Lithuanian library system displays Soviet-era publication notes, raising questions

The Lithuanian Integrated Library Information System (LIBIS) continues to show Soviet-era publication details for some current periodicals, prompting debate over whether historical records should be updated, LRT.lt reports.

A Kaunas resident noticed that active publications like the cultural journal Literatūra ir menas (Literature and Art) are still described in the system as products of Soviet institutions—such as the “weekly newspaper of the LSSR [Lithuanian Soviet Socialist Republic] Soviet Writers’ Union and the Arts Administration”—despite being current 2025–2026 issues.

The reader questioned why, 36 years after Lithuania restored independence, the system retains references to the occupation period. They argued that the national bibliographic system should reflect today’s context, comparing the practice to a basketball club like Žalgiris using Soviet-era branding from its 1944 founding.

The Martynas Mažvydas National Library of Lithuania confirmed that bibliographic records follow international cataloguing rules, which require preserving all historical publication data. Viktorija Pukėnaitė-Pigagienė, a library representative, explained that while publisher changes are added as updates, original details—such as the 1965 listing of the LSSR Ministry of Culture as the publisher of Kultūros barai—remain intact to document a publication’s full history.

“Historical names or formulations are neither altered nor ‘corrected’ later,” she said. “The bibliographic description captures the entire history of a publication from its inception.”

Pukėnaitė-Pigagienė acknowledged the reader’s concerns and noted that the library is exploring ways to present historical and current data more clearly during system modernisation. Specialists are evaluating how to display detailed LIBIS data on the ibiblioteka.lt portal to improve user understanding without compromising cases where such information is essential.