Tipurile de biblioteci româneşti transilvănene în epoca modernă (1850-1918)
Transylvanian Romanian Libraries in the Modern Age (1850-1918)

Summary/Abstract: Transylvanian Romanian Libraries in the Modern Age (1850-1918). The wide institutionalization process of the Transylvanian Romanian culture in the second half of the 20th century affected the libraries as well. Under these circumstances they turned into the most efficient means of cultivating Romanian language. New types of libraries appeared in this period, under the patronage of various societies and associations. A first classification, suggested by I. Muşlea in 1935, noticed the existence of school and ecclesiastic libraries, libraries of the societies of teachers, pupils, students and women. Subsequent researches have emphasized the presence of libraries belonging to Romanian clubs and tradesmen societies, of musical libraries. Genuine library systems were set up by the regional cultural societies, chiefly Astra, which filled Transylvania with many popular libraries. The latter functioned as public libraries, fulfilling the reading needs of the local communities. The priority of purchasing Romanian books, the active reading in the fields of Romanian literature and history, the relations with Romania had contributed to the shaping of the militant character of these libraries, which played an important part in maintaining the cultural unity of all Romanians.

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