University Library, Bratislava
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University Library in Bratislava () is the oldest library in
Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
. It was founded in 1919 in
Bratislava Bratislava (German: ''Pressburg'', Hungarian: ''Pozsony'') is the Capital city, capital and largest city of the Slovakia, Slovak Republic and the fourth largest of all List of cities and towns on the river Danube, cities on the river Danube. ...
. Today, it is the largest and most visited library in Slovakia and it is a universal state research library.


History

The library was one of the first cultural and educational institutions set up in the newly founded Czecho-Slovak Republic after
WWI World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting took place mainly in Europe and th ...
at the territory of Slovakia to support the emerging university education, science and library system. Its origin in 1919 was closely connected with the newly founded Comenius Czechoslovak State University where the name of the university was reflected in the Library's name. The library has never become an integral part of university, although relations between the two institutions were based on collaboration and close contact. The Library keeps its name because it refers to the original close contact towards the university and at the same time reflects the universal character of its collections. As the time passed by the authorities set further goals and competences for ULB within the national and international framework. ULB has become the first library entitled to the
legal deposit Legal deposit is a legal requirement that a person or group submit copies of their publications to a repository, usually a library. The number of copies required varies from country to country. Typically, the national library is the primary reposit ...
from the territory of
Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
, and it is the only one which has kept this tradition since 1919 until today. Library's historical book collections also have the character of a depository collection. Until 1954 ULB fulfilled the tasks of the national library in Slovakia. Since then it has the statute of a universal state research library. Throughout its history two clear directions can be identified : a solid leading place in the national library system and active participation in international library cooperation.


Reconstruction of the historical buildings of the Library

The main objective was to renew buildings which are protected as cultural monuments, to modernize decaying library premises, to solve the lack of stacks and eliminated the danger of stagnation in the field of library services. Realization of the investment project "Multifunctional Cultural and Library Centre" led to a vast renewal and revitalization, it allowed the library users to utilize not only the refurbished premises, which they had already known, but also those parts of the historical buildings, which until that time the public did not have access to. New library stacks have been built, number of working stations has increased. Conditions for the protection of historical library collections significantly improved, including so called Bašagić Collection af Arabic, Turkish and Persian manuscripts inscribed on the UNESCO world heritage list "Memory of the World". The traditional library has transformed to a mediatheque and a portal to the virtual world of information. The profile of the Library was enlarged to fulfill multifunctional cultural and social functions. The project of the reconstruction resulted in a synthesis of old and new : a modern library equipped with technologies of 21st century in a restored, originally baroque interior, supplemented by new exhibition, concert, conference and social premises.


Library as a geographic point

Since its beginning in 1919 the Library has its seat downtown Bratislava, in the heart of the historical centre of the Slovak capital. In comparison with other libraries in the town or in some Slovak regional towns, this unique location means advantage - Bratislava is and will be the political, economic, educational, scientific, cultural and social centre of the country. Paradoxically - to point out several facts imposing limitations on its further development - one of the most limiting factors is the seat of the Library in a most attractive city location as well as the historical character of its main buildings. Both aspects practically exclude further expansion in space, better transport access, prevent further enhancement of infrastructure and services.


Present days

At present ULB is by all means a consolidated institution with a highly developed infrastructure and relevant professional and human potential. The Library as a multifunctional cultural and library centre visited by approx. 300 thousand visitors and virtually via internet it is sought for assistance by further 700 thousand users a year.


Cooperation with other libraries

Cooperation with other libraries on a national and international scale was a natural part of the ULB's mission from its very beginning. * since 1970 ULB is an individual member of the IFLA Federation, * since 1997 an associated member of the CERL consortium, * since 1990 a member of the
LIBER In Religion in ancient Rome, ancient Roman religion and Roman mythology, mythology, Liber ( , ; "the free one"), also known as Liber Pater ("the free Father"), was a god of viticulture and wine, male fertility and freedom. He was a patron de ...
* in 1950 the UN depository library was opened at ULB, * in 1957
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
depository library and since 1994 a national UNESCO Centre is an integral part of the Library. It works closely with UNESCO libraries worldwide, schools associated with UNESCO and also secures activities of the National Committee for the UNESCO programme Memory of the World. In 1997 ULB acceded to the UNESCO
ISSN An International Standard Serial Number (ISSN) is an eight-digit to uniquely identify a periodical publication (periodical), such as a magazine. The ISSN is especially helpful in distinguishing between serials with the same title. ISSNs a ...
project of identifying serials and other continuing resources and established ISSN National Agency for Slovakia on its premises. * in 2004 following the country's accession to EU and
NATO The North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO ; , OTAN), also called the North Atlantic Alliance, is an intergovernmental organization, intergovernmental Transnationalism, transnational military alliance of 32 Member states of NATO, member s ...
, ULB opened NATO Depository Library. * in 1997 Centre for American Studies started to work at the Library owing to close contacts and collaboration with USIS agency in Bratislava, which served as a basis of present-day InfoUSA, a library and information centre. * in 2004 a separate collection dedicated to Russian literature originated at ULB and the Centre for Russian Studies was founded * in May 2005 Austrian Library was set up at ULB upon an initiative of the Austrian Embassy * in 2006 the Slovak
PEN PEN may refer to: * (National Ecological Party), former name of the Brazilian political party Patriota (PATRI) * PEN International, a worldwide association of writers ** English PEN, the founding centre of PEN International ** PEN America, located ...
Centre decided to donate its book collections of the World PEN Library to the ULB * in 2006 the Czech Library was set up as a counterpart of the Slovak Library at the
Czech National Library The National Library of the Czech Republic () is the central library of the Czech Republic. It is directed by the Ministry of Culture. The library's main building is located in the historical Clementinum building in the centre of Prague, where ap ...
in
Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...
* since 2006 the ULB collections are enriched by the French Library which is developed under the auspices of the French Embassy in Slovakia * in 2007 British Centre was opened in close collaboration with the British Council with a vast collection of British literature focused primarily on English language teaching. * Geothe Institut Bratislava ranks among the strategic partners of the Library, it has been giving long-standing support to international activities as seminars, exhibitions and training programmes * Information Centre of the
Council of Europe The Council of Europe (CoE; , CdE) is an international organisation with the goal of upholding human rights, democracy and the Law in Europe, rule of law in Europe. Founded in 1949, it is Europe's oldest intergovernmental organisation, represe ...
has its seat at the Library as well Bilateral agreements on cooperation with the closest and most respected partners : *
National Library of the Czech republic The National Library of the Czech Republic () is the central library of the Czech Republic. It is directed by the Ministry of Culture (Czech Republic), Ministry of Culture. The library's main building is located in the historical Clementinum buil ...
in Prague *
Moravian Library Moravian Library (Czech: ''Moravská zemská knihovna'') is the second largest library in the Czech Republic. Located in Brno, Czech Republic, it is a universal research library and the regional library of the South Moravian Region The South Mo ...
in Brno *
Research Library A research library is a library that contains an in-depth collection of material on one or several subjects.(Young, 1983; p. 188) A research library will generally include an in-depth selection of materials on a particular topic or set of top ...
in Olomouc *
National Library of Poland The National Library (, ''BN'') is the national library of Poland, subject directly to the Polish Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. The main seat of the National Library is located in the Ochota district of Warsaw, adjacent to the Mo ...
in Warsaw * National Szechényi Library in Budapest *
Austrian National Library The Austrian National Library (, ) is the largest library in Austria, with more than 12 million items in its various collections. The library is located in the Hofburg#Neue Burg, Neue Burg Wing of the Hofburg in Innere Stadt, center of Vienna. Sin ...
in Vienna Bilateral cooperative projects : * KOBIB with Bielefeld Library focusing on electronic delivery of documents and transfer of new library technologies from Germany to Slovakia * CASLIN project which helped raise the standard of automation in Czech and Slovak libraries Among prestigious foreign partners of ULB through project
World Digital Library The World Digital Library (WDL) is an international digital library operated by UNESCO and the United States Library of Congress. The WDL has stated that its mission is to promote international and intercultural understanding, expand the volume ...
are : *
Bibliotheca Alexandrina The Bibliotheca Alexandrina (Latin, 'Library of Alexandria'; , ) (BA) is a major library and cultural center on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in Alexandria, Egypt. It is a commemoration of the Library of Alexandria, once one of the larg ...
in Alexandria *
National Library of Iran The National Library and Archives of Iran (NLAI; ) or National Library of the Islamic Republic of Iran is located in Tehran, Iran, with twelve branches across the country. The NLAI is an educational, research, scientific, and service institute a ...
*
Library of Congress The Library of Congress (LOC) is a research library in Washington, D.C., serving as the library and research service for the United States Congress and the ''de facto'' national library of the United States. It also administers Copyright law o ...
in Washington Participation in European programmes: COPERNICUS, IST, FP4, FP6, eTEN, ENRICH, MICHAEL Plus, EZB project, Minerva The University Library includes the Bašagić Collection of Islamic Manuscripts. The collection is part of the
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO ) is a List of specialized agencies of the United Nations, specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) with the aim of promoting world peace and International secur ...
Memory of the World UNESCO's Memory of the World (MoW) Programme is an international initiative to safeguard the documentary heritage of humanity against collective amnesia, neglect, decay over time and climatic conditions, as well as deliberate destruction. It ca ...
. It became a part of the register in 1997. It includes works by
Sayf al-Din al-Amidi Sayf al-Din al-Amidi or Muhammad al-Amidi (b. 1156; Diyarbakır - d. 1233 in Damascus) was an influential Muslim jurist. Initially a Hanbalite, Al-Amidi belonged to the Shafi`i school and worked to combine ''kalam'' (theology) with existing metho ...
.


Library in annual report 20152015 Annual Report (Sprava o cinnosti a hospodareni za rok 2015). Univerzitna kniznica v Bratislave. Bratislava : Univerzitna kniznica v Bratislave, 2016. Accessible at:.

* 240 employees * over 20,000 active users * over 500 places for users (working stations) * over 50 places for users with library computers * over 6.800,000 users in online services * over 13,000 visitors of culture and education events * over 2.700,000 items in collections


Digital Library

The Digital Library of the University Library in Bratislava is an independent collection of digitzed items - periodicals, old prints, music works or monographies in user-attractive layout. The Digital library offers access to more than 1.100,000 fulltext pages of slovacical items, mostly periodicals.


Features and advanced tools

The most essential software feature is bibliographic information of individual content and advanced search. The content of the Digital library is categorized with added tags presented by faceted display or tree-like structure. User can mark items or their parts as favourite, make annotations and share them with specific person a user can freely define himself. User and „his group“ can comment on the shared annotations and share annotations, collections, objects or specific parts of displayed objects over Facebook, Twitter and Google+. The Digital library software operates effective tools for selection of whole page or selected textual and graphical zones from the original scanned files, which can be copied and translated instantly and be easily extracted into other software applications. All items enable search through the content and hits are shown directly as overlaid highlights on images. It is also possible to search the content via metadata or date in combination with categories. Search results can be visually organized and sorted according to various criteria.


Accessed items

The Digital library offers free access to items out of
copyright A copyright is a type of intellectual property that gives its owner the exclusive legal right to copy, distribute, adapt, display, and perform a creative work, usually for a limited time. The creative work may be in a literary, artistic, ...
for all users without restrictions via internet. Items protected by the copyright law are accessible for registered users from the library's network only.


Content

The frame of the Digital library is made by textbooks for students (elementary and high school, university), encyclopaedias, dictionaries, handbooks, scientific publications, fiction, periodicals (daily papers, weekly papers, entertainment and political journals). Among the most interesting works of the Digital library there are several works of
Comenius John Amos Comenius (; ; ; ; Latinization (literature), Latinized: ''Ioannes Amos Comenius''; 28 March 1592 – 15 November 1670) was a Czech Philosophy, philosopher, Pedagogy, pedagogue and Theology, theologian who is considered the father of ...
(Janua Linguarum Reserata and Orbis Pictus) and works of old Slovak great writers and personalities, as J. M. Hurban, A. Bernolak, M. Hattala, J. Palarik, J. Ribay and S. Tesedik. In the collection of 19th and early 20th century periodicals there are Pressburger Zeitung, Slovenske pohlady, Dom a skola, Domova pokladnica, Hlas, Deres, Prudy, periodicals from the first half of the 20th century are Gemer-Malohont, Slovenská Pravda, Slovenský hlas, Narodna jednota, Pohronie. The period of the
WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
is represented by Gardista, Slovak, Kulturny zivot, Sloboda, Novy svet and Elan. Works by
Richard Strauss Richard Georg Strauss (; ; 11 June 1864 – 8 September 1949) was a German composer and conductor best known for his Tone poems (Strauss), tone poems and List of operas by Richard Strauss, operas. Considered a leading composer of the late Roman ...
, E. Suchon and many song-books can be found in music works collection.


References


External links


University Library in Bratislava website
*
University Library in Bratislava Digital Library University Library in Bratislava () is the oldest library in Slovakia. It was founded in 1919 in Bratislava. Today, it is the largest and most visited library in Slovakia and it is a universal state research library. History The library was one ...

Slovak Culture Profile
- The ULIB portal, representing Slovak culture
Digital Library
{{Authority control Culture of Slovakia
Slovakia Slovakia, officially the Slovak Republic, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the west, and the Czech Republic to the northwest. Slovakia's m ...
Public libraries Research libraries Education in Bratislava Libraries in Slovakia World Digital Library partners Online archives 1919 establishments in Slovakia Libraries established in 1919 Buildings and structures in Bratislava