Bibliotecari

Bibliotecari is the plural term used in several languages, including Italian and Romanian, for professionals who manage libraries and information services. They work to acquire, organize, preserve, and provide access to books, manuscripts, multimedia, and digital resources. Bibliotecari assist patrons, answer reference questions, teach information literacy, and support research in academic, public, school, and special libraries.

Typical duties include collection development, cataloging and classification, maintaining catalogs and databases, lending services, and interlibrary loan. In modern libraries, bibliotecari also handle digital resources, system administration, metadata creation, digital preservation, and user education. They may specialize in areas such as archives, rare books, or children's services, or work as digital librarians, data curators, or in information literacy programs.

Education and professional standards: entry often requires a university degree in library and information science (LIS) or a related field, plus practical experience. Professional certification or continuing education is common and encouraged. Professional organizations—such as the International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions (IFLA), and national library associations—provide guidelines, accreditation, and ongoing training.

Work environments: bibliotecari are employed in public libraries, universities and schools, research institutes, archives, museums, and corporate or government libraries. They are increasingly involved in building digital collections, supporting open access, and facilitating access for diverse communities. Privacy, copyright, and information ethics are important considerations.

Impact and trends: librarianship supports literacy, learning, cultural heritage preservation, and equitable access to information. The role evolves with technology, data management, and open data movements, while maintaining core commitments to service, access, and intellectual freedom.