Archives
Activity of archives is regulated in Lithuania by the Law on Documents and Archives (1995, last edition 2024). The policy of archives is shaped and implemented by the Ministry of Culture, the Office of the Chief Archivist, and the Council of Archives. The Law On Documents And Archives (1995) define the functions of the Ministry of Culture as follow: “the Ministry of Culture shall: 1) shape a national policy in the field of management and use of documents and archives; 2) shape a film heritage protection policy and coordinate the creation of a state film chronicle according to target appropriations of the state budget as well as to the description of the procedure for creation of a chronicle, set by the Minister of Culture; 3) participate in the shaping and implementation of national policy in the field of management and use of European Union documents and archives; 4) coordinate preparation and implementation of strategic planning documents in the field of management and use of documents and archives; 5) upon the instructions of the Government implement part of the rights and duties of the owner of the Office of the Chief Archivist of Lithuania and of the state archives; 6) fulfil other functions related to state administration of documents and archives as set out by legal acts”.
The Office of the Chief Archivist of Lithuania is a government agency which participates in the shaping of national policy in the field of management and use of documents and archives, implements this policy and supports the Chief Archivist of Lithuania in carrying out the state administration of the field of documents and archives. The Council on Archives is an expert institution advising on the issues related to the implementation of the Law on Documents and Archives and assigned to the competence of the Minister of Culture. The archives system in Lithuania is funded from the state budget through the Ministry of Culture. The Lithuanian Council for Culture also has a funding programme for memory institutions, where the archives can participate in a project contest.
The Lithuanian state archives system consists of the Office of the Chief Archivist of Lithuania and 9 state archives. The state archives are divided into two groups: central archives and regional archives. There are 5 central archives: the Lithuanian State Historical Archives, Lithuanian Central State Archives, Lithuanian State Modern Archives, Lithuanian Special Archives, and the Lithuanian Archives of Literature and Art.
The Lithuanian State Historical Archives is the main repository of records for Lithuanian history from the 13th century up to the declaration of the Independence of Lithuania in 1918 (civil registry and vital records up to the present day). The records of state institutions, religious communities, popular organisations and families that are maintained in these archives also reflect the history of Russia, Belarus, Poland, Ukraine, Latvia and other countries. The Lithuanian Central State Archives preserves records of state, local government, enterprises, religious communities, popular organisations, other non-state institutions and individuals, dating from 1918 until 1990. The division of Sound and Image is the main repository of audiovisual heritage in Lithuania. It preserves moving pictures since 1919, photo negatives and positives since the 1850s, sound recordings since the 1950s, and videotapes since 1988 until the present day. The New Archive of the Lithuanian State exercises control over records management in major state institutions (the Parliament, Office of the President of the Republic of Lithuania, Chancellery of the Government, ministries and departments, etc.) It also accumulates and preserves documents of state institutions, popular organisations and individuals, dating from 1990; provides institutions with consultations on the organisation of records management, administration and preservation of documents. The Lithuanian Special Archives preserves records of the former Lithuanian SSR division of KGB, USSR, dating 1940-1991, records of the Lithuanian SSR Ministry of Interior dating 1944-1990 and records of communist and socialist organisations, dating from the 19th c. until 1991, that witnessed the genocide of the Lithuanian people. The Lithuanian Archives of Literature and Art preserves and accumulates records belonging to state institutions, popular organisations and private persons, reflecting the development of culture and art in Lithuania. Most records are from the 20th century. Several documents in the fonds of private persons are dated from the 15th century.
The 4 regional archives preserve documents of the regional municipal, state and non-state institutions, and individuals of the corresponding region.
Table 10: State Archives Activity Indicators for 2024
|
Indicator |
Value |
|
Number of state archives |
9 |
|
Number of employees in the archives |
418 |
|
Quantity of written (paper) documents (in linear metres) |
119 800 |
|
Number of film documents in archives (in thousands) |
10.7 |
|
Number of photo documents in archives (in thousands) |
483.7 |
|
Number of audio documents in archives (in thousands) |
28.9 |
|
Number of video documents in archives (in thousands) |
8.8 |
Source: Official Statistics Portal
Table 11: The number of written requests in archives in 2014–2024
|
Number Year |
2014 |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Number of written requests in archives (in thousands) |
31.1 |
29.5 |
30.1 |
25.9 |
31.3 |
32.5 |
30.9 |
30.3 |
31.4 |
32.5 |
32.1 |
Source: Official Statistics Portal
Libraries
The Lithuanian system of libraries is regulated by the Law on Libraries (1995). According to the law, the libraries operating in Lithuania are divided into county public libraries, municipality public libraries, libraries of academic and educational institutions, school libraries, special libraries, and other libraries established by private enterprises, non-governmental organisations and natural persons. There is also 1 National Library which accumulates and stores the national archival fund of published documents, prepares and publishes the Lithuanian state current and national retrospective bibliography, bibliographic indexes of various fields of science, compile summary catalogs and databases, perform international standard numbering of documents published in Lithuania (ISBN, ISSN, ISMN), collects libraries statistics etc.
In 2024, the Lithuanian network of public libraries consisted of 2 136 libraries.
Table 12: Number of libraries by type in 2024
|
Types of libraries
|
Number of libraries |
|
National library – Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania |
1 |
|
Special library – The Lithuanian Library for the Blind |
1 |
|
County public libraries |
5 |
|
Municipal public libraries |
1 165 |
|
Special libraries |
14 |
|
Museum libraries |
16 |
|
Libraries educational and science institutions |
934 |
|
Total |
2 136 |
Source: : Official Statistics Portal
The National Library is financed directly from the state budget, i.e., budget appropriations for the library are indicated in the state budget on a separate line, and the library is the appropriations manager. County public libraries are financed from the state budget through the Ministry of Culture, and municipal libraries are financed from municipal budgets. Libraries of special literature and higher education institutions get funding from the budget of the library’s owner (high school, science institute, etc). As it is stated in the Lithuanian Cultural Policy Strategy 2030, the network of libraries is the densest network of Lithuanian cultural institutions and the services of libraries are very popular in small towns and villages, where other cultural services are less accessible. However, according to the data of Statistics Lithuania, the number of libraries has been gradually decreasing over the last 10 years. It was only in 2024 that it increased slightly, with 14 new libraries opened in higher education institutions and schools.
Table 13: The number of libraries in Lithuania in 2015–2024
|
Year Number |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Number of Libraries |
2 549 |
2 505 |
2 453 |
2 402 |
2 365 |
2 304 |
2214 |
2152 |
2122 |
2136 |
Source: Official Statistics Portal
The services offered by Lithuanian libraries to the general public may be divided into three groups: 1) traditional services of which the main goal is to preserver written heritage and to promote reading, to create conditions for self-education and self-creation of the society, and to develop creativity and imagination; 2) electronic library services which encompass the digitisation of cultural heritage, the creation of digital local information databases (organisation by involving the interested communities), the development of information competencies of residents, and other library services rendered by electronic means; 3) public area (community centre) services which encourage residents to communicate, participate in civil and educational events, initiate projects, and independently form opinions. Despite the variety of services provided, the number of registered users of libraries had been steadily declining until 2022; however, an increase in users was observed in 2023 and 2024.
Table 14: Number of registered users of libraries in Lithuania in 2014–2020 (in thousands)
|
Year Number |
2015 |
2016 |
2017 |
2018 |
2019 |
2020 |
2021 |
2022 |
2023 |
2024 |
|
Number of registered users of libraries |
1 249 |
1 213 |
1 206 |
1 162 |
1 133 |
1 038 |
967 |
946 |
990 |
1039 |
Source: Official Statistics Portal
The policy of libraries in Lithuania is shaped and implemented by the Ministry of Culture, the Council of Libraries and the Lithuanian Council for Culture. The Ministry of Culture defines the objectives for the development of libraries founded by the state or municipalities and carries out the administration of the provision of public services by libraries, etc. The Minister of Culture is consulted by the Council of Libraries, which takes part as an expert and consulting institution in resolving matters of library policy formation and implementation. The Lithuanian Council for Culture finances projects submitted by libraries on a competitive basis.
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