Japanese magazine “Everyone’s Library” introduced two Editathons held in specialized libraries

This is the English rendition of the article originally written in Japanese. The original text reads 「雑誌『みんなの図書館』2023年3月号が、専門図書館で開催されたウィキペディア編集イベントを紹介」.

March 2023 issue of the Japanese library-focused publication, “Everyone’s Library (みんなの図書館)” presents an overview of two Editathons that were conducted at specialized libraries. I will quote relevant passages and provide supplementary information as a manager of both events. This Diff article aims to serve as a valuable resource for individuals with an interest in Editathons and a passion for specialized libraries.

Oya Soichi Library

The first Editathon is WikipediaOYA, held in May 2022 and November of the same year at Oya Soichi Library. The project pages with a summary of each event are listed below.

• WikipediaOYA #1 (Japanese)
• WikipediaOYA #2 (Japanese)

Hiroshi Kamoshida, a staff member of Oya Soichi Library, introduced WikipediaOYA in their article “Commercial magazines as materials and a library of magazines: Oya Soichi Library”, which they contributed to “Everyone’s Library.” The relevant passages are quoted below.

A Wikipedian who was interested in the Oya Soichi Library’s original classification and search system organized Editathons focused on using magazines and magazine article indexes to support editing activities. They later created a report on their approach.

Source : 鴨志田浩「資料としての商業雑誌と雑誌の図書館・大宅壮一文庫」『みんなの図書館』2023年3月号、22頁。translated by Eugene Ormandy

The Wikipedian that Kamoshida refers to is me, Eugene Ormandy and the “report” means the article I contributed to the Wikimedia Foundation’s official blog, Diff, titled “Using Oya Soichi Library, a Magazine Specialized Library, for Editing Wikipedia Articles. (雑誌専門図書館の大宅壮一文庫をウィキペディア記事の編集に活用する)” I am honored to be introduced.

雑誌専門図書館の大宅壮一文庫をウィキペディア記事の編集に活用する

Tokyo National Museum

The second Editathon is Wikimania 2022 Tokyo, held at Tokyo National Museum. This editathon was held with the aim of editing Wikipedia articles using the collections of the Tokyo National Museum. Here is the project page.

• Wikimania 2022 Tokyo at Tokyo National Museum (Japanese)

Miwa Yamazaki, a staff of Tokyo National Museum, introduced this editathon in the article “Specialized Library for Japanese and Eastern Art and History – Introduction to the Tokyo National Museum” contributed to “Everyone’s Library”.

This year, for the first time, we provided a venue for Editathon in which participants edit Wikipedia articles on cultural properties. The program consisted of visiting the exhibition hall in the morning, writing articles at the museum library room in the afternoon, and finally presenting the results. We hoped that it would support the writing with reliable sources and the future use of the museum. 

We were able to hold the Editathon on a closed day owing to the COVID-19 restrictions, with the library staff permitted to utilize the reading room solely for this occasion. Although the pandemic’s impact has been predominantly negative, it has also instigated novel undertakings such as the adoption of cashless payment and the organization of this Wikipedia event.

While the changes may be modest, we remain committed to enhancing the convenience of our library to enable greater accessibility for a wider audience, including other library staff seeking reference materials..

Source: 山﨑美和「日本・東洋の美術と歴史の専門図書館－－東京国立博物館資料館紹介」『みんなの図書館』2023年3月号、37-38頁。translated by Eugene Ormandy

Conclusion

As a Wikipedian who was involved in running both Editathons, I am very happy that those articles are published. In particular, I feel that it is extremely significant that media other than the Wikimedia Project take up trends in Wikipedia.

I would like to thank Oya Soichi Library and the Tokyo National Museum for their cooperation in holding the Editathon, everyone who participated in the Editathon, and above all, Kamoshida-san and Yamazaki-san for writing such wonderful articles.