Przemiany zadań administracji archiwalnej w świetle przepisów prawa polskiego z lat 1919–2019
The Changes in the Objectives of the Archive Administration in the Light of Polish Law 1919–2019

Author(s): Marek Konstankiewicz
Subject(s): 19th Century, Pre-WW I & WW I (1900 -1919), Interwar Period (1920 - 1939), WW II and following years (1940 - 1949), Post-War period (1950 - 1989), Transformation Period (1990 - 2010)
Published by: Wydawnictwa Uniwersytetu Warszawskiego
Keywords: gathering; devising and providing materials; popularization; information; research work
Summary/Abstract: The year 2019 marks the hundredth anniversary of the decree on the organisation of state archives and archive care, which seems a good opportunity to look at the development of Polish archive law initiated then. Most of its regulations are devoted to archive administration, i.e. state archives and administrative bodies they are subordinated to. The law regulations specify the objectives to be fulfilled by the archive administration and the methods adopted. This last element defines the legal instruments to be used by the archivists, especially where they perform in the manner appropriate to that of administration, i.e. influencing other bodies unilaterally. Within the last one hundred years and on the example of three consecutive archive law regulations, it is possible to examine the changes in archive administration regulations and their objectives. They reflect the changes in fundamental state principles, the evolution of the needs met by the archives and, in the broader context, technical, social and civilisational transformations. The manifestations of such changes can be seen in regulations on gathering and providing archive materials by state archives and in the laws concerning the interaction between the public and private owners of the archive materials. Despite the core catalogue of the archive administration objectives, the regulations regarding their fulfilment have been gradually introduced, which is of great importance to archivist work. As a result, the legal context of archivist work becomes overcomplicated and requires using many regulations belonging to different bodies of law. Another problem is the actual enforcement of the archive law and the reflection on practical issues which come with it.

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