A Multimodal Crowdsourcing Framework for Transcribing Historical Handwritten Documents

Author(s):  
Emilio Granell ◽  
Carlos-D. Martínez-Hinarejos
Author(s):  
Serhii I. Degtyarev ◽  
Violetta S. Molchanova

This work is devoted to the publication and analysis of two previously unknown handwritten documents of 1734. These documents contain information on several persons of Swedish nationality, which were illegally taken out by the Russian nobleman I. Popov during the Northern War from the territory of Sweden. Materials are stored in the State Archives of the Sumy region. They are part of the archival case of Okhtyrka District Court, but they are not thematically connected with it. These documents were once part of a much larger complex of materials. They refer to the request of former Swedish nationals to release them from serfdom from the Belgorod and Kursk landlords Popov and Dolgintsev. The further fate of these people remained unknown. But it is known that they were mistreated by their masters. Russian legislation at the time prohibited such treatment of persons of Swedish nationality. This was discussed in terms of the peace agreement Nishtadskoyi 1721. The two documents revealed illustrate the episodes of the lives of several foreigners who were captured. The analyzed materials give an opportunity to look at a historical phenomenon like a serfdom in the territory of the Russian Empire under a new angle. They allow us to study one of the ways to replenish the serfs. Documents can also be used as a source for the study of some aspects of social history, in biographical studies. The authors noted that the conversion to the property of the enslaved people of other nationalities was a very common practice in the XVII-XIX centuries. This source of replenishment of the dependent population groups were popular in many nations in Europe, Asia and Africa since ancient times. For example, in the Crimean Khanate, Turkey, Italy, Egypt, the nations of the Caucasus and many others. Кeywords: Sweden, Russian Empire, historical source, documents, Russo-Swedish War, Nistadt Treaty, Viborg, Swedish citizens, enslavement, serfdom.


2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (1) ◽  
pp. 51-55
Author(s):  
Dawn Behrend

Poverty, Philanthropy and Social Conditions in Victorian Britain published by Adam Matthew Digital is comprised of primary digital materials culled from three major archives in Britain and the UK focused on the experience of poverty in Victorian Britain and efforts involving economic, government, and social reform such as the Poor Law, workhouses, settlement houses, and philanthropic initiatives. Content is derived from the National Archives at Kew, British Library, and Senate House Library and includes pamphlets, correspondence, newspaper clippings, books, and other resources. A small portion of the collection utilizes Adam Matthew Digital’s Handwritten Text Recognition (HTR) to enable keyword searching of handwritten documents. The digitized images and documents are clear, searchable, and user-friendly to access, save, and share. Contract provisions are standard to the product with authenticated access across institutional locations and guidelines for Interlibrary Loan sharing. Pricing is determined by institutional size and enrollment. While the product is a one-time purchase, annual hosting fees apply for ongoing access. Content is currently heavily derived from one archive, the Senate House Library, with pamphlets from this source making up nearly half of the total holdings. Users seeking access to a more extensive collection of similar material may prefer subscribing to JSTOR which includes JSTOR 19th Century British Pamphlets with over 26,000 pamphlets along with secondary scholarly journals and eBooks on the Victorian era. While not providing the primary sources of Poverty, Philanthropy and Social Conditions in Victorian Britain or JSTOR, Historical Abstracts may be an alternative resource in providing access to notable scholarly resources on the period.


Author(s):  
Patrick McLaughlin ◽  
Christian Hopkins ◽  
Eliot Springer ◽  
Mechthild Prinz

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 232-248
Author(s):  
E. N. Fursova

The article is devoted to the study of the linguistic tradition of the Berbers, who are the indigenous people of North Africa. The Berbers have maintained a rich tradition of spoken language. At the turn of the 20th ‑21st centuries, against the backdrop of the intensification of the movement for self‑determination, their cultural and linguistic rights, the Berbers launched a large‑scale activity aimed at restoring the national written language. The author suggested that the need to develop standardized writing was partly due to the desire of the Berbers to consolidate the official status of their language in the Constitution. The author notes that the aggravation of the so‑called “Berber question” at the end of the 20th century spurred the interest of scientists and researchers in the Berber written heritage. Most of the surviving handwritten documents make Berber texts (mostly religious), recorded using the Arabic alphabet between the 15th and early 20th centuries. The study of conditions for their creation and fields of their application shows that these texts played a significant role in the dissemination of religious and scientific knowledge among the Berbers. It is concluded that despite the use of the predominantly oral form of the language, the Berbers managed to create a unique written tradition. The article discusses in detail the main problems of the study of Berber manuscripts, among which: the requirement from the researcher of serious pre‑knowledge in various fields; the problem of accessibility of texts stored in private collections; the need to develop unified approaches to the description of Berber manuscripts, their digitization and other important arrangements to ensure the availability of documents for the scientific‑research community. Particular attention is paid to the history of the creation of the first collections of Berber manuscripts and their cataloging. The author has also highlighted the work of scientists, who made a qualitative contribution to the study of the Berber manuscripts, most of which have not yet been discovered and carry significant potential aimed at pre‑ serving and enhancing the Berber cultural and historical heritage.


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