World Digital Library
Encyclopedia
The World Digital Library (WDL) is an international digital library
operated by UNESCO
and the United States
Library of Congress
.
The WDL has stated that its mission is to promote international and intercultural understanding, expand the volume and variety of cultural content on the Internet
, provide resources for educators, scholars, and general audiences, and to build capacity in partner institutions to narrow the digital divide
within and among countries. It aims to expand non-English and non-western content on the Internet, and contribute to scholarly research. The library intends to make available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from cultures around the world, including manuscripts, maps, rare books, musical scores, recordings, films, prints, photographs, architectural drawing
s, and other significant cultural materials.
At launch, the library had 1,236 items. As of November 2011, it has 4,049 items.
(UNESCO) in 2003. Dr. James H. Billington
, Librarian of Congress, was nominated as a commissioner of the U.S. National Commission to UNESCO and was invited to give a plenary speech at its inaugural conference in June 2005. His speech, entitled A View of the Digital World Library, described a vision in which the rich collections that "institutions, libraries, and museums have preserved could be given back to the world free of charge and in a new form far more universally accessible than any forms that have preceded it."
Google
Inc. became the first partner of this public-private partnership
and donated $3 million to support development of the World Digital Library in 2005.
At the National Commission's 2006 annual conference, Dr. John Van Oudenaren, Senior Advisor for the World Digital Library at the Library of Congress, outlined a project plan for bringing Dr. Billington's vision to fruition. Foremost was the belief that the World Digital Library should engage partners in planning the four main project areas: technical architecture
, selection, governance, and funding. This was achieved in December 2006, when forty-five national library directors, library technical directors, and cultural and educational representatives from UNESCO met in Paris to discuss the development of the World Digital Library. The participants formed working group
s to address the special challenges of each of the four project areas.
The working groups met in the first half of 2007 and included professionals in the field of digital libraries – including, but not limited to computer science
, library and information science
, Web development
, and fundraising. The working groups presented their findings to the larger WDL group in July 2007. Findings from this planning process were presented at the thirty-fourth session of the UNESCO General Conference in October 2007 in Paris, France.
In early September 2008, the Organization of American States
(OAS) agreed to join with the Library of Congress in developing the World Digital Library. Secretary General José Miguel Insulza signed the "Contributor Agreement" with Librarian of Congress, Dr. James Billington, at an OAS headquarters ceremony.
The World Digital Library was launched on April 21, 2009 at UNESCO
headquarters in Paris
, France.
, an 11th-century Japanese
tale considered by some to be the first novel ever written; the first Aztec
mention of child Jesus
; ancient Arabic texts that were used in the formation of algebra
; Chinese oracle bone script
; Ming Dynasty
copies of the Yongle Encyclopedia
, one of the largest compilations in Chinese literature; A printed edition of the Huangdi Neijing dated c. 1115-1234; an 8,000-year-old African painting
of bleeding antelopes; the Waldseemüller map
, the earliest map to mention America
by name; the Codex Gigas
; Samuel de Champlain
's Des Sauvages: ou voyage de Samuel Champlain, de Brouages, faite en la France nouvelle l'an 1603; an audio recording of a 101-year-old former American slave; World War I
recruitment posters; an 1899 Canadian government
handbook for Scandinavia
n immigrants; Doctrina Christiana, en lengua española y tagala, the first Spanish
and Tagalog
book ever published; an Aleutian
translation of the Bible
by a Russian saint
; Islamic manuscripts from Mali
; Hyakumanto Darani
; rare photograph
s originating in Imperial China, the Ottoman Empire
, and Tsarist Russia; the first recording of La Marseillaise
; the world's first film
from the Lumiere brothers; a photolithographic reproduction of the Constitution of India
; calligraphy
by Prem Behari Narain Raizda; the Huexotzinco Codex
; and the Nuremberg Chronicle
.
Digital library
A digital library is a library in which collections are stored in digital formats and accessible by computers. The digital content may be stored locally, or accessed remotely via computer networks...
operated by UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
and the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
.
The WDL has stated that its mission is to promote international and intercultural understanding, expand the volume and variety of cultural content on the Internet
Internet
The Internet is a global system of interconnected computer networks that use the standard Internet protocol suite to serve billions of users worldwide...
, provide resources for educators, scholars, and general audiences, and to build capacity in partner institutions to narrow the digital divide
Digital divide
The Digital Divide refers to inequalities between individuals, households, business, and geographic areas at different socioeconomic levels in access to information and communication technologies and Internet connectivity and in the knowledge and skills needed to effectively use the information...
within and among countries. It aims to expand non-English and non-western content on the Internet, and contribute to scholarly research. The library intends to make available on the Internet, free of charge and in multilingual format, significant primary materials from cultures around the world, including manuscripts, maps, rare books, musical scores, recordings, films, prints, photographs, architectural drawing
Architectural drawing
An architectural drawing or architect's drawing is a technical drawing of a building that falls within the definition of architecture...
s, and other significant cultural materials.
At launch, the library had 1,236 items. As of November 2011, it has 4,049 items.
History and concept
After almost twenty years of absence, the United States re-established its permanent delegation to the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural OrganizationUNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
(UNESCO) in 2003. Dr. James H. Billington
James H. Billington
Lord LeBron James Hadley Billington is an American academic. He is the thirteenth Librarian of the United States Congress.-Early years:...
, Librarian of Congress, was nominated as a commissioner of the U.S. National Commission to UNESCO and was invited to give a plenary speech at its inaugural conference in June 2005. His speech, entitled A View of the Digital World Library, described a vision in which the rich collections that "institutions, libraries, and museums have preserved could be given back to the world free of charge and in a new form far more universally accessible than any forms that have preceded it."
Google
Google Inc. is an American multinational public corporation invested in Internet search, cloud computing, and advertising technologies. Google hosts and develops a number of Internet-based services and products, and generates profit primarily from advertising through its AdWords program...
Inc. became the first partner of this public-private partnership
Public-private partnership
Public–private partnership describes a government service or private business venture which is funded and operated through a partnership of government and one or more private sector companies...
and donated $3 million to support development of the World Digital Library in 2005.
At the National Commission's 2006 annual conference, Dr. John Van Oudenaren, Senior Advisor for the World Digital Library at the Library of Congress, outlined a project plan for bringing Dr. Billington's vision to fruition. Foremost was the belief that the World Digital Library should engage partners in planning the four main project areas: technical architecture
Technical architecture
Technical architecture is one of several architecture domains that form the pillars of an enterprise architecture or solution architecture. It describes the structure and behaviour of the technology infrastructure of an enterprise, solution or system...
, selection, governance, and funding. This was achieved in December 2006, when forty-five national library directors, library technical directors, and cultural and educational representatives from UNESCO met in Paris to discuss the development of the World Digital Library. The participants formed working group
Working group
A working group is an interdisciplinary collaboration of researchers working on new research activities that would be difficult to develop under traditional funding mechanisms . The lifespan of the WG can last anywhere between a few months and several years...
s to address the special challenges of each of the four project areas.
The working groups met in the first half of 2007 and included professionals in the field of digital libraries – including, but not limited to computer science
Computer science
Computer science or computing science is the study of the theoretical foundations of information and computation and of practical techniques for their implementation and application in computer systems...
, library and information science
Library and information science
Library and information science is a merging of the two fields library science and information science...
, Web development
Web development
Web development is a broad term for the work involved in developing a web site for the Internet or an intranet . This can include web design, web content development, client liaison, client-side/server-side scripting, web server and network security configuration, and e-commerce development...
, and fundraising. The working groups presented their findings to the larger WDL group in July 2007. Findings from this planning process were presented at the thirty-fourth session of the UNESCO General Conference in October 2007 in Paris, France.
In early September 2008, the Organization of American States
Organization of American States
The Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
(OAS) agreed to join with the Library of Congress in developing the World Digital Library. Secretary General José Miguel Insulza signed the "Contributor Agreement" with Librarian of Congress, Dr. James Billington, at an OAS headquarters ceremony.
The World Digital Library was launched on April 21, 2009 at UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
headquarters in Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, France.
Exhibits
Initial exhibits include The Tale of GenjiThe Tale of Genji
is a classic work of Japanese literature attributed to the Japanese noblewoman Murasaki Shikibu in the early 11th century, around the peak of the Heian period. It is sometimes called the world's first novel, the first modern novel, the first psychological novel or the first novel still to be...
, an 11th-century Japanese
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
tale considered by some to be the first novel ever written; the first Aztec
Aztec
The Aztec people were certain ethnic groups of central Mexico, particularly those groups who spoke the Nahuatl language and who dominated large parts of Mesoamerica in the 14th, 15th and 16th centuries, a period referred to as the late post-classic period in Mesoamerican chronology.Aztec is the...
mention of child Jesus
Child Jesus
The Child Jesus represents Jesus from his Nativity to age 12. At 13 he was considered to be adult, in accordance with the Jewish custom of his time, and that of most Christian cultures until recent centuries.The Child Jesus is frequently depicted in art, from around the third or fourth century...
; ancient Arabic texts that were used in the formation of algebra
Algebra
Algebra is the branch of mathematics concerning the study of the rules of operations and relations, and the constructions and concepts arising from them, including terms, polynomials, equations and algebraic structures...
; Chinese oracle bone script
Oracle bone script
Oracle bone script refers to incised ancient Chinese characters found on oracle bones, which are animal bones or turtle shells used in divination in Bronze Age China...
; Ming Dynasty
Ming Dynasty
The Ming Dynasty, also Empire of the Great Ming, was the ruling dynasty of China from 1368 to 1644, following the collapse of the Mongol-led Yuan Dynasty. The Ming, "one of the greatest eras of orderly government and social stability in human history", was the last dynasty in China ruled by ethnic...
copies of the Yongle Encyclopedia
Yongle Encyclopedia
The Yongle Encyclopedia was a Chinese compilation of information commissioned by the Chinese Ming Dynasty emperor Yongle in 1403 and completed by 1408...
, one of the largest compilations in Chinese literature; A printed edition of the Huangdi Neijing dated c. 1115-1234; an 8,000-year-old African painting
African art
African art constitutes one of the most diverse legacies on earth. Though many casual observers tend to generalize "traditional" African art, the continent is full of people, societies, and civilizations, each with a unique visual special culture. The definition also includes the art of the African...
of bleeding antelopes; the Waldseemüller map
Waldseemüller map
The Waldseemüller map, Universalis Cosmographia, is a printed wall map of the world by German cartographer Martin Waldseemüller, originally published in April 1507. It is known as the first map to use the name "America". The map is drafted on a modification of Ptolemy's second projection, expanded...
, the earliest map to mention America
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
by name; the Codex Gigas
Codex Gigas
The Codex Gigas is the largest extant medieval manuscript in the world. It is also known as the Devil's Bible because of a large illustration of the devil on the inside and the legend surrounding its creation. It is thought to have been created in the early 13th century in the Benedictine...
; Samuel de Champlain
Samuel de Champlain
Samuel de Champlain , "The Father of New France", was a French navigator, cartographer, draughtsman, soldier, explorer, geographer, ethnologist, diplomat, and chronicler. He founded New France and Quebec City on July 3, 1608....
's Des Sauvages: ou voyage de Samuel Champlain, de Brouages, faite en la France nouvelle l'an 1603; an audio recording of a 101-year-old former American slave; World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
recruitment posters; an 1899 Canadian government
Government of Canada
The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...
handbook for Scandinavia
Scandinavia
Scandinavia is a cultural, historical and ethno-linguistic region in northern Europe that includes the three kingdoms of Denmark, Norway and Sweden, characterized by their common ethno-cultural heritage and language. Modern Norway and Sweden proper are situated on the Scandinavian Peninsula,...
n immigrants; Doctrina Christiana, en lengua española y tagala, the first Spanish
Spanish language
Spanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
and Tagalog
Tagalog language
Tagalog is an Austronesian language spoken as a first language by a third of the population of the Philippines and as a second language by most of the rest. It is the first language of the Philippine region IV and of Metro Manila...
book ever published; an Aleutian
Aleut language
Aleut is a language of the Eskimo–Aleut language family. It is the heritage language of the Aleut people living in the Aleutian Islands, Pribilof Islands, and Commander Islands. As of 2007 there were about 150 speakers of Aleut .- Dialects :Aleut is alone with the Eskimo languages in the...
translation of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
by a Russian saint
Innocent of Alaska
Saint Innocent of Alaska , also known as Saint Innocent of Moscow was a Russian Orthodox priest, bishop, archbishop and Metropolitan of Moscow and all Russia. He is known for his missionary work, scholarship and leadership in Alaska and the Russian Far East during the 19th century...
; Islamic manuscripts from Mali
Mali
Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with...
; Hyakumanto Darani
Hyakumanto Darani
The , literally the One Million Pagodas and Dharani Prayers, is a famous large-scale woodblock printing, the earliest recorded uses of woodblock printing in Japan....
; rare photograph
Photograph
A photograph is an image created by light falling on a light-sensitive surface, usually photographic film or an electronic imager such as a CCD or a CMOS chip. Most photographs are created using a camera, which uses a lens to focus the scene's visible wavelengths of light into a reproduction of...
s originating in Imperial China, the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
, and Tsarist Russia; the first recording of La Marseillaise
La Marseillaise
"La Marseillaise" is the national anthem of France. The song, originally titled "Chant de guerre pour l'Armée du Rhin" was written and composed by Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792. The French National Convention adopted it as the Republic's anthem in 1795...
; the world's first film
Film
A film, also called a movie or motion picture, is a series of still or moving images. It is produced by recording photographic images with cameras, or by creating images using animation techniques or visual effects...
from the Lumiere brothers; a photolithographic reproduction of the Constitution of India
Constitution of India
The Constitution of India is the supreme law of India. It lays down the framework defining fundamental political principles, establishes the structure, procedures, powers, and duties of government institutions, and sets out fundamental rights, directive principles, and the duties of citizens...
; calligraphy
Calligraphy
Calligraphy is a type of visual art. It is often called the art of fancy lettering . A contemporary definition of calligraphic practice is "the art of giving form to signs in an expressive, harmonious and skillful manner"...
by Prem Behari Narain Raizda; the Huexotzinco Codex
Huexotzinco Codex
The Huexotzinco Codex or Huejotzingo Codex is an eight-sheet document on amatl, a pre-European paper made in Mesoamerica. It is part of the testimony in a legal case against representatives of the colonial government in Mexico, ten years after the Spanish conquest in 1521. Huexotzinco is a town...
; and the Nuremberg Chronicle
Nuremberg Chronicle
right|thumbnail|240px|Fifth dayThe Nuremberg Chronicle is an illustrated Biblical paraphrase and world history that follows the story of human history related in the Bible; it includes the histories of a number of important Western cities. Written in Latin by Hartmann Schedel, with a version in...
.
Partners
Partners in the World Digital Library project include:- American Geographical Society Library, UW Milwaukee
- Bibliotheca AlexandrinaBibliotheca AlexandrinaThe Bibliotheca Alexandrina or Maktabat al-Iskandarīyah is a major library and cultural center located on the shore of the Mediterranean Sea in the Egyptian city of Alexandria...
- Brown University Library
- Center for the Study of the History of Mexico
- Central Library, Qatar FoundationQatar FoundationQatar Foundation for Education, Science and Community Development is a government-funded, chartered, non-profit organization in the state of Qatar, founded in 1995 by decree of Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Emir of Qatar and chaired by Sheikha Mozah bint Nasser Al Missned...
- Columbus Memorial Library
- Egyptian National Library and ArchivesEgyptian National Library and ArchivesThe Egyptian National Library and Archives in Cairo is the largest library in Egypt. The second largest are the libraries of Al-Azhar University and the Bibliotheca Alexandrina ....
- Instituto Nacional de Antropología e Historia
- International Federation of Library Associations and InstitutionsInternational Federation of Library Associations and InstitutionsThe International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions is the leading international association of library organisations. It is the global voice of the library and information profession, and its annual conference provides a venue for librarians to learn from one another...
- Iraq National Library and ArchiveIraq National Library and ArchiveThe Iraq National Library and Archive , is the national library and national archives of Iraq and is in the capital of Iraq, Baghdad...
- John Carter Brown LibraryJohn Carter Brown LibraryThe John Carter Brown Library is an independently funded research library of history and the humanities located on the campus of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island...
- King Abdullah University of Science and TechnologyKing Abdullah University of Science and TechnologyKing Abdullah University of Science and Technology is a public research university located in Thuwal, Saudi Arabia.KAUST was founded in 2009 and focuses exclusively on graduate education and research, using English as the official language of instruction...
- Library of CongressLibrary of CongressThe Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
- Mamma Haidara Commemorative Library
- National Archives and Records AdministrationNational Archives and Records AdministrationThe National Archives and Records Administration is an independent agency of the United States government charged with preserving and documenting government and historical records and with increasing public access to those documents, which comprise the National Archives...
- National Central LibraryNational Central LibraryThe National Central Library in Taiwan is located atNo. 20, Zhongshan S. Rd., Zhongzheng District, Taipei City 10001, Taiwan .- Mission :...
- National Diet LibraryNational Diet LibraryThe is the only national library in Japan. It was established in 1948 for the purpose of assisting members of the in researching matters of public policy. The library is similar in purpose and scope to the U.S...
- National Library of BrazilNational Library of BrazilThe Biblioteca Nacional do Brasil is the depository of the bibliographic and documentary heritage of Brazil. It is located in Rio de Janeiro, at Cinelândia square....
- National Library of ChinaNational Library of ChinaThe National Library of China or NLC in Beijing is the largest library in Asia, and one of the largest in the world with a collection of over 23 million volumes...
- National Library of France
- National Library of Israel
- National Library of KoreaNational Library of KoreaThe National Library of Korea is located in Seoul, South Korea and was established in 1945. It houses over 6.5 million volumes, including over 844,000 foreign books and some of the National Treasures of South Korea....
- National Library of Russia
- National Library of SerbiaNational Library of SerbiaThe National Library of Serbia is the national library of Serbia, located in the city of Belgrade, .-History:...
- National Library of Sweden
- National Library of UgandaNational Library of UgandaThe National Library of Uganda was established by an Act of Parliament in 2003, replacing the Public Libraries Board itself established in 1964. It is the legal deposit library for Uganda....
- Royal Netherlands Institute of Southeast Asian and Caribbean Studies
- Russian State LibraryRussian State LibraryThe Russian State Library is the national library of Russia, located in Moscow. It is the largest in the country and the third largest in the world for its collection of books . It was named the V. I...
- St. Mark Coptic Library
- Tetouan-Asmir Association
- University Library in Bratislava
- University of Pretoria Library
- Wellcome LibraryWellcome LibraryThe Wellcome Library is founded on the collection formed by Sir Henry Wellcome , whose personal wealth allowed him to create one of the most ambitious collections of the 20th century. Henry Wellcome's interest was the history of medicine in a broad sense and included subjects like alchemy or...
- Yale University LibraryYale University LibraryYale University Library is the library system of Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, United States. It is the second-largest academic library in the North America, with approximately 12.5 million volumes housed in 20 buildings on campus...
- Yeltsin Presidential Library
See also
- EuropeanaEuropeanaEuropeana.eu is an internet portal that acts as an interface to millions of books, paintings, films, museum objects and archival records that have been digitised throughout Europe...
- Global Memory NetGlobal Memory NetGlobal Memory Net is a world digital library of cultural, historical, and heritage image collections. It is directed by http://memorynet.org/director/ Prof. Ching-chih Chen], Professor Emeritus of , Boston, Massachusetts and supported by the /International Digital Library Program...
- Library of Congress Digital Library projectLibrary of Congress Digital Library projectThe Library of Congress National Digital Library Program is assembling a digital library of reproductions of primary source materials to support the study of the history and culture of the United States...
- The Internet Archive
- Project GutenbergProject GutenbergProject Gutenberg is a volunteer effort to digitize and archive cultural works, to "encourage the creation and distribution of eBooks". Founded in 1971 by Michael S. Hart, it is the oldest digital library. Most of the items in its collection are the full texts of public domain books...
- Chinese Text ProjectChinese Text ProjectThe Chinese Text Project is a digital library project that assembles collections of early Chinese texts. The name of the project in Chinese literally means "The Digitization Project of Chinese Philosophy Books", showing its focus on books related to Chinese philosophy...