Given the date of its establishment as a state, public and secular institution on July 10, 1920, as well as the fact that 2020 marks the 100th anniversary of its founding, July can be considered the month of the library. Throughout history, the National Library of Albania has gone through a number of factors, mainly political, which have consequently damaged its activity, although the facts show that despite all, the library tradition in Albania is old.
National Library of Albania: What it was
As we said above, the National Library of Albania - which we will easily refer to below as the BKSH - is a relatively late established institution. However the tradition is early. The testimonies of researchers have shown that during the medieval period, the chancellery of the respective libraries was located in the courtyards of Albanian princes. The country's geographical and historical position allowed them to keep in touch with books about Constantinople and places across the sea.
A difficult moment for the library tradition was undoubtedly the Ottoman censorship and in such conditions, books were kept at that time in family libraries or religious institutions such as Franciscan and Jesuit assemblies, Orthodox monasteries, madrasas, etc.
The BKSH was inaugurated in 1922, during which time it had 6,000 volumes, but was established as a state institution in 1920. At that time, the library fund of the Albanian Literary Commission, established in the city of Shkodra, served as an important element for its fund. in 1917. In 1959 it was placed under the Ministry of Culture, having previously been part of the Institute of Sciences. Since 1966, BKSH has been located in a part of the building of the Palace of Culture.
National Library of Albania: What is it
Of course, the changes of the post-1990s also brought changes in the way the BKSH functioned. If previously there were restrictions on the provision of information and the use of relevant literature, after that, the use of the library was easier. Over the years, there have been attempts to enrich the BKSH fund with books, academic articles, newspapers, magazines, maps, etc. Recall that recently part of it is accessible via e-albania, referring to the situation of Covid-19.
Despite these elements, the National Library of Albania needs more investment, both in infrastructure and in enriching its fund. Recall that in March 2017, the BKSH underground floor was engulfed in flames as a result of an electric spark and rare books and collections were burned.
A year later, exactly in June 2018, BKSH declared a state of emergency as a result of torrential rain that is thought to wet over 12 thousand materials. Fortunately, the Rare Values Fund and the Albanian Book and Periodical Archive were not affected by the rain.
National Library of Albania: What / How it should be
To create a clearer idea that despite the positive changes it may have had, the BKSH remains far from what it should be and represents, to meet the ever-increasing demands of the younger generations, why not motivate them. the latter towards reading, we are not going too far to take examples such as: Biblioteca Apostolica - Rome, Bibliotheque Sainte-Genevieve - Paris, Trinity College Library - Dublin or Real Gabinete Portugues de Leitura - Rio De Janeiro. Just turn to the National and University Library of Kosovo, located in Pristina.
The building of this library was designed by Croatian architect Andrija Mutnjakovic and was inaugurated in November 1982. The structure features zenith windows and 99 domes of various sizes. The largest dome in the center of the building serves to give light to the lobby. The domes are a symbol of the famous plis.
The interior structure contains reading rooms, two of which have a capacity of 300 and 100 people and can hold up to 2 million volumes. Even on the website, the library in Prishtina is more easily accessible and has a more contemporary design.
