The digitisation programme of the Memory of Nations project has achieved another significant milestone: as part of the work carried out by the Hungarian National Archives, 10,314 digital images were produced from the historical sources designated for processing.

Documents relating to the architectural heritage of the co-operative movement form a particularly valuable part of the digitised material. The processed sources also include 865 architectural plans for co-operative buildings.

In many cases, the digitisation of these documents could not begin immediately. Due to the physical condition of the original plans, work on collection preservation, conservation and restoration was required first. The aim of the experts was both to ensure the safe preservation of the original documents and to produce digital reproductions of sufficient quality to be used later for research and database-building purposes.

The project also involves the parallel digitisation of duplicate copies of state civil registers held in Borsod and Hajdú-Bihar counties. The workflow is based on two different technologies: for some sources, digital scans are made directly from the original bound volumes, whilst in other cases, previously produced microfilms are being digitised.

The next stage of the work involves the systematic organisation of the digitised content and its linking to the corresponding archival and descriptive data. The aim of the project is for the resulting digital source material to become part of a well-searchable, cross-border research and cultural database in the long term.The project entitled ‘Memoria Națiunilor’ (Memory of Nations) is being implemented under the INTERREG VI-A Romania–Hungary Programme, with support from the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund, and co-financing from Romania and Hungary.

In addition to the digitisation of historical sources, two key physical sites of the ‘Memory of Nations’ project also entered a new phase in the spring of 2026: work began on the development of the Ady Memorial Museum, and the creation of the Debrecen Archives Visitor Centre also got under way.

The Szatmár County Museum concluded the public procurement procedure for the renovation of the Ady Memorial Museum, and the works contract was signed on 20 April 2026. Renovation work commenced shortly afterwards.

In parallel with this, in Hungary, a multifunctional Archives Visitor Centre is being built in the Debrecen building of the Hajdú-Bihar County Archives, part of the Hungarian National Archives. The Hungarian National Archives  signed the works contract on 27 April 2026. The handover of the site is scheduled for 1 June.

The common aim of the two developments is to ensure that the cultural heritage uncovered by the project is not only accessible to specialists. The refurbished venues will subsequently provide space for exhibitions, educational and museum-based learning programmes, professional events and public programmes.

This is precisely where one of the project’s most significant added values lies: Hungarian and Romanian institutions are working together to ensure that the past of the border region – preserved in documents, built heritage and personal stories – can be explored in a new form in the future.

The project entitled ‘Memory of Nations’ (Memoria Națiunilor) is being implemented under the INTERREG VI-A Romania–Hungary Programme, with support from the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund, and co-financing from Romania and Hungary.

The ‘Memory of Nations’ project has reached another important stage in the exploration and digitisation of the shared cultural heritage of the Hungarian–Romanian border region.

Staff at the Hungarian National Archives have continued their research into and processing of archival sources relating to the history of the Hangya Cooperative. During the organisation of the photographic material from the Hangya Technical Department, each item was assigned a unique archival identification number, enabling them to be accurately retrieved and organised into a database at a later date. In parallel with this, a detailed review and selection of the cooperative’s architectural plans has also begun.

As part of the cross-border research, Romanian sources are also being processed. Among other things, the partners are examining historical documents relating to the Furnica–Hangya network and other cooperative organisations. Staff at the Satu Mare County Museum have digitised some 500 documents relating to rural life and the history of the cooperative movement from their own collection and from the materials held by the Satu Mare branch of the Romanian National Archives.

The digitised content is not preserved in isolation: the aim of the joint database being developed as part of the project is to make historical information held on both sides of the border uniformly searchable, comparable and, in future, more easily accessible to researchers, educators and the general public.

The project thus serves both to ensure the long-term preservation of the original documents and to promote a wider understanding of the shared history of the Hungarian–Romanian border region.

The project entitled ‘Memoria Națiunilor’ (Memory of Nations) is being implemented under the INTERREG VI-A Romania–Hungary Programme, with support from the European Union through the European Regional Development Fund, and co-financed by Romania and Hungary.