International bilateral relations. General bibliographies (RBIBG) A series of bibliographies on the theme of Romania’s bilateral relations
In 2011, within the Department of Information and Documentation Sciences from the Faculty of Letters of the University of Bucharest, the activity of preparing a series of bibliographies on Romania’s bilateral relations was initiated. This initiative is particularly important considering the support that these tools can offer to the researchers interested in the dimension and depth of Romania's relations with other states and peoples, but also taking into account the fact that, at national level, only specific approaches to this problem can be identified.
The following bibliographies have been developed and published: the bibliography on the Romanian-Swiss relations (Berciu-Drăghicescu, 2011), the bibliography on the Romanian-Canadian relations (Berciu-Drăghicescu, 2012) and the bibliography on the Romanian-Czech relations (Madge, 2014).
The international research project concerning the Romanian-Czech Relations (2013-2015)
In the period between 2013 and 2015, the international research project concerning the Romanian-Czech Relations was conducted under the coordination of Assoc. Prof. Ph.D. Octavia-Luciana Madge, as project director, alongside with Assoc. Prof. Ph.D. S.M. Antonescu and Prof. Ph.D. Adina Berciu-Drăghicescu, who have contributed as lead authors.
The project aimed at creating a bibliographic information tool in printed form in the field of Romania’s bilateral relations with the Czech Republic, in order to support the research activity of users coming from various fields of study and activity areas.
Thus, the first part of the bibliography on the Romanian-Czech relations was developed, being dedicated to monographs and contributions to monographic volumes. It was published as a bilingual book in two fascicles. (Madge, 2014)
The initiative of drawing up the bibliography on the Romanian-Czech relations was also based on a special moment in the history of the relations between the two countries: the year 2014 marked the 95th anniversary since the establishment of the Romanian-Czech diplomatic relations, the 20th anniversary since the signing of the Friendship and Collaboration Treaty between Romania and the Czech Republic, and the 80th anniversary since the Czech language has been studied at the University of Bucharest.
The research team working on the project was interdisciplinary and included over 20 Romanian and Czech specialists in information sciences, historians, philologists etc., but also students and M.A. students from the University of Bucharest (Faculty of Letters and Faculty of Foreign Languages and Literatures), the Charles University in Prague, the Romanian Academy Library, the "Carol I" Central University Library in Bucharest, the National Military Archives, the National Military Library and other prestigious institutions.
The results of the project were disseminated by means of:
- the International Workshop entitled Romanian-Czech Relations over Time, Bucharest, the Romanian Diplomatic Institute, May 19, 2015 (On occasion of this scientific event coordinated by the project director, Assoc. Prof. Ph.D. Octavia-Luciana Madge, the bibliography was launched and a series of scientific papers were presented.) It was attended by Romanian and Czech specialists from academic institutions (philologists, historians, specialists in information sciences), diplomatic and cultural institutions, as well as Romanian and Czech Ph.D. candidates.
- the Bilateral Workshop entitled 95 years since the establishment of the Romanian-Czech diplomatic relations, Prague, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, May 25, 2015 (The bibliography was also presented in Prague, during this scientific and diplomatic event organised at the initiative of the Romanian Embassy in Prague, which was attended by Romanian and Czech specialists from diplomatic, academic and cultural fields, who presented scientific papers.)
- Papers presented at scientific events and articles published in scientific journals in 2015 and 2016
The International Research Project concerning the Platform for retrieval of the literature on the Romanian-Czech relations (eDocRoCeh) (2018-2019)
The first idea for this project came in 2015, in the context of completing the first part of the bibliography on the Romanian-Czech relations. The purpose of this project is to create and make available for those who are interested an online, flexible, open access tool for retrieving information on the documentary production regarding the Romanian-Czech relations. This tool has the form of a bibliographic database. In its first stage, the platform covers the literature represented by monographs and contributions to monographic volumes. In its second stage, the platform will also cover the literature represented by articles from periodical publications and electronic documents.
Thus, the platform, representing a new approach in the field, will allow at the time of its completion:
- improved access to the literature on the Romanian-Czech relations;
- less time needed to identify the information sources required in the research activity, by retrieving the information regarding the literature on the Romanian-Czech relations through free, fast and remote access;
- increased visibility of the literature on the topic of Romanian-Czech relations, at international level.
The platform will give all those who are interested in the topic of the Romanian-Czech relations free, fast and remote access to the information on the documentary production in all fields (from science, culture, education, economics, political-diplomatic relations, agreements, treaties, to sports), made available in all forms (from manuscripts and maps to printed documents and online documents). This tool for organising knowledge highlights the complexity and diversity of the relations between the two states and peoples, enabling the access to the literature covering the area of the bilateral relations between Romania and the Czech Republic, and also paving the way for a multitude of new research directions that can be explored in the future.
The project benefits from external financing from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, through the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Bucharest, and is achieved through the collaboration established between specialists from two structures: the University of Bucharest and the Charles University in Prague.
Bibliography
For more details regarding the series of bibliographies on the theme of Romania’s bilateral relations, the project concerning the Romanian-Czech Relations (2013-2015) and the Platform for retrieval of the literature on the Romanian-Czech relations (eDocRoCeh) (2018-2019), the following documents are available for examination:
- BERCIU-DRĂGHICESCU, Adina (Coord.) Relații româno-elvețiene: bibliografie generală. [Romanian-Swiss relations: general bibliography]. București: Editura Universității din București, 2011.
- BERCIU-DRĂGHICESCU, Adina. (Coord.) Relații româno-canadiene: bibliografie generală. [Romanian-Canadian relations: general bibliography]. București: Editura Universității din București, 2012.
- MADGE, Octavia-Luciana. (Coord.) Relaţii româno-cehe: bibliografie generală. Partea 1. Monografii şi contribuţii la volume monografice / Rumunsko-české vztahy: všeobecná bibliografie. Část 1. Monografie a příspěvky v monografických publikacích. [Romanian-Czech relations: general bibliography. Part 1. Monographs and contributions to monographic volumes] Bucureşti: Editura Universităţii din Bucureşti, 2014. Fascicle I. 276 p. ISBN 978-606-16-0538-5, ISBN 978-606-16-0540-8; Fascicle II. 592 pp. ISBN 978-606-16-0538-5, ISBN 978-606-16-0566-8.
- MADGE, Octavia-Luciana. Tools for organising knowledge in the field of bilateral relations: Bibliography of Romanian-Czech Relations. In: Proceedings of the Bilateral Seminar “95th anniversary since the establishment of the Romanian-Czech diplomatic relations”, Prague, Czech Republic, May 25, 2015. http://praga.mae.ro/local-news/1133
- MADGE, Octavia-Luciana. Knowledge Organization: Research Tools concerning the Bilateral Relations of Romania. In: Revista Transilvania, nr. 2/2016, pp. 81-85.
- MADGE, Octavia-Luciana. Dezvoltarea platformei online pentru regăsirea literaturii privind relațiile româno-cehe [Development of the online platform for retrieval of literature on the Romanian-Czech relations]. In: Slove Muscelene: De la Scrisoarea lui Neacșu la Informația Digitală. București: Editura Tehnică, 2018, p.151-155.
Sources of information
Printed sources:
- Bibliografia literaturii române: 1948-1960 [Bibliography of the Romanian Literature: 1948-1960] / sub red. Tudor Vianu. București: Editura Academiei Republicii Populare, 1965. 1123 p.
- Bibliografia românească modernă: 1831-1918: [A-Z]. [Modern Romanian Bibliography: 1831-1918: [A-Z]] Coord. gen și pref. de Gabriel Ștrempel. Vol. 1-4. București: Editura Științifică și Enciclopedică, 1984-1996. XXXI, 911 p.; XXIV, 896 p.; XXIII, 1112 p.; XXI, 873 p.
- DCRT: Dicţionarul cronologic al romanului tradus în România de la origini până la 1989 [DCRT: The chronological dictionary of the Romanian novel translated in Romania from origins to 1989] / Academia Română; Institutul de Lingvistică şi Istorie Literară „Sextil Puşcariu”. Cluj-Napoca [București]: Editura Academiei Române, 2005. 264 p.
Online resources:
Libraries and Archives:
- The Diplomatic Archives of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Bucharest [AMAE]
- Romanian Military Archives [AMR]
- Romanian Academy Library [BAR]
- The Central Library of the Academy of Economic Studies in Bucharest [BCASEB]
- The “Carol I” Central University Library Bucharest [BCUB]
- The Central University Library "Eugen Todoran" Timişoara [BCUT]
- The Central University Library "Lucian Blaga" Cluj-Napoca [BCUC]
- The “Mihai Eminescu” Central University Library Iaşi [BCUI]
- The Bucharest Metropolitan Library [BMB]
- The National Military Library [BMN]
- The National Library of the Czech Republic [BNRC]
- The National Library of Romania [BNR]
- The Central National Historical Archives Service [SANIC]
The members of the research team:
- Project Director: Associate Professor Ph.D. Octavia-Luciana Madge, University of Bucharest
- Associate Professor Ph.D. S. M. Antonescu, University of Bucharest
- Lecturer Ph.D. Libuše Valentová, Charles University in Prague
- Associate Professor Ph.D. Sorin Paliga, University of Bucharest
- Florin-Tiberiu Curăvale, IT specialist
- Jiří Bernkopf, Mgr., Dům zahraniční spolupráce
- Maria Gabriela Stan, 3rd year student, University of Bucharest, major in Information and Documentation Sciences
- Andreea-Iuliana Tudor, 3rd year student, University of Bucharest, major in Information and Documentation Sciences
- Andreea Elena Grama, 3rd year student, University of Bucharest, major in Information and Documentation Sciences
Acknowledgements
The development of this online platform for the retrieval of literature on the Romanian-Czech relations was also possible due to the financial support provided by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Czech Republic, through the Embassy of the Czech Republic in Romania. We would like to express all our gratitude and warm thanks for the openness and support offered by His Excellency, Mr. Vladimír Války, Ambassador of the Czech Republic in Romania, His Excellency, Mr. Roman Prosa, Consul and Cultural Attaché of the Czech Republic in Romania (2015-2018) and His Excellency, Mr. Ivo Teichman, Consul and Cultural Attaché of the Czech Republic in Romania (2018-present).
Contact
Associate Professor Ph.D. Habilitated Octavia-Luciana Madge
University of Bucharest
Faculty of Letters
Department of Communication Sciences
5-7, Edgar Quinet St., 1st District, Bucharest
E-mail: octavialucianamadge@yahoo.com