Cărţi în limba franceză studiate la sala de lectură a Bibliotecii Teleki în prima jumătate a secolului al XIX-lea
Books in French studied in the reading room of Teleki Library in the first half of the nineteenth century

Teleki Library

Summary/Abstract: At the beginning of the 19th century, the creation of Teleki Library (1802) represents a significant moment of cultural evolution. The founder, count Samuel Teleki, understood the importance of informations, the need of culture and education. He succeded in creating an encyclopaedic library for the scholars from Tärgu Mures.There were 6.655 copies of books written in french language at Teleki Library, that confirms the count's passion for french culture and also that the french language was spoken by some of the local scholars. According to official statistics, 120 readers were asking for books written in french. After 1840, statistics do not mention the names, but the titles of the books requested.The most appreciated and requested authors were: Rousseau, Racine, Voltaire, Machiavelli etc. Readers are especially interested in law and history. They do not seem to appreciate geography and almost refuse to read religious books.Statistics confirm the presence in the reading hall of some of the well-known local personalities, such as: Teleki Ferenc, the count's son who is interested in architecture: count Bey Károly, ex-officer in austrian army, interested in literature, law and natural sciences; Timotei Cipariu, who's presence is confirmated during the summer of 1828. Women are also allowed to read: Bánfy Erzsébet, Teleki's daughter-in-law, Rose Buisson from Paris.After 1840 the frequency of readers is diminuated because of the lack of novelities.Inspite of the numerous copies and various subjects, only 12% of the french books from Teleki Library were requested.

• Details
• Contents