The Regional Library of Stara Zagora "Zaharii Knyazheski"
D. Duncheva, Director
50 Tzar Kaloyan St.
6000 Stara Zagora
BULGARIA
email: library-sz@mbox.digsys.bgThe Regional Library of Stara Zagora "Zaharii Knyazheski" was founded in 1955 as:
- the main book depository in the Region of Stara Zagora
- public universal and scientific library
- center of the bibliographic and information research and service
- methodological center for the libraries in the region
- country studies center and archives of the local publications and periodicals.
During its 45-year history, the Regional Library developed a rich collection of traditional sources. It also successfully implements new forms of bibliographic information services. At present the library has more than 400,000 documents, including books, periodicals, music scores, graphics, maps, audio materials, etc. in Bulgarian and foreign languages. In recent years many individual contributions and donations from different foundations were given to the library.
During the first years, the Regional Library of Stara Zagora offered just a few services for its patrons -- books for borrowing and reading rooms. Gradually the library increased the scope of the services to include bibliographic reference, access to catalogs and reference collections, specialized reading rooms for different branches of knowledge, multiple kinds of documents, national and international interlibrary loan, etc. The most significant step in the modernization of the library was the introduction of automation. Now the library has a local network with 14 computers. The patrons have access to the Internet, as well.
The Regional Library has an important impact on the cultural life of the town and the region of Stara Zagora. The library has an ongoing cultural program and it is a center for preservation and promotion of spiritual values. It is also the organizer of different workshops, conferences, and other professional forums for librarians. The Regional Library has a staff of 20 librarians and 1 engineer/system administrator of the network. Since 1967, the Regional Library has been named after the prominent figure of the Renaissance and a pioneer of the librarianship in Bulgaria, Zaharii Knjazheski.
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