After 40 years, Zagreb will again witness a major exhibition on the Glagolitic script, which is the oldest Croatian script. The Croatian Glagolitic exhibition will open tonight at the National and University Library (NSK) in Zagreb. It will stay open until December 15, reports Jutarnji List on November 6, 2018.

There are many interesting things to see, and among them is the largest book ever printed in Croatia – it is intended as a textbook to learn the Glagolitic script, and it will be exhibited in the library lobby. It was printed for this very occasion and its dimensions are 145 x 200 cm, enough to break the record.

The NSK holds the largest inventory of Glagolitic books, and it has launched the glagoljica.hr website, so it is no surprise that the library has decided to set up such a large exhibition. Preparations lasted for a full year and involved renowned scientists and experts from the fields of literature and language. The areas covered are the theory of Glagolitic origins, geographic areas where it appeared and spread, the selection of some of the most significant manuscripts and print works, and the contemporary application of the script in communication, economy and culture.

“We have decided to round up our promotion of this script, and the exhibition seemed to us as the perfect solution for that purpose,” said Sandi Antonac, the author of the exhibition.

The library lobby will host eight panels of different sizes, two totems, the record-breaking handbook, a plotter and a 3D printer, where visitors can learn how to write letters and print them out. The whole exhibition is adapted to blind and partially sighted people – for this reason, each exhibit is accompanied by a small plate featuring an explanation in the Braille alphabet. In addition, the text of each description is written in the Latin script, in Croatian and English, as well as in the Glagolitic script.

“The oldest Croatian epigraphic monuments and thousands of pages of the most valuable books and documents written in the Glagolitic script, testify to the longevity and the continuous development of Croatian culture. That is why we thought this exhibition was needed,” said Antonac.

The oldest preserved Glagolitic manuscripts stored at the National and University Library in Zagreb are liturgical books, preserved as a whole or in part. In addition, there are also transcriptions of legal texts that show that the Glagolitic script was deeply rooted in Istria and the Croatian Littoral region.

The Glagolitic script was used for other documents as well: collections of sermons, theological manuals, and collections combining spiritual and secular themes. Moreover, the preserved monuments show that the Glagolitic script was sometimes used by ordinary people as well. Particularly interesting are the intricate, often dramatic records from the margins of Glagolitic texts, which writers used to leave us testimonies about the times and the societies in which they lived.

“The Glagolitic script lives today as a brand and through artifacts in culture, sport, society. To people, it is intriguing and mystical, it attracts them, although they do not know much about it. The last book using the script was printed in 1864, so not that long ago. It is important for the Glagolitic script to become part of our education system. Some schools are already working on that, but everybody should learn it,” concluded Antonac.

To read more about Croatian history, click here.

Translated from Jutarnji List (reported by Zrinka Korljan).

ZAGREB, October 28, 2018 - The "Traditional children's stories for a common future – TRACE" project from the EU Erasmus+ programme, which is dedicated to children's literature and will be implemented over the next two years by partners from Croatia, Greece, Latvia and Spain, was launched at the National and University Library in Zagreb.

Frida Bisćan, coordinator of the 1.3 million kuna project, said that TRACE was intended primarily for children aged 6-12 as well as for their teachers, librarians, parents and anyone involved in work with children. "The partner-countries will each choose which stories we will translate into the languages of the participating countries and into English, the official project language," said Bisćan.

The project will also include workshops to acquaint project participants with creative and innovative methods of encouraging children to read, think critically and research European culture on their own, through familiar literature – traditional children's stories that are a valuable part of the European cultural heritage.

Bisćan said that the project was designed to encourage children not only to read but develop and cherish their own language and culture. "By reading, we cherish and enrich our own expression, by reading stories and learning about stories from other countries we get to know the history and culture of the countries that surround us and with which we live in unity in the EU," she said. "The project aims to... teach children about the importance of coexistence and tolerance, while developing their digital competences," said Bisćan.

The project "Traditional children's stories for a common future – TRACE" is being implemented from 1 September 2018 to 31 August 2020.

Participants in the project, which is coordinated by the National and University Library in Zagreb, are the "Mala Filozofija" association promoting informal education, critical thinking and practical philosophy from Zadar, Croatia, the "Josip Pupačić" primary school from Omiš, Croatia, the University of Peloponnese, Department of social & training policy from Corinth, Greece, Biedriba Radosas Idejas from Riga, Latvia, and Fundacion Euroarabe de Altos Estudios from Granada, Spain.

This is just one of several recent projects aimed at children.

ZAGREB, October 14, 2018 - Freedom is the theme of the 24th Istria Book Fair, to be held in Pula from November 29 to December 9. The event will be opened by Wole Soyinka, the first African winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature and fighter for a free society, organisers have announced.

ZAGREB, October 12, 2018 - The traditional Croatian Book Month will this year focus on the theme "Heritage in Fact", presenting heritage as the basis of national and cultural identity, and it will involve about 2,000 programmes and more than 200 libraries around the country.

ZAGREB, September 13, 2018 - A book entitled "A Diary from the Croatian Diaspora", which is about the life of Vanda Boras Podravac, who has lived in emigration for the past 64 years, was presented on Thursday at the Croatian Heritage Foundation (CHF).

ZAGREB, September 8, 2018 - The 6th edition of the World Literature Festival, which opened in Zagreb on September 2, on Friday hosted popular Portuguese author Jose Luis Peixot.

ZAGREB, September 3, 2018 - The Sixth World Literature Festival was opened in Zagreb on Sunday with traditional messages about the role and place of literature and literary events in the cultural life of the capital as productive platforms for encounters between authors and readers.

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ZAGREB, July 30, 2018 - The Sixth World Literature Festival will take place in Zagreb and Split on September 2-8, bringing together about 100 authors from 17 countries.

ZAGREB, May 6, 2018 - The impact of modern technologies on social, political, economic, private and identity issues and on art itself will be the central theme of the 4th Zagreb Book Festival which will take place in the Museum of Arts and Crafts on May 21-27.