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On the ninetieth anniversary of Jaroslava Blažková’s birth, the paper reflects on her life, prose, journalism and literature for children and youth. Her work was characterised by an expressive style, irony and an effort to break free of conventions and stereotypes, through which she stood out from previous generations of authors. Her publishing debut – the short-story collection Nylon Moon (Nylonový mesiac, 1961) – expressed signs of feminism and emancipation which were rare at that time. In the 1960s, Jaroslava Blažková became one of the best-known Slovak authors but in the unfavourable social and political situation after 1968, she decided to emigrate to Canada. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2024 it will be 190 years since several of the leading figures of national and cultural life in Slovakia came together to establish the Society of Slovak Language and Literature Lovers (Spolok milovníkov reči a literatúry slovenskej). The paper traces the functioning of the society in the various periods that shaped it in many ways. When Ján Kollár and Martin Hamuljak founded it, the aim was to raise awareness of Slovaks’ native language and promote the activity of the Bernolák group and leaders of the so called “Czechoslovak orientation”. One of the most important outcomes of their work was publishing of the Zora almanac from 1835, although its run ceased in 1840 for financial reasons. The society’s activities began to decline in the 1840s and it was wound up in 1850. The society’s activities made an evident contribution to Slovak literary life and laid important foundations for the following generation around Štúr. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The paper was written to mark the 60th anniversary of a specialised workplace for retrospective bibliography at University Library in Bratislava. Authors reflect on its origins, which reach back to the library’s foundation in 1919, and highlight the contributions of senior workers in different stages of its development. During its existence, the office has not only undergone several name changes but has also had to respond to social and political changes. Retrospective bibliography only gradually emerged as a distinct activity and had a secondary priority until the 1960s. Besides their publishing activity, staff of the Office of Retrospective Bibliography organises lectures and exhibitions with international collaboration and interdisciplinary character. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]