The Library Catalogue of the Vyborg Gymnasium from 1805 to 1860 as a Source of Educational and Book History

Authors

• Heidi Hakkarainen Turun yliopisto

DOI: https://doi.org/10.33350/ka.142564

Keywords:

Gymnasium, Vyborg, library, Old Finland, history of education, book history

Abstract

The Gymnasium in Vyborg, founded in 1805, was a significant educational institution in the region of Old Finland, but the information surviving from its library has long been fragmentary. This article discusses the library catalogue of the Vyborg Gymnasium as a historical source that provides new information on the history of education and books in early-nineteenth-century Finland. The library catalogue included 8,500 titles from 1805 to 1860. The empirical research approach is based on close reading and a critical contextualisation of the catalogue as a historical source. This article highlights the importance of the library as a collector of both international educational literature and early Finnish-language literature. The library's catalogue sheds light on Vyborg’s connections to other educational centres in early-nineteenth-century Finland, especially to the Academy of Turku. I argue that the library’s collection did not only serve upper secondary education but also grew into a larger independent book collection that provides new information about various cultural, literary and ideological influences in Vyborg.