelgiumArtistChrist's Entry Into Brussels in 1889
Herbert EulenbergWriterSchattenbilder. Eine Fibel für Kulturbedürftige in Deutschland
August FischerOrientalistArabische Chrestomathie aus Prosaschriftstellern
Victor FlemingFilm Director The Wizard of Oz, Gone with the Wind
James ForrestalPoliticianThe Forrestal Diaries
Nikolay GamaleyaPhysician, microbiologist
Henri GiraudGeneralMes Evasions, Un seul but; la victoire: Alger 1942-1944
PoetSong about Shchors
OrientalistEl amor entre los musulmanes españoles, El tesoro de los Nazaríes
Hari Singh Gour IndiaJurist, educator, writerThe Penal Law of India
Martin GrabmannPriest, HistorianThomas Aquinas: His Personality and Thought
Stanisław Grabski PolandEconomist, Politician
Major GreenwoodEpidemiologist Publications
Joan Lamote de GrignonComposerLa nit de Nadal
George Gurdjieffspiritual teacherThe Herald of Coming Good
František Halas Czech RepublicPoet, translator
Fritz HartComposer, conductor
Syed Zafarul Hasan PakistanPhilosopherRealism
Kunihiko HashimotoComposerAzami no Hana
Will HayComedian, amateur astronomerThrough My Telescope
Burton J. HendrickAuthorThe Life and Letters of Walter H. Page
Johann Jakob HessEgyptologist Von den Beduinen des inneren Arabiens
Ludwig HohlweinPoster artist
William Jackson Humphreys United Statesphysicist Bibliography
Otto Huppgraphical artistWappen und Siegel der deutschen Städte, Flecken und Dörfer
Douglas HydelinguistThe necessity for de-anglicising the Irish nation
Edmond JalouxNovelistWorks
Josep Maria Jujol SpainArchitectCasa Batlló, Park Güell
WriterDie Mutter der Neun
Clarence JonesComposer
Pierre JouguetEgyptologistWorks
Unno JuzaWriter of science fiction
Anna Karima BulgariaWriter and translator
Selâhattin Kantar1878playwrightKara Dana
Hans Kindler United StatesConductor, cellist, arranger of musicRecordings
Hugh KingsmillWriter, journalist
Martin KnudsenPhysicist The Kinetic Theory of Gases
József Koszta HungaryPainterGirl with Geraniums
Fritz KrischenArchaeologist, ArchitectDie Stadtmauern von Pompeji und griechische Festungsbaukunst in Unteritalien und Sizilien
August KroghZoologist The Respiratory Exchange of Animals and Man
Albert Christian KruytEthnographerThe Bare'e speaking Toraja of Central Sulawesi
Lead BellyMusician, songwriterGoodnight, Irene
Vasily Lebedev-KumachPoetThe Sacred War
Fidelio Ponce de León CubaPainterNiňos
Ernst LommatzschClassical scholarCorpus inscriptionum latinarum: Vol. 1. Inscriptiones Latinae antiquissimae
Albert Howe Lybyer United States18761949orientalistThe Government of the Ottoman Empire in the Time of Suleiman the Magnificent
Carmen Lyra1888WriterCuentos De Mi Tia Panchita
Antonio MachadoPoetWorks
Maurice MaeterlinckPlaywrightWorks
René MairebotanistFlore de l'Afrique du Nord
Jane Mander New ZealandNovelistThe Story of a New Zealand River
Klaus MannNovelistMephisto
J. C. Mardrus18681949OrientalistWorks
Paul MarcByzantine scholarDie hellenistisch-jüdische Literatur
Wilhelm von MassowArchaeologistDas römische Trier
Elton MayoPsychologistPublications
Ibrahim al-Mazini1949WriterSpider Webs
Stefan MeyerPhysicist Radioaktivität
Margaret MitchellNovelistGone with the Wind
Axel Munthe SwedenPsychiatristThe Story of San Michele
Khalil Mutranpoet
Sarojini NaiduPoetWorks
Vladimir Nazor CroatiaPoet, politician
Makino NobuakiStatesmanMakino Nobuaki nikki
Vítězslav NovákComposerBouře
Carlos Obligado ArgentinaWriter, criticMarch of the Malvinas
Sidney Olcott CanadaFilm directorThe Pony Express
Francesco PasinettiFilm Director, screenwriterThe Canal of the Angels
Elin Pelin BulgariaWriter
Una Pope-HennessyHistorianSecret Societies and the French Revolution
Camillo PraschnikerArchaeologistArchäologische Forschungen in Albanien und Montenegro
Guillermo Tell Villegas PulidopoliticianWorks
Alfred RehderBotanistManual of Cultivated Trees and Shrubs, Hardy in North America
Albert RehmClassical scholarMythographische Untersuchungen über griechische Sternsagen
Gennaro RighelliFilm director, screenwriterSvengali
Tod Robbins United States18881949writerWorks
Julius RuskaOrientalistAl Razi (Rhases) als Chemiker
Antoun SaadehPolitician Nushu' al-Umam
E. Robert SchmitzComposerThe Piano works of Claude Debussy
Paul Schultze-NaumburgArchitectDie Kunst der Deutschen. Ihr Wesen und ihre Werke
Alexey ShchusevArchitect Lenin's Mausoleum
Nikos Skalkottas GreeceComposerList of compositions by Nikos Skalkottas
G. E. M. SkuesWriter, fly fishermanThe Way of a Trout with the Fly
Frank SmytheMountaineer, author, photographerThe Kangchenjunga Adventure
Edith SomervilleNovelistThe Irish R.M.
Otto StählinClassical scholarDie hellenistisch-jüdische Literatur
Edward StettiniusPoliticianRoosevelt and the Russians
Herbert StothartComposer, songwriter, conductorScore for The Wizard of Oz
Richard StraussComposerList of compositions
Harry Stack SullivanPsychiatrist Works
Ali Mahmoud TahaPoetNights of the Lost Sailor, Palestine
Edward Thorndike United StatesPsychologist Works
Joaquín Torres-García UruguayArtist, writer
Gancho Tsenov BulgariaHistorian
Joaquín TurinaComposerDanzas fantásticas
Uemura ShōenArtistJo-no-mai
Sigrid UndsetNovelistWorks
Shabbir Ahmad UsmanitheologianFathul Mulhim Sharh Sahih Muslim
Raimond Valgre Estoniacomposer, musician
Josef VelenovskýbotanistWorks
Oswald Garrison VillardJournalist, civil rights activistJohn Brown 1800-1859: A Biography Fifty Years After
Rosy WertheimComposer
Elin WägnerNovelistThe Penholder
Lee "Lasses" White United StatesPianist, songwriter, actor
E. H. YoungNovelist and children's writer
Arthur Leo Zagat United StatesWriter, lawyer
Nikola ZhekovGeneralMemoirs
Oton Župančič SloveniaWriter, translatorCiciban

Countries with life + 60 years

In Bangladesh, India, and Venezuela a work enters the public domain 60 years after the creator's death.

NamesCountryBirthDeathOccupationNotable work
Santiago Key AyalaHistorian, diplomat
Haricharan Bandopadhayaya IndiaScholar, dictionary compiler
Barindra Kumar Ghosh IndiaJournalist
Pattukkottai Kalyanasundaram IndiaFilm lyricist
Abdur Razzaq Malihabadi India18951959Writer
J. R. Rangaraju India18751959Novelist
Govind Sakharam Sardesai IndiaHistorian

Entering the public domain in countries with life + 50 years

In most countries of Africa and Asia, as well as Belarus, Bolivia, Canada, New Zealand, Egypt and Uruguay; a work enters the public domain at the end of the calendar year following 50 years after the creator's death.

NamesCountryBirthDeathOccupationNotable work
Alejandro G. Abadilla PhilippinesWriterAko ang Daigdig
Sargis Abrahamyan ArmeniaWriterWith Generations
Theodor W. AdornoPhilosopherTheodor W. Adorno bibliography
Ricardo AguirreSinger, ComposerLa Grey Zuliana
Ignacio AldecoaAuthorEl fulgor y la sangre
Ikbal Ali Shah IndiaWriter, diplomatAfghanistan of the Afghans
Edgar AndersonBotanistIntrogressive Hybridization
Charlotte ArmstrongAuthorA Dram of Poison
Marius Barbeau CanadaEthnographerDownfall of Temlaham
Daniel E. BarbeyNaval OfficerMacArthur's Amphibious Navy
Arthur K. BarnesScience-Fiction WriterWorks
Emilio Bigi ParaguayMusicianRenacer guarani
Charles BrackettNovelist, Screenwriter
Gabriel ChevallierNovelistClochemerle
Ivy Compton-BurnettNovelistManservant and Maidservant
Richmal CromptonWriter, TeacherJust William series
Alexandra David-Néel Belgium
France
Explorer, SpiritualistMystiques et magiciens du Tibet
Aleksandr DeynekaArtistThe Defense of Petrograd
Otto DixArtistThe Trench
Duke Adolf Friedrich of Mecklenburgexplorer, politicianIns innerste Afrika
Max EastmanWriterReflections on the Failure of Socialism
Dwight D. Eisenhower United StatesMilitary Officer, statesmanCrusade in Europe
Abo El Seoud El EbiaryPlaywright, songwriterAfrita hanem
Olivia FitzRoyAuthor of children's booksOrders to Poach
Botong FranciscoMuralistThe Progress of Medicine in the Philippines
Karl FreundCinematographer, film directorThe Mummy
Rómulo GallegosNovelist, politicianDoña Bárbara
Witold GombrowiczWriter, playwrightFerdydurke
Walter GropiusArchitectBauhaus
Wendell HallSinger-songwriterIt Ain't Gonna Rain No Mo'
Ho Chi Minh19 May 18902 September 1969PresidentProclamation of Independence of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam
Karl JaspersPsychiatrist, PhilosopherGeneral Psychopathology
Jack KerouacWriterOn the Road
Norman Lindsay AustraliaArtist, WriterThe Magic Pudding
Frank LoesserSongwriterBaby, It's Cold Outside, A Bushel and a Peck
Erika MannWriter, actressZehn Millionen Kinder. Die Erziehung der Jugend im Dritten Reich
Gavin MaxwellAuthorRing of Bright Water
Leo McCareyFilm director, screenwriterThe Bells of St. Mary's
Jimmy McHughComposerSouth American Way
Atanasio Ndongo Miyone Equatorial Guinea1928MusicianCaminemos pisando las sendas de nuestra inmensa felicidad
Meher Baba IndiaMysticGod Speaks
Mikio NaruseFilm director, screenwriterApart from You
Mutesa II of Buganda UgandaStatesmanThe Desecration of My Kingdom
Seabury QuinnAuthor, lawyerRoads
August Sang EstoniaPoetÜks noormees otsib õnne
Muhammad Shahidullah BangladeshWriter, philologistBangla Sahityer Katha
Ben ShahnArtistJersey Homesteads Mural
Osbert SitwellWriterBefore the Bombardment
Josef von SternbergFilm directorShanghai Express
Leonard Woolfwriter, publisherThe Village in the Jungle
John WyndhamScience-Fiction WriterThe Day of the Triffids, The Midwich Cuckoos

Entering the public domain in Australia

See also: Copyright law of Australia.

In 2004 copyright in Australia changed from a "plus 50" law to a "plus 70" law, in line with America and the European Union. But the change was not made retroactive (unlike the 1995 change in the European Union which brought some European authors back into copyright, especially those who died from 1925 to 1944). Hence the work of an author who died before 1955 is normally in the public domain in Australia; but the copyright of authors was extended to 70 years after death for those who died in 1955 or later, and no more Australian authors will come out of copyright until 1 January 2026 (those who died in 1955).

Unpublished works by authors who died in 1949 entered the public domain on 1 January 2020.[3] Any published literary, artistic, dramatic, or musical work (other than computer programs) by a not generally known author (anonymous or pseudonymous) from 1949 also entered the public domain on that date.

Entering the public domain in the United States

See also: Public domain in the United States.

Works that entered the public domain on January 1, 2020, in the United States include:

Some of the published works that entered the public domain[5] include the earliest sheet music[6] for George Gershwin's Rhapsody in Blue and Buster Keaton's silent comedy film Sherlock Jr.[7] [8]

Tom Lehrer

In October 2020, satirical singer/songwriter Tom Lehrer announced the release of all of his lyrics and music to the public domain.[9]

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: EU Extends Copyright Term To 70 Years | Billboard . Billboard.biz . 2011-09-12 . 2014-01-07 . 2013-01-06 . https://web.archive.org/web/20130106035644/http://www.billboard.biz/bbbiz/industry/publishing/eu-extends-copyright-term-to-70-years-1005348552.story . dead .
  2. http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=CELEX:32006L0116:EN:NOT Directive 2006/116/EC
  3. Web site: New copyright duration changes coming. Australian Government-Department of Communications & The Arts. 23 April 2018. 23 April 2018.
  4. Web site: Copyright and the Public Domain . Public Domain Information Project . 2015-12-13 . https://web.archive.org/web/20140801121535/http://www.pdinfo.com/Copyright-Law/Copyright-Law.php . 2014-08-01 . dead.
  5. Web site: Douglas . Nick . These 1924 Copyrighted Works Enter the Public Domain in 2020 . Lifehacker . 4 November 2019.
  6. Web site: Rhapsody in Blue (Gershwin, George) . International Music Score Library Project . 6 November 2019.
  7. Web site: 1924 Copyrighted Works To Become Part Of The Public Domain. 2019-12-30. NPR. en. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191230124215/https://www.npr.org/2019/12/30/792302139/1924-copyrighted-works-to-become-part-of-the-public-domain . 2019-12-30 . 2020-01-01.
  8. Web site: Public Domain Day 2020. Duke Law School's Center for the Study of the Public Domain. en. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20191230140958/https://web.law.duke.edu/cspd/publicdomainday/2020/ . 2019-12-30 . 2020-01-01.
  9. Web site: 2020-10-21. Satirist Tom Lehrer has put his songs into the public domain. 2020-11-03. Marketplace. en-US.