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Georgian Prime Minister Mamuka Bakhtadze (L, Rear) and High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy Federica Mogherini (C, Rear) attend the opening ceremony of the 70th Frankfurt Book Fair in Frankfurt, Germany, on Oct. 9, 2018. The opening ceremony of the 70th Frankfurt Book Fair kicked off Tuesday evening in Frankfurt. (Xinhua/Luo Huanhuan)

FRANKFURT, Oct. 9 (Xinhua) -- The opening ceremony of the 70th Frankfurt Book Fair kicked off Tuesday evening in Frankfurt, Germany.

With Georgia as its Guest of Honour, the fair is hosting a cultural nation with thousands of years of history.

The Georgian "characters", the 33 ornately looping letters of the country's unique alphabet, are part of the UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity."Our alphabet is a cornerstone of our culture," said Prime Minister of Georgia Mamuka Bakhtadze at the ceremony.

This year in Frankfurt, about 7,500 exhibitors from 110 countries and regions will showcase their products and markets, an increase of almost 3 percent over the previous year. The rights and licensing business is flourishing: This year, the Literary Agents & Scouts Centre (LitAg) grew by about 6 percent, according to organizers.

The fair unofficially started Tuesday, with The Markets pre-conference, and officially runs from Oct. 10 to 14.

The 2018 Frankfurt Book Fair is the international publishing industry's biggest trade fair with around 286,000 visitors, over 4,000 events.

Since 1976, the book fair has featured an annual Guest of Honour country, which showcases its book market, literature and culture to attendees in a variety of ways.