Lviv Collection — a seminar
On September 25, at 11 a.m., a seminar summarising the project “Alma Mater Leopoliensis. History of Lviv humanities 1661-1946” will take place at the Library of the University of Wrocław. Among those who participated in this landmark event were staff members from the UWr Institute of Polish Studies, the Library of the University of Wrocław, and Polish and Ukrainian archivists and researchers.
The aim of the “Lviv Collection” project was to capture the significance of Lviv University as a scientific-research, educational, culture-creating and nation-building institution in particular historical periods through the prism of Lviv humanities. It also achieved the goal of compiling the history of humanities — the main areas of their development within particular fields of research, the role of Lviv humanities in the context of the university itself and the achievements of Lviv scientists, who not only have an impressive knowledge of a particular discipline or disciplines and stand out due to their erudition and versatility, but also possess the ability to connect their scientific interests with social and political problems concerning the Lviv academic community. The project began in 2018 and was implemented by the Institute of Polish Studies; the project’s manager is prof. Anna Dąbrowska.
The project was conducted by scientists of the University of Wrocław, University of Rzeszów, University of Warsaw, Jagiellonian University in Kraków and Ivan Franko National University of Lviv, archivists from the University of Wrocław, State Archives of Lviv Oblast, Archives of Ivan Franko National University of Lviv and staff members from the Library of the University of Wrocław.
As a result of the cooperation between the researchers and archivists, the archival documentation relating to the history of Lviv University is now digitised and available online. This project was the first venture of such scale: the history of Lviv humanities has been completely covered at one of the oldest Polish universities, presenting the assessment of the influence of the Lviv academic community on both Polish and international institutions.
The project enriched the research tool kit of both humanists from various disciplines and scientists researching other fields. Additionally, the project also led to establishing a specialised archival IT team and creating a database system (an inventory dedicated to the Lviv Collection). Apart from that, with the use of state-of-the-art tools, a database of the archives has been devised, allowing for retrieving particular documents.
Rector of the University of Wrocław, prof. Robert Olkiewicz, prof. Adam Jezierski, Dean of the Faculty of Letters, prof. Marcin Cieński, and the director of the Archive of the University of Wrocław, Remigiusz Kazimierczak, will all take part in the seminar.
The event will be held both intramurally at the Library of the University of Wrocław (ul. F. Joliot-Curie, room no. 3) and online. The link to the transmission will be posted soon.
Additional information can be found on the project’s website.
Translated by Aleksandra Wysoczańska (student of English Studies at the University of Wrocław) as part of the translation practice.
Written by: M. J.
Date of publication: 16.09.2025.
Added by M. J.
