Artigenda
Dutch Day of the Little Library
Wanneer: jaarlijks, 1 juni.
Even in The Netherlands, De Dag van de Mininbieb (Dutch Day of the Little Library) isn’t that well known. This day pays tribute to little libraries or public bookcases across the country and it’s an annual day since 2003.
The little libraries
These sweet little bookcases are most certainly not something that is typical Dutch because this is a global phenomenon. In Dutch, this is called minibibliotheek or minibieb. The word mini is clear enough, right? The word bieb is an abbreviation of the word bibliotheek and that’s the Dutch word for (the) library.
Now that we’ve established that it’s a little library, let’s take a moment to dive into the synonyms. Other ways to describe this phenomenon are public bookcase, book swap, sidewalk library, urban library, street library or free library. It doesn’t matter what name you use. Also, forget what rules apply at one location. They might not apply to the other location. For example: at one location you can borrow the books, while at the other location, you’re allowed to keep them. Even then, different rules might apply to this ownership. In some situations you have to add something when you take something. There is, however, always one golden rule. You’re not allowed to sell the books.
Isn’t this a clever way of recycling? Without even having to pay for the books or a membership. There’s always a chance you’ll meet someone and strike up a conversation. That’s not all, because you can make others happy with the books you no longer need.
Food cupboards
The concept has similarities with food cupboards. Only there, on the contrary, the products are not meant to be put back later. In that case, it is necessary to use products. The only difference is that these products are meant for everyone who is in dire need.
The idea need not stop at just swapping a book. Think of other things besides food. How about toys? Clothing? As long as you support each other as a neighbourhood, village or maybe even part of a city. Remember that these kinds of initiatives are not only tied to certain geographical locations. You also come across these initiatives in cities. Quite often, in fact. Logical, because according to the administrators, it’s also quite fun!
Finding the right locations
There are so many websites that offer services to find these libraries. Since Artigenda focuses on The Netherlands, let’s take a moment to find out where you can find information about these Dutch Minibiebs. There are two websites available with a search function. Unfortunately, they’re not complete when it comes to the total amount of Minibiebs in the country.
The question is whether you need these two websites because the information is not as comprehensive as the information collected by Jacques Zuiderwijk of Leidschendam, South Holland. The information he collects first appears in the Facebook group All Minibiebs & Children’s Book Stations Netherlands on 12 provincial maps! It doesn’t end there, which is why Zuiderwijk is a lot more detailed than the two aforementioned websites. For his overviews via Google Maps, the Leidschendam resident even received an award from the international organisation Little Free Library. This organisation, in turn, has no detailed data available on Dutch minibiebs. Jacques Zuiderwijk does have them, not only through the Facebook group. Via Google Maps, he has them available by province.
More information
The links below point to the untranslated, Dutch-language websites.
The links below have been automatically translated.
