Armenia, National Academy of Sciences of, Pan-Armenian Digital Library

Overview

The Pan-Armenian Digital Library, operating under the acronym ARAR (Armenian Research and Academic Repository), is an open-access digital library hosted on the infrastructure of the National Academy of Sciences of the Republic of Armenia (NAS RA). It provides free online access to scientific publications, books, journals, newspapers, voice recordings, and other digital objects produced in Armenia and by Armenian institutions worldwide.

History and Founding

The Pan-Armenian Digital Library was launched in 2019. Its development was led by the Fundamental Scientific Library (FSL) of the National Academy of Sciences, in collaboration with ASNET-AM (the Armenian Research and Educational Network) and the Institute for Informatics and Automation Problems (IIAP) of NAS. The project was supported by the European Union's Eastern Partnership project "Enlighten Your Research" (EYR), which provided dLibra software training and technical support from the Poznań Supercomputing and Networking Center (PSNC) in Poland. The institutional roots of the Fundamental Scientific Library date to 1943, when the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia was established.

Collections and Holdings

As of 2024, the Pan-Armenian Digital Library contains over 252,000 digital objects. Collections include scientific journals and institute publications from NAS RA, books and journals from the Mekhitarist Congregation's library in Vienna, materials from Armenian regional museums, historical newspapers, audio recordings, and publications from multiple NAS institutes including the Institute of Literature, the Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography, and the Institute of Oriental Studies. The library also holds the periodical from the History Museum of Armenia and journals on Armenian studies, mathematics, physics, and astrophysics.

Access and Usage

ARAR is freely accessible online at arar.sci.am. The platform uses the dLibra digital library system developed by PSNC. Content is available in Armenian, Russian, and English. Usage statistics have grown exponentially: in 2023, the platform recorded over 2.6 million visits. The library is technically maintained by ASNET-AM.