80 years of the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia

The path of the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia to becoming an independent institution

The Central State Archives of Slovenia was established on October 31, 1945, following the decree issued by the Slovenian National Government (Official Gazette of the Slovenian National Liberation Council and the National Government of Slovenia, 1944-1945, 50/1945). Coming into force when published in the Official Gazette on November 7, 1945, the decree among other provisions determined that the Central State Archives of Slovenia in Ljubljana be established for “the entire territory of the federal Slovenia”. The newly founded Archives thus became an independent state institution under direct supervision of the Ministry of Education (Article 1).

“The purpose of the Central State Archives is to collect and preserve all historically and culturally significant archival objects and collections, especially those concerning Slovenian ethnic territory and Slovenian nation. The Archives keeps a complete record of all its archival holdings and collections and it registers and supervises all other Slovenian archival institutions and holdings.” (Article 2)

“The Central State Archives of Slovenia gathers and preserves all non-current historically and scientifically important archival records created by Slovenian state authorities and institutions. All of the components and the entire inventory of the State Archive of the National Museum in Ljubljana are hereby transferred to the Central State Archives of Slovenia. Placed in its custody are also archival collections and holdings owned or administered by the state …” (Article 3)

“Users may access archival holdings of the Central State Archives, if so permitted by archival rules …” (Article 4)

“The head of the Archives and archivists employed must have university education and be well familiar with auxiliary sciences of history and with administrative history, as determined by the rules.” (Article 5)

The new Archives operated for the entire territory of Slovenia, since Slovenian archival network had not been established yet. It “inherited” the holdings of the State Archives, kept in the repositories of the National Museum of Slovenia. It also began to collect records created by pre-war institutions and state offices that had ceased to operate. It supervised the storage, arranging and disposing of records by local people’s committees, courts and business organizations. In its effort to save valuable archival records as quickly and as efficiently as possible, the Archives often turned to seek help from some of the highest-ranking government officials, but often to no avail. Swept by the revolutionary social changes, some clerks tended to disregard certain archival material created by the former offices, storing it either in their attics or in damp basements, often even using it as wrapping paper, or just simply taking it to paper mills to be recycled.

Shortage of suitable work and storage space was a major problem at first, especially before 1953, when the newly created state archives still operated under the roof of the National Museum of Slovenia. They had at their disposal only one office measuring 26 m² for administrative and archival work and three larger storage rooms totalling 217 m². Since this obviously was not enough, some of the archival records had to be stored also in the attic of the National and University Library in Ljubljana and in the basements of several public and privately owned buildings in Ljubljana. The first years of this new archival institution were truly challenging. Despite all the obstacles, users were allowed access to archival documents from as early as May 1946. In 1954, a special in-house library was set up at the Archives as well.

At the end of 1953, the Archives was given a space of 683 m² on the first floor of Gruber Palace and in Virant’s House in Levstik Square. In 1965, it was finally given permission to occupy and manage the entire building complex between Levstik Square and Zvezdarska and Rožna Street. The newly allocated premises were spacious enough to store almost all our archival holdings. The Archives remained headquartered at Gruber Palace on Zvezdarska Street 1 up until October 2024.

Due to administrative and political changes in Slovenia, the Central State Archives often changed its name; in 1953, it became the State Archives of the People’s Republic of Slovenia, in 1963 the State Archives of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia, in 1966 the Archives of Slovenia, and in 1975, the Archives of the Socialist Republic of Slovenia. Since June 1990, its official name has been the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia.

80 years of dedication to preserving archival heritage

In 2025, the Archives of the Republic of Slovenia celebrates the 80^th anniversary of its founding. Its mission has always been to carry out professional and administrative tasks, as well as tasks related to protection and preservation of archival records in the Republic of Slovenia. As the central and the largest archival institution in Slovenia, its responsibilities include acquiring, protecting, processing and ensuring the use of the national archival cultural heritage. Archival records hold permanent importance for history, other sciences, and culture, as well as for the legal interest of both legal and natural persons. Due to their priceless value, they are regarded as cultural monuments.

As the national archive, the Archives preserves public archival records created by state authorities, holders of public authority and/or providers of public services financed or provided by the state, the Bank of Slovenia, state and public funds, agencies, and other legal persons that have been established by the state and whose activities, as a rule, cover the entire national territory. It is also responsible for the preservation of private archival records and film archival material and maintains a summary register of public archival records in the country, a register of archival records in neighbouring countries and abroad that relate to Slovenia and Slovenians, and a register of public symbols, coats-of-arms, flags, seals, and rubber and other stamps at the state level.

The Archives of the Republic of Slovenia also carries out a range of key tasks in the field of protection of documents and archival records in digital form, both at the level of records creators and within the framework of the Slovenian public archival service. As the main custodian of the Slovenian electronic archive (e-ARH.si) the Archives ensures its maintenance and further development of various solutions, enabling users to have long-term accessibility, usability, integrity and authenticity of Slovenian archival cultural heritage in digital form.

The anniversary coincides with the acquisition of new, modern premises. At the end of last year, the Archives moved to Poljanska Street 40, and now occupies a completely renovated and partially expanded former military barracks, which has become a fitting new home for the national archive. The anniversary will be marked by a series of promotional projects and events aimed at presenting the Archives to both professional community and the broader public. A rich programme is planned, including anniversary-themed lectures, an exhibition commemorating the 120^th anniversary of the Slovenian film, the compilation of a medium-term development strategy for the Archives for the period 2026-2035, a commemorative exhibition and publication celebrating the 80 years of archival work, archival conference, promotion material, and much more. The highlight of the celebration is going to be a ceremonial academy on Thursday, November 6, 2025.

This milestone anniversary will also be an occasion to present the history and the diverse activities of the Archives, which today consists of eight organisational units (sectors), employs 67 experts (three of these are fixed-term project-based positions), and is responsible for preserving approximately 30,000 running metres of archival heritage, organized into 1993 archival fonds and collections (as of December 31, 2024).