2017 in public domain

When a work's copyright expires, it enters the public domain. The following is a list of works that entered the public domain in 2017. Since laws vary globally, the copyright status of some works are not uniform.

Entering the public domain in countries with life + 70 years

With the exception of Belarus, a work enters the public domain in Europe 70 years after the creator's death, if it was published during the creator's lifetime.[1][2] The list is sorted alphabetically and includes a notable work of the creator that entered the public domain on January 1, 2017. This term also applies to unpublished works in the United States (otherwise see below).

Names Country Death Occupation Notable work
Giuseppe Adami Italy 12 October 1946 librettist Libretti for three operas composed by Giacomo Puccini
Eriks Ādamsons Latvia 28 February 1946 writer, poet, translator
Armando Augusto Freire (Armandinho) Portugal 21 December 1946 Fado guitarist and composer
Louis Bachelier France 28 April 1946 Mathematician
Herbert Baker United Kingdom 4 February 1946 Architect
Helen Bannerman United Kingdom 3 October 1946 Writer The Story of Little Black Sambo
Granville Bantock United Kingdom 16 October 1946 composer
James Bernard United Kingdom 5 March 1946 Elocutionist
Allan Cyril Brooks Canada 3 January 1946 Ornithologist, illustrator and artist
Alfonso Broqua Uruguay 24 November 1946 Composer
Charles Despiau France 30 October 1946 Sculptor
J. Michael Diack United Kingdom 2 February 1946 Composer, arranger Arranged nursery rhymes in the style of Handel
Manuel de Falla Spain 14 November 1946 Composer Nights in the Gardens of Spain, Ritual Fire Dance
W. C. Fields United States 25 December 1946 Writer
Jane Findlater United Kingdom 20 May 1946 Writer
Dion Fortune United Kingdom 6 January 1946 Writer and occultist The Demon Lover, The Winged Bull, The Goat-Foot God, The Sea Priestess
Wanda Gág United States 27 June 1946 Children's book author, artist, translator and illustrator Millions of Cats
Gerhart Hauptmann Germany 6 June 1946 Writer, Nobel Prize laureate The Weavers, Bahnwärter Thiel (De)
Patty Hill United States 25 May 1946 Songwriter Happy Birthday to You (with sister Mildred J. Hill, who predeceased her)
Violet Jacob United Kingdom 9 September 1946 Writer and poet
John Maynard Keynes United Kingdom 21 April 1946 Economist A Treatise on Money
Hermann von Keyserling Germany 26 April 1946 Philosopher
Otis Adelbert Kline United States 24 October 1946 Literary agent and science fiction writer
Paul Langevin France 19 December 1946 Physicist
Henri Le Fauconnier France 1946 Painter
Józef Mehoffer Poland 8 July 1946 Painter and decorative artist
Adolph de Meyer France 6 January 1946 Photographer
László Moholy-Nagy Hungary 24 November 1946 Painter and photographer Light-Space Modulator
Paul Nash United Kingdom 11 July 1946 Painter/photographer
Mikhail Nesterov Russia 18 October 1942[3] Painter
Feliks Nowowiejski Poland 18 January 1946 Composer Rota (music)
Clemente Palma Peru 13 August 1946 Author
Júlio Prestes Brazil 9 February 1946 Politician
Damon Runyon United States 10 December 1946 Writer and newspaperman
Abel Salazar (scientist) Portugal 29 December 1946 Scientist and Painter
Alice Sauvrezis France 12 April 1946 Composer
Ernest Thompson Seton United Kingdom 23 October 1946 Writer and wildlife artist Wild Animals I Have Known
May Sinclair United Kingdom 14 November 1946 Writer
Václav Špála Czech Republic 13 May 1946 Painter
Léon Spilliaert Belgium 23 November 1946 Painter
Gertrude Stein United States 27 July 1946 Writer The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, Three Lives
Karl Hans Strobl Czech Republic 10 March 1946 Author and editor
Harry Von Tilzer United States 10 January 1946 Songwriter Ziegfeld Follies
Frona Eunice Wait United States 1946 Author and newspaper writer Wines and Vines of California
George Henry Weiss United States 1946 Writer of science fiction and poetry The Night People
H. G. Wells United Kingdom 13 August 1946 Writer The Time Machine, The War of the Worlds, The Invisible Man
Stewart Edward White United States 18 September 1946 Writer and spiritualist
Cornel Simanjuntak Indonesia 15 September 1946 Songwriter Maju Tak Gentar, Sorak-Sorak Bergembira, Bungaku, Indonesia Tetap Merdeka, Ku Pinta Lagi, Maju Indonesia
Alfred Rosenberg Germany 16 October 1946 Politician, writer The Myth of the Twentieth Century
Paul Zech Germany 7 September 1946 Poet Die lasterhaften Balladen und Lieder des François Villon
Heinrich Freiherr von Stackelberg Germany 12 October 1946 Economist Marktform und Gleichgewicht

Entering the public domain in countries with life + 50 years

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

Names Country Death Occupation Notable work
Ralph Allen Canada 2 December 1966 Writer, journalist Peace River Country
Lauro Ayestarán Uruguay 22 July 1966 Musicologist La música en el Uruguay
André Breton France 28 September 1966 Writer, poet Surrealist Manifesto
Jan Brzechwa Poland 2 July 1966 Poet
Deems Taylor United States 3 July 1966 Composer, music critic
Walt Disney United States 15 December 1966 Filmmaker
C. S. Forester United Kingdom 2 April 1966 Writer Horatio Hornblower, The African Queen, The General
Lloyd Garrett United States 15 April 1966 Tenor, composer
Alberto Giacometti  Switzerland 11 January 1966 Sculptor, painter The Palace at 4 a.m., L'Homme au doigt, Grande tête mince, L'Homme qui marche I, Large Standing Woman I, Monumental Head
César Batlle Pacheco Uruguay 6 January 1966 Politician, Journalist
Olhinto María Simoes Uruguay 9 October 1966 Poet, journalist La sombra de los plátanos
Cordwainer Smith United States 6 August 1966 Science fiction writer, professor, military officer Psychological Warfare, Norstrilia, Scanners Live in Vain, Alpha Ralpha Boulevard, A Planet Named Shayol
Evelyn Waugh United Kingdom 10 April 1966 Writer Vile Bodies, A Handful of Dust
Mohamed Fawzi Egypt 20 October 1966 Singer, Musician Kassaman
Mohamed El Qasabgi Egypt 25 March 1966 Musician Raq El Habib
Badie' Khayri Egypt 1 February 1966 Playwright Hassan wa Murqus wa Cohen
Lekhnath Paudyal   Nepal 1966 Poet Tarun Tapasi
Sayyid Qutb Egypt 29 August 1966 Writer Ma'alim fi al-Tariq, Fi Zilal al-Quran

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 e.g. British authors back into copyright). 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 would come out of copyright until 1 January 2026 (those who died in 1955).

Entering the public domain in the United States

See also: Public domain in the United States

The Copyright Term Extension Act means no published works would enter the public domain in this jurisdiction until 2019.[4] The exception are unpublished works, which are subject to 70 years after the death of the creator, as above.

Worldwide

The Australian band King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard released their 2017 album Polygondwanaland into the public domain.[5]

On the 7th of February 2017, the Metropolitan Museum of Art announced it will release 375,000 images into the public domain.[6]

See also

Lists of authors

  • Authors listed in Wikidata who died in 1946
  • Over 300 public domain authors available in Wikisource (any language), with descriptions from Wikidata
  • "Authors by Year of Death - 1946". AuthorAndBookInfo.com.

References

  1. ^ "EU Extends Copyright Term To 70 Years | Billboard". Billboard.biz. 2011-09-12. Archived from the original on 2013-01-06. Retrieved 2014-01-07.
  2. ^ Directive 2006/116/EC
  3. ^ Copyright term in Russia is extended by 4 years for authors who fought in or worked during the 1941-1945 war.
  4. ^ "Copyright and the Public Domain". Public Domain Information Project. Archived from the original on 2014-08-01. Retrieved 2015-12-13.
  5. ^ "King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard Polygondwanaland". kinggizzardandthelizardwizard.com. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
  6. ^ Gascone, Sarah. "The Metropolitan Museum of Art Goes Open Access With 375,000 Images". artnet.com. Retrieved 27 September 2025.
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