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Knjižnica 49(2005)3, 7-37 8 Review article UDC 908:027:339.138 Abstract Public libraries have traditionally carried out the local history activities with the main emphasis on the collection and preservation of local studies material in order to meet the educational and research needs, whereas the significance of the local studies material for the everyday needs of different groups of citizens has not been empha- sized so much. More than a decade ago, the document adopted by the National Coun- cil for Librarianship should have encouraged the librarians to modernize their work based on the market policy and to develop local studies collections in all libraries. By an analysis of the selected published articles and the collected data, the author states that librarians strived to improve the situation at all times but they have not achieved the goals. They will continue to follow this objective, but due to the new Act of Librar- ianship, now they can expect more help from the state and from the regional libraries, and also from the new technology. In author’s opinion, the help itself will not be suf- ficient if the market power of the local history material is not used, and if this material will not be brought closer to different target groups and individuals. Appropriate services should be provided inside and outside of their environment, and thus the diversity of the purposes of local studies material will be realized. A detailed defini- tion of the benefits of the use of local studies material proposed by the author, pro- vides a useful starting-point to encourage the use of local studies material and servic- es, which can strengthen the satisfaction among the citizens and the reputation of the library in its environment. Key words : local studies collections, marketing, public libraries, users, minorities, events, library history 1 Uvod Vroča tema na knjižničarskem področju so že dalj časa dejavnosti, s katerimi knjižnice potrjujejo svojo dragoceno vlogo v družbi. Pri pregledovanju strokov- ne literature, tem kot so informacijska pismenost, vseživljenjsko učenje, infor- macijske referenčne storitve in domoznanska dejavnost, ne bomo mogli prezreti. Medtem ko prve tri storitve izstopajo po medsebojni soodvisnosti, po hitrem odzivanju na potrebe okolja in po dopolnjevanju storitev drugih organizacij in služb, pa izstopa domoznanska dejavnost s hrambo knjižničnega gradiva in pou- darja vlogo knjižnic, ki ni značilna za druge posrednike informacij. Domoznan- ska vsebina nalogo hranjenja knjižničnega gradiva uveljavlja kot sodobno, času prilagojeno, opravičuje pa jo uporaba, ki priča, da je staro gradivo aktualno in pomembno za razvoj in prihodnost vsakega okolja. D omoznansko gradivo pred- stavljajo knjižnice, zlasti nacionalna in splošne knjižnice, predvsem zaradi njegove vse- bine, ki uveljavlja določeno okolje, strokovno področje, posameznika, dejavnost, ne nazad-