41. évfolyam, 1995. 2. szám

Archívum

Parallel biographies. Pál Gulyás, Ervin Szabó and the idea of the modern public library

KATSÁNYI Sándor

During the decade before World War I. considerable effort was devoted to the establishment of liberal, modern public librarianship in Hungary. Following English, American and German patterns, the theory of the new type of library was elaborated, a manual of its Organisation was written, its collection profile was defined, and the ferst really modern Hungarian public library was opened in Budapest. There were two prominent librarians behind these efforts: the politically conservative Pál Gulyás, and the socialist Ervin Szabó. Approaching from different directions, both of them reached the idea of a liberal library, free of political control. However, they fought the most bitter struggle in the history of Hungarian libraries over the details. The coming generations assessed them on the basis of their political roles in extreme terms, though they both were the founders of modern librarianship in Hungary. (pp. 199-208)

Országos Széchényi Könyvtár Észrevételek