KNOWLEDGE WORTH FINDING
Our cultural heritage, stories and people are brought together in the Digital Library
KNOWLEDGE WORTH FINDING
Our cultural heritage, stories and people are brought together in the Digital Library
Restored Latvian films
The Restored Feature Films Collection brings together best films from Latvian cinema in a broad chronological and genre spectrum, while the Documentary Films Collection features important short films from the Riga way of poetic documentary cinema. The animation collection brings together classic and well-loved animated films for children.
Industrial heritage collection
The history of industry in Latvia dates back to the 17th century when manufacturing and shipbuilding flourished in the Duchy of Courland. By the 19th century, Riga was already an important industrial centre of Eastern Europe and the whole Russian Empire. The digital collection contains information on more than 100 former and current Latvian factories.
Extensive collection of concert recordings of classical, contemporary and popular music
The Culture Information Systems Centre (CISC) offers open access to 70 cultural events in Latvia in recent years – concerts of classical, contemporary and popular music, which were recorded within the framework of the project “Digitization of Cultural Heritage Content” implemented with the support of the European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) (Phase 1 and Phase 2), which can be watched online in high technological quality by all Latvian residents on Diva.lv.
Collections
Latvian Presidential Collection
The collection was created in cooperation with the Presidential Chancery of the Republic of Latvia and contains documents from the historical presidencies of Latvia.
Collection
375
Ticket, please!
To date, paper tickets have been a testimony of their time, granting a person the right to enter a certain place or event. They not only allow access to a specific place, but also serve as proof of payment. Nowadays, tickets are more commonly available in digital form. The collection includes tickets to concerts, sporting events, museums, theatres, exhibitions, and also for public transport and lottery tickets.
Collection
42
Latvians Abroad Museum and Research Centre Collection
Latvian communities outside Latvia have existed for almost 200 years, still preserving the Latvian way of life and culture. Since the beginning of the photo era, these Latvians have captured their journeys outside of Latvia in photographs, which over time have become unique historical evidence not only of the family, but also of the entire Latvian community.
Collection
6644
Kuldīgas novada kultūrvides materiālu krājums
Latvija glabā daudz un dažādas vērtības, bet katru viensētu, ciemu, pagastu, novadu un valsti, pirmkārt, veidojam mēs paši. Cienot ikviena ieguldījumu mūsu kopējās dzīves vides veidošanā, ar lepnumu piedāvājam iepazīties ar bagāto Kuldīgas novada kultūrvides materiālu krājumu, ko glabā Kuldīgas novada bibliotēkas. Kolekcija ietver daudzpusīgu digitalizēto un digitāli radīto dokumentu kopu, kas atspoguļo Kuldīgas novada vēsturi, attīstību, tā iedzīvotājus un viņu veikumu no 20. gadsimta sākuma līdz pat mūsdienām.
Collection
234
LETA Photo Collection (1989-1996)
In 1973, the Latvian telegraph agency "LETA" was renamed LATINFORM. It operated under the Council of Ministers of the Latvian SSR and was a branch of the TASS news agency of the Soviet Union. In 1990, its historical name LETA was restored. In 1931, the LETA Press Photo Department was established with the aim to document cultural, social, political, etc. events, and prepare visual materials for the needs of the news agency. The news agency’s photo materials of 1989-1996 are included in the collection of LETA photographs of the Latvian National Archives of Latvia, approximately 4,500 items in total. The collection is available on the network of the National Library of Latvia.
Collection
4494
Manuscripts of the Brethren Church
The collection Brāļu draudzes (rok)raksti (Manuscripts of the Brethren Church) gathers a unique cultural history material of Latvia – a set of texts from the Brethren congregations, the creation of which was influenced by the Herrnhut movement in the 18th century and the first half of the 19th century, and involved several thousand Latvian peasant of Vidzeme. Self-made handwritten books and in some exceptional cases – texts in the form of printed books – are attributed not only to the first known Latvian literary activity and to a strong tradition of handwritten bookmaking for more than two centuries, but also to the beginnings of the formation of the Latvian intellectual elite during this period. In Herrnhutian sources, already in the middle of the 18th century the Latvian part of Vidzeme was called Lettland - Latvia. More information: https://braludraudze.lndb.lv/
Collection
366
Archives of the Animated Film Studio Dauka
The collection consists of animated films produced by the animation film studio Dauka and its predecessor Telefilma–Rīga. Altogether there are more than 100 videos made in the period from 1969, when the first animated film “Lietaina diena” (Rainy Day) was shot by Telefilma-Rīga, until 2010, when the studio Dauka ceased its operations. The animation film studio Dauka was founded in 1991 by Ansis Bērziņš and Roze Stiebra who were also the principal scriptwriters and directors of animated films. The films are often based on works of Latvian authors, for example the fairy tales of Imants Ziedonis, the poetry of Ojārs Vācietis, Rainis and Aspazija, as well as Latvian folk tales. The artists Dzintra Aulmane and Maija Brence have taken part in the production of many films, music composed by Imants Kalniņš, Zigmars Liepiņš and others. The collection includes both animated shorts , and several full-length films. Accessible in the network of the National Library of Latvia.
Collection
110
Country life in glass plate negatives
At the beginning of the 20th century, following the agrarian reform Latvians were the main landowners and agriculture became the basis of the entire economy of independent Latvia; the people and society at that time immortalised important life events in glass plate negatives. The collection includes glass plate negatives from the collections of various photographers and cultural heritage institutions.
Collection
113Dāvana vientuļai sievietei - 50
Tieši pirms pusgadsimta – 1973. gada gada nogalē latviešu kinokomēdiju “Dāvana vientuļai sievietei” sāka izrādīt Latvijas kinoteātros. Tā kļūst par kulta filmu, kuru joprojām kā īpašu “svētku dāvanu” piedāvā TV programmas un par kuru sajūsminās nu jau vairākas skatītāju paaudzes.
Find out more
FIND MORE
Digital collections, exhibitions and other valuable resources by Latvian culture and memory institutions
Digital collection
Digital archives of Latvian folklore
The Archives of Latvian Folklore at the Institute of Literature, Folklore and Art of the University of Latvia hold manuscripts, sound and video recordings as well as photographic materials portraying folklore tellers and depicting the history of folklore collection in Latvia. The archive documents the way of life, worldview, history, and language of the people over several centuries.
Other
Latvian Prose Counter
An experimental text analysis website that allows you to look at various quantitative parameters of 19th and 20th century Latvian literary works, such as the frequency of word usage and others.
Digital collection
3D models of Latvian hillforts
3D models of Latvian hillforts, created from open-access LIDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) data – it provides detection and distance determination using light data. The project also includes a free open data repository at https://opendata.latvijas-pilskalni.lv/
Other
Latvian cultural monuments
Database and map of Latvian cultural monuments.
Virtual exhibition
Taken library, reconstructed library
The virtual exhibition is dedicated to the former library of the Jesuit College of Riga which was moved as spoils of war. The library was started by the Jesuits in 1583. During the Polish-Swedish War (1601-1629), Riga was occupied by Swedish troops and the library was taken to Sweden as spoils of war.
Other
Womage
The website is dedicated to the contribution of women to Latvian culture and society. It offers biographical descriptions and photographs of women: public and cultural figures, politicians, writers, artists, actresses, teachers, doctors, and other professionals whose active career dates back to the period from 1870 to 1940.
Digital collection
See, Hear Latvia!
The digital repository of the National Archives of Latvia provides an opportunity to search and explore films, photographs and sound recordings about Latvia, its people, and various political, social, and cultural events from the mid-19th century to the present day.
Note