On the writer's birthday, NUK, in collaboration with the University of Nova Gorica, launches a new project to transcribe the manuscripts of Zofka Kveder.
The National and University Library, on Wednesday, 22nd April 2026 — the anniversary of the birth of writer Zofka Kveder in 1878 — officially launched a project to transcribe the manuscripts of her letters. Through this project, NUK joins activities that will strengthen the memory of her rich literary, translation, and editorial work. The transcription of approximately 80 manuscript letters by Zofka Kveder will encourage greater familiarity with the life and work of this important Slovenian writer, and will build on the excellent inter-institutional collaboration between NUK and the University of Nova Gorica. All volunteers are once again invited to participate, as a shared commitment to preserving cultural heritage is a fundamental guiding principle of the project.
At the presentation of the project and the manuscript legacy of Zofka Kveder on Wednesday, 22nd April 2026, in the reading room of the Manuscript Collection, the participants included: Zoran Krstulovič, M.A., Assistant Director of the National and University Library; Dr. Boštjan Golob, Rector of the University of Nova Gorica; Ajda Zavrtanik Drglin, project leader of From Manuscript to Word project at the National and University Library; Dr. Katja Mihurko, head of the Research Centre for the Humanities at the University of Nova Gorica and researcher of the writer's life and work; Simona Semenič, playwright and performer, who at the event interpreted a passage from Zofka Kveder's novel Hanka; and Marijan Rupert, M.A., head of the Manuscript Collection and the National Literary Archive, who together with Dr. Katja Mihurko presented Zofka Kveder's manuscript legacy.
Zofka Kveder (1878–1926) was a writer and playwright, translator, cultural mediator, journalist, critic, and editor, who as the first professional Slovenian female writer was included in the Collected Works of Slovenian Poets and Writers. An author with a remarkably rich creative output, she was an advocate for women's equality and introduced into the Slovenian literary landscape female characters and representations of femininity that had not existed there before. On the centenary of her death, the Government of the Republic of Slovenia — at the initiative of Dr. Katja Mihurko and Simona Semenič from the City of Women association — declared 2026 the Year of Zofka Kveder. The National and University Library holds many of her works in several languages; her manuscript legacy is also particularly rich, and within it — her letters.
Dr. Katja Mihurko (UNG): "Zofka Kveder wrote, 'I love letters like something living' — a statement through which she gave this form of expressing thoughts and emotions, shared with chosen others, an important place in her creative work. And indeed, the letters are a truly special part of her opus, as we can see from all those that have been preserved."
The National and University Library in Ljubljana holds the largest collection of her letters, written in Slovenian, Croatian, German, and Czech. Nearly 300 of her letters have already been transcribed and published on the Pisma website (www.pisma.org, managed by the Research Centre for the Humanities at the University of Nova Gorica, and have recently also become accessible through the Digital Library of Slovenia. These letters will be joined, within the framework of the collaboration between the University of Nova Gorica and the National and University Library, by the remaining Slovenian letters held at NUK within the estates of Zofka Kveder, her correspondents, and the dedicated researcher of her work, Erna Muser.
With the transcription project of Zofka Kveder's manuscript letters, the National and University Library continues its series of manuscript archive transcriptions, From Manuscript to Word, which brings the heritage of Slovenian cultural creators closer to researchers, students, and all those who need better access to manuscript materials. Central to the project is its structure, designed within the framework of citizen science: it is based on the involvement of volunteers and is aimed both at the long-term opening of manuscript collections to various audiences and at strengthening awareness of the significance of our past cultural history and establishing shared stewardship over heritage.
Ajda Zavrtanik Drglin (NUK): "Following the exceptional success of the Kosovel manuscript transcription project, NUK wishes to nurture the relationship with the community we have built and to continue work on transcribing the manuscripts of other creators. We are therefore opening applications for volunteers to participate in the transcription project for Zofka Kveder's letters held at NUK. The project will run somewhat differently from From Manuscript to Word, as volunteers will create their transcriptions directly on the eScriptorium platform, which is designed precisely for this kind of work, and will use a handwriting recognition model for Zofka Kveder's script developed by researchers at the University of Nova Gorica."
Volunteers interested in the project to transcribe approximately 80 of Zofka Kveder's letters can find more information on the project website From Manuscript to Word: Zofka Kveder. They can register to participate via an online form. The work will take place through a web application and will not require specialist prior knowledge. NUK will also organise an introductory training session, and volunteers' tasks will this time also include interpreting the contextual and thematic aspects of the letters.
The transcription project for Zofka Kveder's letters rests on a solid foundation of excellent collaboration between the National and University Library and the University of Nova Gorica. At the event, the Rector of the University of Nova Gorica, Dr. Boštjan Golob, and the Assistant Director of NUK, Zoran Krstulovič, M.A., signed an inter-institutional agreement.
Zoran Krstulovič, M.A. (NUK): "This is a strategic partnership, which we are also confirming through the signing of an inter-institutional agreement. Together with the data produced through the digitisation of these letters at the Research Centre for the Humanities of the University of Nova Gorica, the material on the Digital Library of Slovenia portal will be excellently prepared for further research work."
Dr. Boštjan Golob (UNG): "For the University of Nova Gorica, collaboration with the National and University Library represents an important milestone in humanities research, as together we are building a bridge between a rich cultural heritage and the fresh ideas emerging from a creative academic environment. The letters of Zofka Kveder, which will in this way become accessible to both the research community and the wider public, will enable a deeper understanding of the life and creative work of the first professional Slovenian female writer and of the place of women in the modern era more broadly."
The data produced through the digitisation of the letters at the Research Centre for the Humanities of the University of Nova Gorica, within the framework of various research projects funded by ARIS, will substantially enrich the Digital Library of Slovenia, where NUK ensures the long-term and reliable preservation of research data. This data will be publicly accessible and available for further research. In doing so, UNG and NUK have also set an example of best practice in linking research, the modern use of technology, and cultural heritage, thereby paving an effective path for further research in the fields of the Slovenian language, cultural and broader history, and the study of society.
Text and photos: NUK
