archivista

An archivista, known in English as an archivist, is a professional who manages, preserves, and provides access to archival records. Working in archives, libraries, museums, government agencies, or corporate settings, archivists supervise acquisition, appraisal, arrangement and description, and reference services. They select records with enduring value, ensure proper storage, implement preservation strategies, and plan digitization and digital preservation to safeguard content against decay and obsolescence.

Core duties include appraisal, accessioning, arrangement by provenance and respect des fonds, creating finding aids and metadata, cataloging, and enforcing access policies. They develop and implement retention schedules, oversee conservation, disaster planning, and digital asset management. They also facilitate research, provide visitor services, and offer public outreach and education about the holdings.

Archivists work with legal and ethical frameworks concerning privacy, copyright, confidentiality, and access, balancing rights with public interest. They collaborate with historians, curators, IT staff, and records managers to ensure long-term usability of records.

Education and professional standards: many archivists hold degrees in archival science, library and information science, or history, often with specialization in records management or digital preservation. Professional associations offer training and accreditation, and standards such as ISAD(G) for description, ISAAR(CPF) for corporate bodies, EAD for encoding, and Dublin Core for metadata practices.

Archivists may work in national archives, universities, corporations, religious organizations, or government agencies, contributing to scholarly research, cultural heritage, and institutional memory.