Students and staff

BOOKS IN LATVIAN OF THE PRE-SOVIET PERIOD

The seal of Jānis Misins' library "Krahze J. Misiņš's grahmatu deposit" in the collection of poems by Lapas Mārtiņš "Song Series" published in Riga in 1871.
Record and autograph of the writer Matiss Kaudzite in his book "Poems", published in Riga in 1877.
Record of the dedication of the writer Augustus Laivins to the first President Janis Cakste in his book "Juras gaigalina". The stamp printed on the book indicates that the book was in the library of the President.
Record of the dedication of the poet Janis Sudrabkalns in his book "Sparnotā Armada" to the publisher of the book Janis Raps.

BOOKS IN LATVIAN OF THE PRE-SOVIET PERIOD

The Library is rich in a number of collections, and one of them is composed of books in Latvian, issued in the period from 1850s to 1950s. Historically the collection includes books in Latvian old print published before 1917 and books by Latvian publishers from the first period of the independence of Latvia.

The total collection is about 80.000 copies and numerically the largest part is composed of fiction, literary science and linguistics editions, followed by editions on social sciences. The oldest book in this collection is "Septiņi Gavēņu sprediķi par Pestītāja septiņiem pēdējiem vārdiem: latviešiem par labu no vācu valodas pārtulkoti", published by typographer Johann Friedrich Steffenhagen in Jelgava, 1843.

The collection includes several editions of importance to Latvian culture, including the first artistically valuable selection of world poetry classics in Latvian “Dziesmiņas, latviešu valodai pārtulkotas” by Juris Alunāns (Dorpat, 1856). The collection also includes the first book in Latvian in the field of history of literature “Latviešu rakstniecība” written by public figure Bernhards Dīriķis and published by Ernsts Plāte (Riga, 1860) and the first theoretical work of Latvian linguistics and history of the Latvian language "Mūsu valoda un viņas rakstība" by Kaspars Biezbārdis (Riga, 1869).

The collection also holds the first novel in Latvian literature - “Mērnieku laiki”, written by Matīss Kaudzīte and Reinis Kaudzīte, and published by the first professional Latvian book publisher Indriķis Alunāns in Jelgava, 1879. In 1888, while living in Dorpat, Andrejs Pumpurs finished his famous epic poem "Lāčplēsis, latvju tautas varonis: tautas epus", which was published in Riga by Bernhards Dīriķis; this book is also in this collection.

For all that, the base of the collection is made up of books published in the 20th century, i.e., published from the beginning of the century to 1950s. Fiction is represented by editions of Latvian classics Rainis, Aspazija, Jānis Ezeriņš, Vilis Plūdonis, Anna Brigadere, Andrejs Upītis, Jānis Jaunsudrabiņš and Aleksandrs Čaks, as well as translations of works by foreign authors – Henrik Ibsen, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Gotthold Ephraim Lessing, Mikhail Lermontov, Leo Tolstoy and others. The collection also includes works in different fields of science that were published during this period.

The notes and autographs inside these books are of special historical meaning and very often they are criss-crossed and almost erased. The collection holds books with autographs of Matīss Kaudzīte, Jānis Sudrabkalns, Ludvigs Adamovičs, Jānis Rapa, Elza Stērste, Vilis Cedriņš and other notables.

Editions can be ordered via the Union catalog.