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The European Library
ESTONIA
This page is maintained by
Mr. Toomas Schvak
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Foundation On 21 December 1918, the Provisional Government of the Estonian Republic took the decision to establish the State Library. The primary collection of the Library was about 2000 titles necessary for lawmaking and government, and the first users were the members of Parliament (Riigikogu). The Library was situated in two small rooms of the Parliament building in the Toompea Castle. During the time of the independent Republic of Estonia from 1918-1940, the Library developed and grew fast. In 1919, the Library began to receive a legal deposit copy of all printed matter published in Estonia. In 1921, the first international exchange agreements were concluded. In 1935, the country celebrated the 400th anniversary of the first book in Estonian known at that time –a catechism by Wanradt and Koell. In the same year the State Library established an Archival Collection of all publications in the Estonian language and about Estonia. This was the beginning of a systematic acquisition of printed matter on Estonia and the Baltic countries. In the 1930s, the State Library started to perform more functions than those of a parliamentary library – the collections comprised about 50 000 items and the readership included outstanding intellectuals, cultural and public figures. With the Soviet occupation, the Library became a regular public library, known under the name of the State Library of the Estonian SSR. The role of the Library changed considerably: all links with foreign countries and their libraries were severed, and Russian publications predominated, mostly comprising of all-Union deposit copies. The bulk of Estonian and foreign publications was placed in restricted access collections.  In 1953, the Library was named after Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald, a leading man of letters of the Estonian National Awakening and the author of the Estonian national epic, Kalevipoeg. The collections then amounted to one million items already.The liberation movement that began in the Baltic countries in the 1980s and the restoration of the independent Republic of Estonia on 20 August 1991 considerably changed the role of the Library. In 1988, the Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald State Library was renamed the National Library of Estonia with a mission to collect, preserve and provide access to all documents published in the Estonian language and in Estonia, and also about or including information on Estonia. In 1989, the Library’s legal status as a parliamentary library was restored with an obligation to provide information services for the Riigikogu and the Government.The present National Library of Estonia is a legal entity in public law, which operates pursuant to the National Library of Estonia Act, adopted in 1998, and amended in 2002 and 2006, and its Statutes. Its collegial decision-making body is the National Library Board, appointed by the Riigikogu.  The building The National Library building at Tõnismägi in Tallinn, specially designed for the library, was constructed between 1985 and 1993. The architect of the building is Raine Karp and its interior designer is Sulev Vahtra. The eight-storey building with two floors below ground level is until now the largest library in the Baltic countries. It houses 20 reading rooms with 600 reader’s seats, a large conference hall, a theatre hall and numerous exhibition areas. The Library’s stacks are designed to hold five million volumes. All stacks are equipped with shelves and air-conditioning, appropriate for preserving the documents.  Functions The National Library of Estonia is
 Cultural Centre In addition to its function as a library, The National Library of Estonia also serves as a cultural center, hosting exhibitions, conferences, performances, concerts and other cultural events. The National Library is a convenient venue for exhibitions as it is a cultural institution by nature and therefore co-operates with many other cultural institutions in Estonia and abroad. As a result of shared ideas, spectacular joint ventures have taken place with the participation of more than two partners. Our co-operation partners include other libraries, cultural societies and foreign embassies. The interior of the building with its exhibition halls and galleries has inspired artists to exhibit their work here. The library has a large number of readers and other visitors, this being another factor to contribute to the success of exhibitions in the building. The exhibitions include book exhibitions and displays of art and photography by professional artists as well a students and hobby artists. The conference centre has been operating since the opening of the building in 1993. Around 500 events ranging from training seminars to international conferences are held each year. Besides its convenient location, the conference centre offers a good choice of conference rooms, professional equipment and service. The Theatre Hall of the National Library opened in 2001, operating as an open stage where all new ideas and proposals for cooperation are welcomed. In 1996, the Eduard Wiiralt Gallery was opened on the 3rd floor of the Library. The exhibition displays the works of art by the famous Estonian graphic artist of the 20th century, Eduard Wiiralt, donated to Tallinn by art collectors Harry Männil and Henry Radevall. In 2008 the Gallery of Estonian State Decorations was opened on the fifth floor of the Library. The history of Estonians state decorations is an inseparable part of the history of the Republic of Estonia. In the Gallery are exhibited all restored state decorations which are granted by the Republic of Estonia – the Order of the National Coat of Arms, the Order of the White Star, the Order of the Cross of the Eagle, the Order of the Estonian Red Cross, and the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana; in addition the Cross of Liberty, the bestowal of which was terminated in 1925.  |
Under the National Library of Estonia Act the Library collects:
All in all there are 3,4 million items in the collections of the National Library of Estonia. Publications in the Estonian language printed before 1861 and publications in foreign languages printed before 1831, including eight incunabula and 1,500 publications from the 16th and 17th centuries, are stored in the Rare Book Collection. Later publications include a selection of copies with autographs, manuscript amendments and ownership marks, censor’s copies, artistic bindings, bibliophile and luxury publications. In addition to 28,000 rare publications, the collection includes 150 manuscripts. Research on old books has been conducted in the library for over 50 years. The oldest book in the rare book collection is a work of Lambertus de Monte, a theologian from Cologne, - Copulatasuper tres libros Aristotelis De Anima... (Cologne, 1486). The oldest Estonian publication is Heinrich Stahl's book of sermons Leyen Spiegel (Reval, 1641-1649) with parallel texts in Estonian and in German.  The Archival Collection of the National Library stores publications issued in Estonia, in the Estonian language or about Estonia, regardless of their place of publication. The National Library’s task as a parliamentary library is to collect, store and make available documents, necessary for the work of the Riigikogu and the Government of the Republic. The Law Collection includes law literature published in Estonia and publications about the Estonian legal system published abroad. Research literature in foreign languages, publications on international law, legal acts collections of other countries, internationally renowned law journals, and documents of international organisations form an important part of the collection. The National Library provides comprehensive information on the European Union matters. The National Library’s task as a research library for the humanities is to acquire reference aids and tools that provide information necessary for research in the field of the humanities and social sciences. The major part of the Art Collection comprises Estonian and foreign books on art, applied art and architecture. There is also an extensive collection of Estonian postcards and posters, and a collection of original art that includes book illustrations, bookplates of cultural historical value and graphic art from the 17th century onwards. The National Library’s Map Collection includes cartographic materials, published in Estonia and of the territory of Estonia. In addition maps and atlases of adjoining countries, Europe and the whole world, and reference literature on cartography has been acquired. The collection’s earliest printed maps originate from the 16th and 17th centuries. The National Library’s Music Collection is one of the largest in Estonia and contains, in addition to music literature, sheet music and sound recordings. The Sheet Music Collection includes over thirty manuscripts from the 18th and 19th century, the oldest being a copy of the score of Händel’s opera “Rinaldo” from the year 1711. A link to electronic collections is available on the Library’s homepage. It provides access to abstract and full-text databases, containing primary and secondary information, electronic publications and learning materials, e-exhibitions and digitised book illustrations and maps.  Databases The databases compiled by the National Library of Estonia:
The following projects have been launched with the aim of preserving the national imprint and creating a digital library:
Licensed databases of the National Library of Estonia include more than 30 databases (in Estonian and foreign language) acquired by the Library and some of them can be used also via the homepage. |
Exhibitions
Uncover the Roma's rich cultural heritage with this ground breaking exhibition. Still on display:
Napoleonic wars, unique buildings
and magnificent treasures.
The European Library is hosted by the Koninklijke Bibliotheek - Koninklijke Bibliotheek, The Netherlands (KB).