Madam,

I write in relation to the decision by the National Library of Wales, Executive Team, at its meeting on 4 June, to discontinue publication of the National Library of Wales Journal.

This journal is one of the four most important academic publications published in Wales. It is also one of our country’s oldest. It was established in 1939 to provide the Library with an international profile, in order to attract leading international academics to study the unique manuscript resources held at Aberystwyth.

When first established in 1939, two issues of the journal appeared annually in a printed format. However, in 2008 it was decided to take advantage of the new possibilities of the digital age by transferring the journal to a digital format. Subsequently the publication has been available throughout the world at the click of a mouse, a development which has enabled it to fulfil the objectives of its founders to an unprecedented degree.

Today the journal provides a platform which has the potential to enable the Library to draw researchers from far and wide to Aberystwyth, with all of us being in a position to benefit from their enquiries. Given this background, the decision of the Executive Team to discontinue publication of the journal is most surprising, particularly given the increasing difficulties experienced by the Library in attracting researchers locally.

The reason given for the decision is a reduction in the number of learned articles submitted for publication. This is evident from the fact that only one article was published in the journal last year and only one so far this year. However, in 2017 the journal was in rude health with 10 articles being published.

There are therefore grounds for believing that the current reduction in the number of articles submitted to its editor may be a temporary problem. Moreover, it seems that the Executive Team have made little effort to try to correct the problem.

Many leading academics carry out research at the Library and submit articles for publication to other journals, but are never invited to submit articles for publication in the National Library of Wales Journal.

The decision to discontinue publication of the Journal appears to have been reached too hastily; the Executive Team should withhold their decision at the very least until an effort has been made to raise the profile of the publication and secure more contributors.

Yours etc, Janet Davies, Abergavenny.

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