German Central Library and Central Library Aabenraa

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Central Library in Aabenraa
Book bus

The German Central Library and Central Library in Aabenraa is the central library system for the German minority in North Schleswig / Denmark . The association is sponsored by the Association of German Libraries in North Schleswig. The Association of German Libraries in North Schleswig includes a total of 23 libraries: the central library in Aabenraa, four branches in the cities of Hadersleben , Sonderburg , Tondern and Tingleff , as well as two book buses and 15 libraries from German schools, which are looked after by the Aabenraa central library and regularly supplied with literature . She has also been working closely with the Schleswig-Holstein library headquarters for many years .

history

The German libraries in North Schleswig originated at the beginning of the 20th century, initially in the cities, later also in rural areas, mostly in connection with the local schools. After 1920, the German minority set up their own library system under the direction of the welfare and school association for North Schleswig . A total of 71 libraries had been built by the end of the Second World War .

After the end of the Second World War, the library system there had to be completely rebuilt. In 1949 the Association of German Libraries in North Schleswig was founded. The first chairman of the newly founded association was Frederik Christensen ( 1949-1972 ), followed by Kristel Thomsen (1972-1993) and Philipp Iweren (since 1993). Site libraries were initially only available in the northern Schleswig towns of Aabenraa , Hadersleben , Sonderburg and Tondern . In 1964 and 1968 these were supplemented with two mobile libraries to better serve rural areas . In 1991 the Tingleff library was opened , the area in which the percentage of the German North Schleswig-Holstein population is highest. The new Aabenraa library and central library was inaugurated in 1967 in the presence of Minister Herbert Wehner . In 1984 an extension was put into operation. In 2005–2006 there was a fundamental renovation and a further extension in which most of the administrations of the German minority in North Schleswig have their headquarters today. At the same time, the building was given the name Haus Nordschleswig as a visible sign of this reorganization . Head of the library system was the main librarian Peter Callesen (1949–1970). He was followed by the library directors Hans Walter Petersen (1970–1999) and Nis-Edwin List-Petersen (since 1999). Claudia Knauer has been the library director since 2015 .

Legal basis

The legal basis of the work is the Bonn-Copenhagen Declarations from 1955, in which the rights of the two minorities north and south of the German-Danish border are regulated and the Danish Library Act (Act No. 340 of May 17, 2000), which regulates the Danish municipalities are obliged to keep libraries available and in § 17 contains a separate passage regarding grants to the libraries of the German minority.

financing

With a total budget of approx. 10 million Danish kroner, the German library system in North Schleswig is funded 2/3 from funds from the Federal Republic of Germany ( BMI ) and the state of Schleswig-Holstein and 1/3 from funds from the state of Denmark .

Furnishing

The media inventory comprises 230,000 media units consisting of books, magazines, games, CDs, CD-ROMs, DVDs, LPs, MCs, as well as literature CDs and an audio library for the blind and visually impaired. The number of loans is around 350,000 per year. The headquarters and all branches are equipped with internet workstations for users, which are available free of charge. The online catalog (OPAC) contained on the website of the libraries enables research and reservations via the Internet. A special feature is the art library in the central library with around 650 original graphics and paintings that can be borrowed by users.

Cooperation partner

  • Library headquarters Schleswig-Holstein
  • Danish Central Library in Vejle
  • Danish Central Library in Esbjerg
  • DBV -Landesverband Schleswig-Holstein
  • Specialist conference of the state libraries in Germany

German-Danish library forum

Since the conclusion of an INTERREG II project funded by the European Union at the end of the 1990s, the large libraries north and south of the German-Danish border have come together in the German-Danish Library Forum. Members also include the Danish Central Library for South Schleswig as well as the interlibrary loan and supplementary library . It is responsible for the Danish minority in the German state of Schleswig-Holstein and thus the counterpart of the German Central Library and Central Library in Aabenraa.

literature

  • Peter Jessen Sönnichsen: More than books - The history of German libraries. Aabenraa, 1990.
  • Nis-Edwin List-Petersen : More than books - 60 years of library work in North Schleswig . Aabenraa, 2009, ISBN 978-87-993421-0-5 .

Web links

Coordinates: 55 ° 2 ′ 33.9 ″  N , 9 ° 24 ′ 49.4 ″  E