Summary
This paper provides an overview of historical development of the Yugoslav Library Association, the most important organization for promoting librarianship in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. Its first part describes the library legislation prior to constitution of the Yugoslav Library Association. Most of these legal acts were parts of some other laws dealing with areas close to librarianship. The second part is focused on the work of the Association and its structure. The management of the Association was divided into the central and local bodies. The central management consisted of the Congress, Main Management and Supervisory Board, while the local consisted of the Section Members Assembly, Section Management and boards established in the parts of the Kingdom where, for different reasons, it was not possible to establish specific sections. The third part describes the main achievements of the Yugoslav Library Association. During the First (1931) and the Second Congress (1938), the main course of librarianship in Yugoslavia and library cooperation on national and international level have been established. At both conferences participants were discussing the Law on Public Libraries, which was very important because if it had been promulgated it would have been the first to be created by a professional institution. Unfortunately, this law had not been adopted before the Second World War. Education of librarians was another important activity of the Yugoslav Library Association, due to the fact that schools which would educate such specialists did not exist in the Kingdom of Yugoslavia. The fourth part of the paper deals with the Association until the beginning of the Second World War in April 1941, and its termination according to the agreement made at the time of its founding. The paper also describes some aspects of professional development. Professionals who were helping the progress of librarianship in Yugoslavia through their work in the Yugoslav Library Association, have also contributed to the continuous development of librarianship in our region in the period after the Second World War.

Keywords:
Yugoslav Library Association, history, significance, Serbia, librarianship, 1918−1941, Yugoslav Library Association Rules, library education, international cooperation

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