Who's behind the news?
Who's behind the news?
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Newsjunkie.net is a resource guide for journalists. We show who's behind the news, and provide tools to help navigate the modern business of information.
Use of Data
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The National Library of Aruba (Papiamento: Biblioteca Nacional Aruba, BNA) was founded on 20 August 1949 as the island's public library and reading room. Following Aruba's achievement of status aparte (separate status within the Kingdom of the Netherlands) in 1986, the institution was officially elevated to the status of national library, becoming the primary library of Aruba and serving simultaneously as both public and national library. The BNA is a member of the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA).
The BNA holds a general collection of over 100,000 volumes in six languages — Dutch, Papiamento, English, Spanish, German, and French — serving all age groups including an extensive children's section. A separate building at Bachstraat 5 in Oranjestad houses the Arubiana-Caribiana special collection, which focuses on materials relating to Aruba and the broader Caribbean. The library's digital collections now exceed 70,000 items, including books, newspapers, magazines, journals, photographs, and maps, with materials dating from 1577 to the present.
The BNA has been engaged in a major digital heritage project, Coleccion Aruba (launched 2022), in partnership with the National Archives of Aruba (ANA) and the cultural foundation UNOCA. This initiative digitises fragile materials and makes them available through a single open-access portal at coleccion.aw, and received the OCLC ACURIL Award for Innovative Cooperation Initiatives in the Caribbean. The BNA also has a branch in San Nicolas.
The digital collection includes historical newspapers, magazines, and journals from Aruba and the wider Caribbean region, as well as materials relating to the island's colonial history as far back as the sixteenth century. The Arubiana-Caribiana collection is a resource of particular significance for journalism and media history researchers focused on the Dutch Caribbean.
The main branch in Oranjestad is open Monday, Wednesday, and Friday from 8 am to 7 pm, and Tuesday and Thursday from 8 am to 5 pm. Free internet access is provided at both the Oranjestad and San Nicolas branches; Wi-Fi is available at the Oranjestad location. The online digital collections at coleccion.aw are freely accessible worldwide.