Cultural Treasures Research Articles

The Application of Local Culture-Based Character Education at SMAN 4 Enrekang

Character is an important factor of future human progress. Character education has become a main issue in education, beyond being part of the learning process of shaping the morals of the children of the country, character education is now expected to be the principal foundation of Indonesia Gold 2025 's success. Various studies and facts show that the developed nation is a nation that has strong character. These character values are values that are extracted from cultural treasures that are in harmony with the characteristics of the local culture and not to "copy" other ward values that are not necessarily in accordance with the characteristics and personalities of the people and the local community. In general local culture is local ideas that are wise, full of wisdom, good value, which are embedded and followed by community members. Local wisdom is an alternative to the development of students' character without leaving their regional identity. Local wisdom, which is the lifeline of social interaction in the region, will be more quickly absorbed by students to think, act and behave according to the guidance of local customs and culture. This research will be conducted at The State High School 4 Enrekang and aims to determine the application of local culture-based character education at SMAN 4 Enrekang and supporting and inhibiting factors of local culture-based character education and how the results of the application of local culture-based character education. This research is a qualitative descriptive study conducted at SMAN 4 Enrekang. Researchers will collect the data using observation, interviews, the questionnaire and documentation and analysis of data is qualitative analysis.

Features of impact between Eastern and Western Literature

No doubt that modern Arab literature has been influenced by Western literature more than it was influenced by ancient Arabic literature, whether by the missionaries, occupiers, merchants, and investors who arrived at Arab countries or by the scientific missions sent by Arab countries to European capitals or by Arab immigrants to the West. This influence was either through the translation, or through reading in the original languages ​​of Western literature, and this second method was more influential in modern Arabic literature, because translation loses many of the characteristics of artistic literatures that have a close connection with the language.. We mentioned in this research the link between East and West, and between Arab literature and European literature, and the features of impact between them through the process of transferring the literary heritage from East to West through several crossings, and its study to extract the literary and cultural treasures through the efforts of missionaries from Orientalists that were the first nucleus of modern Western civilization. We also dealt with the features of renewal in Arabic literature, Arabic poetry and its schools in the modern era. We focused on the Divan school, the Apollo school and Diaspora School, especially the nature of poetry and truth of free modern realist poetry. We also mentioned the high demand for translated eastern literature in European countries, and its inclusion by the writers, poets and writers in their literary writings. We used the descriptive approach that is always suitable for such literary and critical topics.

KAZAK TÜRKLERİNDE SÜNNET TÖRENİ

Toplumların kimliklerinin oluşumunda önemlilik arz eden davranışlar, örf ve adetler, gelenekler ve görenekler, bayramlar, törenler gibi uygulamalar kültür hazinelerinin birer ögesidir. Yaşamlarının önemli evrelerinden olan doğum, çocukluk, sünnet, evlenme, ölüm gibi konulardaki davranışları yine kültür hazineleri ögeleri arasında yer almaktadır. Bütün toplumların kültürel özellikleri ve kimlikleri hakkında bilgiler veren kültür hazineleri olduğu gibi Kazak Türklerin de değerleri, inanışları, ritüelleri, gelenekleri, görenekleri vardır. Toplumsal uygulamalar, toplumun kimliğinden izler taşıyan en önemli değerlerden biridir. Bu toplumsal uygulamalardan biri de sünnet törenleridir. Her milletin kendine ait halk kültürü ve an’anesi vardır. Sünnet törenlerinin ve bunun yanında diğer halk unsurlarının değişik tarzda icra edilmesi bunun açık göstergesidir. Sünnet geleneği dini bir gelenek olarak Arap ülkelerinde ortaya çıkmış ve daha sonra Müslüman olan diğer ülkelere yayılmıştır. Bu yayılma sırasında her millet kendi ekonomik tezahürlerine göre ve yaşayış tarzlarına göre bu geleneği kabullenmiştir. Bu geleneği kendi kültürel yaşamına göre alan ve gerçekleştiren milletlerden biri de Kazak Türkleridir. Kazak Türkleri, kendi yaşam koşullarına göre sünnet geleneğini almıştır. Kazak Türklerinin tarihin geçmiş dönemlerinde göçebe bir hayat sürmeleri bu geleneğin gerçekleştirme aşamasında da farklılık göstermiştir. Ancak yerleşik bir hayata geçtikten sonra bu kutlamalarda bir takım değişiklikler ve eklemeler ortaya çıkmıştır. Bu çalışmada Kazak Türklerinde Sünnet Töreni başlığı altında bu geleneğin Kazak Türklerindeki karşılığı ayrıntılı bir şekilde açıklanmaya çalışılmıştır.

Chinese Folklore Tales as a Cultural Treasure of the Nation

The article examines Chinese folk art, which not only has pronounced national features, but also is a cultural treasure of the nation. Chinese folklore consists of myths, legends, fables, funny stories, fairy tales and tales about life, about animals, as well as works that describe famous historical figures, praise the love of the motherland. The texts clearly demonstrate the motives of admiration for the characters, give positive assessments of labor skills, analyze the characteristics of local traditions, customs and life. The folklore is an integral part of traditional Chinese culture. It educates, shapes the worldview, morals and ethics of the Chinese people. Folklore works become a kind of stage on which the life conflicts of non-heroic existence of an ordinary person with simple cultural interests (for example, communication, participation in rituals, hospitality, etc.) are played out.The article presents translations of original stories from Chinese into Russian, on the example of which it analyzes the cultural values of Chinese folklore works from the point of view of philosophy. The research is carried out using contextual, linguoculturological methods, as well as methods of analysis and synthesis. The presented research has an interdisciplinary character, because it is performed at the intersection of cultural studies and linguoculturology, folklore studies and translation studies.

The Understanding of Local Cultural Treasures on Foreign Students in Indonesian Language Learning

The role of broad language may be implied in the increased role of the nation. The implications also can be seen in the role of the Indonesian language in the international area. This phenomenon is evidenced by the approval of that Indonesian language becomes subjects at 200 universities in ASEAN. However, there are some problems faced by foreign students studying in Indonesia. The problems commonly are issues related to cultural differences. These issues become an obstacle for foreign students studying in Indonesia. This research was conducted using a case study and qualitative approaches. The informants were foreign students who were studying the Indonesian language in Surakarta. The research results found that lack of the understanding of foreign students to the culture obstructs to the Indonesian language skills. The differences in the cultural background between the countries of origin of foreign students to the culture that exists in Surakarta make foreign students adjust the process of cultural adaptation. The adaptation was performed using the approach of familiarity and proximity.

Research on the Teaching Reform of National Folk Dance in Colleges

National folk dance, as an artistic form that shows the national artistic style and cultural value of my country, is not only a cultural treasure, but also a fusion of modern civilization and art. Therefore, how to enable students to actively inherit the national culture in the process of participating in learning activities has become a key problem for teachers in colleges and universities to solve. This article starts with the artistic value of folk dances, looking for specific ways to promote the reform of folk dance teaching in colleges and universities, hoping to make suggestions for other teachers.

DIMENSI HUMANISME DALAM KARYA SASTRA AL-MANFALÛTHÎ (SEBUAH KRITIK SASTRA HUMANIS ATAS KARYANYA “AL-NADHARA ̂T”)

Musthafa Luthfi Al- Manfaluthi (1876-1924) is a famous Arabian poet from Egypt who has given a real contribution and influence for development of modern Arab prose specifically and Arab’s literature generally. The intellectual maturity and his writing has been a foundation of his emotional awareness toward humanity in his writing Al Nadharat, such as a commitment to preserve traditions and community’s values, commitment to perform a social reform and an advocation for people in need. His call to defend people under repressive authority and poor people is based on cultural treasure of Arab. This article aims to discuss the background of education, life, literature personality, social and writings of Al Manfaluthi and also the characteristic of his writing Al Nadharat from its language structure and thoughts and method of esthetical expression, and also to discover humanism dimension instituted in his writing, which came from Egypt society during that time.

கலை, பண்பாட்டுத் தளத்தில் சோமேசுவரர் திருக்கோயில்

The temples have existed since the Sangam period, although they were built of perishable soil and wood and did not last long. But instead the Pallavas were the first to build cave temples and stone temples. It was later followed by the Pandya and Chola dynasties. This article describes the history, architecture and sculpture of the Someswarar Temple in Anthakudi, in the Keezhvellore taluk, Nagapattinam District, based on the evidence obtained through a field study. Along with these, the information known through the medieval Chola inscriptions here, the ancient Tamil people Architecture technique, structure of the temple and Chola sculptures have been studied historically. Therefore, it would not be an exaggeration to say that the ancient temples are not only places of worship but also treasures of art, history and culture.

Reading the Arabian Nights in Modern Hebrew Literature: Judaism, Arabness and the City

Abstract The discourse about the Arabian Nights illustrates the ways through which hegemonic poetic and literary discourses crystallized themselves, while developing a set of distinctions as a yardstick for the estimation of literary works, as well as the connections between these various distinctions—namely ‘realistic’ and ‘fantastic’, East and West, and oral storytelling and folklore versus written literature. This article focuses on the discourse about the Arabian Nights in the field of modern Hebrew literature. In turning towards the collection, discussing it and translating some of its sections, the various characters who dealt with it expressed and promoted a cultural and political narrative which saw cultural affinities as a potential basis for broader political cooperation between Arabs and Jews. I will argue, however, that the discourse about the collection illustrates a process of modern Hebrew literature adopting a definition of itself as European and secular literature. I will also argue that the discourse on the Arabian Nights reveals the various directions taken by those who resisted the construal of modern Hebrew literature as a vector in the European- secular tradition. These counter-hegemonic assertions particularly took the form of arguments that the collection was a multifaceted cultural treasure that includes Hebrew layers, or, alternatively, representing it as a model of a modern literary genre, the city-centered anthology.

The Symbolic Interaction of Tandhe’ in Sumenep Madurese

Local culture everywhere presents meaning space as a guideline for people’s lives, even the presence of tradition can be a medium of social transformation. The tandhe’ as one of the local cultural treasures in Sumenep Madura, emerged as an appreciation of past civilizations that believe that tandhe’ is not a mere spectacle but also as a communication medium that contains the values of goodness. Signs implicitly or explicitly important to learn because it often contains the essence of da’wah which calls on humans to remember God. Tandhe’ as a manifestation of local wisdom will be an effective communication medium for building communities when properly packaged, because cultural anomalies can occur at any time. The researcher uses a qualitative approach in the form of field research so that researchers can directly make observations and even participate in contributing ideas as feedback from informants ideas. The presence of tandhe’ has until now experienced a shift in the function and purpose of tandh’ itself. The ancient kings tandhe’ functioned as the media for the propaganda used by Walisongo in order to spread the teachings of Islam. The religious value of the tandhe’ began to fade because the lovers of the tandhe’ began to abandon the teachings taught by the Walisongo. Tandhe’ at the moment is more dominant in the nature of entertainment which aims only for worldly purposes only. Tandhe’ essentially has a symbolic communication used by Walisongo in preaching Islam to the community which is also a symbol of tirakat by human.

Globalization and Global Risks Some thoughts based on The World is Flat

China’s ancient Silk Road will not succeed without Malaysia. At that time, the main commodity circulating on the Silk Road was tea,which was difficult to preserve and expensive. Good thing was Malaysia had the best tin mine.Tea and tin have made the Silk Road a reality: without tin, the tea trade will not be popular; on the other hand, Malaysia will not be world-famous without the Silk Road and will become the leading country in the production of tin. This is the trade. It is an expansion of economic activities across political and boundaries of nation states. Besides, globalization creates conditions for widening international exchanges, strengthening mutual understanding between nations, expanding cultural, education, and scientific cooperation, enjoying the cultural treasures of people around the world which encourages the process of modernization and enrichment of national culture. Today, in the era of globalization. It is changing our world and affecting every nation, society and even every individual. In the face of the tide of globalization, globalization with its immense power, involved almost all ethnic groups and become global players. When globalization swells the world with its turbulent momentum and widespread influence, anti-globalization has become a new type of globalization. Globalization and anti-globalization co-exist and interact with each other and make globalization complicated.

“Holding Living Bodies in Graveyards”: The Violence of Keeping Ethiopian Manuscripts in Western Institutions

“Holding Living Bodies in Graveyards”: The Violence of Keeping Ethiopian Manuscripts in Western Institutions

Life after graduation: IEEE region 8: One region, thousands of cultural treasures

This issue of I&M Magazine is dedicated to IEEE Region 8 that includes Europe, the Middle-East and the African continent. Looking at the map reported on the dedicated website (www.IEEER8.org), you can realize that it is the largest IEEE Section.

MASA KEEMASAN TEATER TRADISIONAL MENDU KALIMANTAN BARAT

The benefits of studying history, in addition to remembering the past, are also valuable lessons for future generations. Through history, the younger generation knows the cultural treasures of the nation so that they can preserve them. One of the original arts belonging to West Kalimantan is the traditional theater mendu. This theater was successful at the beginning of its emergence (1876 AD) until the Japanese colonial era. After that it was dim because society was forbidden by Japan to gather and associate. Mendu was bloated again and became the belle of the 80's which was driven by the maestro Sataruddin Ramli (1948 - 2015). However, this particular art of West Kalimantan is now only a memory. This research aims to describe the golden age of West Kalimantan's traditional theater. The method used is descriptive qualitative form with a literature study approach. The results of the study describe (1) the glory period from the beginning of the emergence of the mendu to the Japanese occupation (1876 - 1942), (2) the traditional theater of the mendu became the belle of the community (1980s - 2000s). Factors that cause the mendu golden period include because in the past the world of entertainment was not yet sophisticated and modern, the characteristics of the traditional and simple community, the story that was served favored by the community at that time, the participation of the Regional Government of West Kalimantan, as well as coaching was held for the younger generation.

PENGARUH PEMBANGUNAN KEBUDAYAAN TERHADAP PEMBANGUNAN MANUSIA DI INDONESIA

The diversity of Indonesian culture is a strong basic capital in development. The government has realized that cultural treasures in Indonesia are valuable assets. Cultural development is one of the government's efforts to improve the welfare and quality of human life in Indonesia. To measure the quality of human life, the Human Development Index (HDI) indicator is used, which explains how the population can access the results of development in obtaining income, health, education, and so on. The Cultural Development Index (CDI) is an instrument used to measure the achievements of cultural development performance, which consists of 7 dimensions, namely dimensions of cultural economy, education, socio-cultural resilience, cultural heritage, cultural expression, cultural literacy, and gender. To find out how much influence the CDI has on HDI in Indonesia, a simple linear regression statistical method is used. The result of this study illustrate that the CDI and HDI have a positive relationship, that is, the higher the CDI achievement, the higher the HDI achievement of a region. From the result of R Square shows that 40 percent of the HDI variable can be explained by the CDI variable, while the rest can be explained by other factors. Through a simple linear regression statistical analysis test found that every one percent increase in the CDI, will increase the HDI by 0.437 percent. This finding is expected to provide recommendations to the government regarding cultural-based national development. All development planning must also consider cultural development.

Forgotten Taonga Māori in Russia: The 1820 Visit of the Bellingshausen-Lazarev Expedition to Queen Charlotte Sound

Russia is a country of extensive and unique collections of all kinds from the Pacific. Over many centuries Russian travellers, explorers and avid private collectors were bringing and exchanging rarities and antiques. The stunning cultural treasures, taonga Māori, preserved and kept on the vast Russian territory are of ultimate importance and enduring value to the world, and especially to New Zealanders as they bear sacred significance and are considered to be ancestors. 
 This article opens the discussion of the urgent need to thoroughly record and study Māori heritage in Russia. It reflects on a particular collection from Queen Charlotte Sound in the South Island of New Zealand brought to Russia by the Bellingshausen-Lazarev expedition two centuries ago. The study also provides a description of previously unstudied taonga in Russia recently attributed to this expedition.

Copyright at the Museum: Using the Publication Doctrine to Free Art and History

This Article is the first to use the copyright publication doctrine to clarify whether art, photographs, films, and historical documents that fill our museums and libraries are in the public domain. Knowing whether a photo, painting, film, or original letter was published is critically important to anyone who wants to use it today. Before 1989, publishing a work with no copyright notice dedicated the work to the public domain. Unpublished works without a notice are likely protected by copyright, and their unauthorized use can result in severe federal penalties. Unfortunately, the meaning of “publication” in copyright law is notoriously ambiguous. The federal statutory definition suggests that works “made available” to the public are published, while leading treatises generally assume that works given to public museums and libraries are unpublished. Confronted with this uncertainty, risk averse institutions too often assume that archived works are protected by copyright. Misunderstanding the law can keep cultural treasures locked in dark archives, vaults and basements, preventing their use as a foundation for new expression and distorting our sense of history.This Article critically examines mistaken assumptions about copyright publication. It finds that neither the statutory definition nor leading treatises adequately identify when a work is published. A better standard for determining when a work is published and in the public domain is needed to free works from being locked up by copyright uncertainty. The best solution would clarify the boundaries of a stable public domain. In a recent decision, the Supreme Court took a wrong turn in dismissing the importance of the public domain. Knowing what content may be freely used is critical to preserving First Amendment values and freeing cultural treasures from copyright’s bondage. The copyright ambiguity of archived works should be resolved in a way that honors the expressive and historical value of the public domain. After considering several alternatives, this Article shows how precedential patterns point to the best solution to the publication ambiguity. Drawing on empirical analysis of federal cases interpreting copyright publication, I identify the variables that are most important in determining whether archived works are published. The suggested solution focuses on copyright owner intent and the availability of authorized copies. Other factors described as significant in leading treatises — such as the type of work or archive — actually mask these two fundamental inquiries. The proposed standard provides a much needed solution to clarify which pieces of our cultural heritage are in the public domain and freely available as raw materials for educational sharing, expressive work, historical research, and public discourse.

Salpuri-Chum, A Korean Dance for Expelling Evil Spirits: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation of its Artistic Characteristics by Eun-Joo Lee and Yong-Shin Kim

Reviewed by: Salpuri-Chum, A Korean Dance for Expelling Evil Spirits: A Psychoanalytic Interpretation of its Artistic Characteristics by Eun-Joo Lee and Yong-Shin Kim Margaret Coldiron SALPURI-CHUM, A KOREAN DANCE FOR EXPELLING EVIL SPIRITS: A PSYCHOANALYTIC INTERPRETATION OF ITS ARTISTIC CHARACTERISTICS. By Eun-Joo Lee and Yong-Shin Kim. Lanham, Boulder, New York, Toronto, Plymouth, UK: Hamilton Books, 2017. 94 pp. 26 B/W photographs. Paperback, $26.99 (£17.95); e-book $25.50 (£16.95). This slim volume is densely packed with information and analysis concerning Salpuri-Chum, a secular entertainment derived from a traditional shamanic ritual. The authors set out to discuss the nature of the dance form (its history, characteristics, and various styles) as well as its meaning and significance in relation to the "emotional dynamics of the Korean people" (p. 11), using Freudian psychoanalytic theory as an interpretive tool. Although its focus is clearly rather specialized, the book appears to be aimed at a more-or-less general audience, inviting the reader into the world of Salpuri-Chum and the spiritual and psychological traits of the Korean people. It should be of particular interest to Korean performance specialists and dance scholars. [End Page 290] Salpuri-Chum is a stately solo performance accompanied by a traditional musical ensemble of percussion, zither, fiddle, flute, and voice. Most important is the drum, which drives the sinawi rhythm, a unique feature of this dance. Both music and dance are semiimprovisational; the music does not follow fixed notation and there is a close and responsive relationship between dancer and musicians. Performers wear traditional Korean dress (usually white) and use a long white cloth that derives from shamanistic practice. It is the particular use of sinawi rhythm that connects this notionally secular entertainment to shamanic ritual (Gut) still actively practiced in Korea today. The relationship between shamanic ritual and popular dance entertainment is traced historically to the Gwangdaes, travelling street entertainers (mostly male), and Gisang, female hostesses with skills in singing, playing music, and dancing. Both genres incorporated elements of shamanic movement into their performances. The text begins with an interesting and helpful preface that sets out the rationale for the book and the organization of its argument. However, because each author represents a different speciality, the argument can seem somewhat disconnected. Eun-Joo Lee is a dancer, a "living human cultural treasure of Seoul Special City in the field of Salpuri-Chum," and her co-author is Professor Yong-Shin Kim, a specialist in psychoanalytic social and political theory. Thus, while the subtitle implies that the analysis will be a "psychoanalytic interpretation" of the dance, in fact the chapters on the dance and chapters on Freudian theory and psychoanalytic analysis of the Korean belief systems and national character are quite separate. The authors trace the development of modern forms of Korean traditional dance, and Salpuri-Chum in particular, to the work of Han Sung-Jun (1874–1941), a Gwangdae performer who established the Institute of Chosun Music and Dance in the 1930s. The central part of the book is given over to analysis of the various styles of Salpuri-Chum performance, accompanied by biographical information and a series of black-and-white photographs of the work of important interpreters. It is unfortunate that most of the photographs are of poor quality, and that neither the photographs nor the movement analysis provides a very clear idea about what the dance actually looks like. While there is an exceptionally detailed description of costumes, the description of the dance itself is rather vague (Han Young-Sook style is "stable and noble" [p. 50], whereas Lee Mae-Bang style is "nimble and delicate" [p. 51]). Thus, although the work is undoubtedly comprehensible to those familiar with the form, the non-specialist is left very much in the dark. The author, Eun-Joo Lee, includes discussion of her own background, training, and style in her examination of "Other Styles of Salpuri-Chum [End Page 291] as Local Cultural Treasures" (chapter 6) and "Salpuri-Chum and Other Korean Traditional Dances" (chapter 7), but she does so in the third person and without acknowledging her own stake in the discussion, which seems disingenuous at best...

ГУМАНІТАРНИЙ СКЛАДНИК У ТУРИСТИЧНІЙ ПОЛІТИЦІ УКРАЇНИ ЗА «СТРАТЕГІЄЮ РОЗВИТКУ ТУРИЗМУ ДО 2026 Р.»

Introduction. Tourism policy, as the purposefulness of public, community and private institutions' activity, focused on ensuring the effective functioning of all structural units at the tourism industry, is presented quite gravely, including the humanitarian component, which is designed to provide a certain ideological and semantic content to this industry. After all, tourism is not only one of the economic activity areas that brings profits, it is not just a form of leisure, for recreation, sanitation or entertainment – international tourism can and should become a peculiar form of public diplomacy, a way of representing our country in the world. This is important because a positive image ultimately works as a lobbyist, including for the economy. Purpose. The article considers and analyzes the elements of humanitarian direction, laid down in the thematic state document adopted in 2017 by the Ukrainian Government entitled “ Strategy for the development of tourism and resorts until 2026 ”. Results. It was found that the only effective way to solve all the problems in the field of tourism development is a strategically oriented state policy, which should implement mechanisms and measures that will ensure the successful progress of this industry. Only the coordinating role of public bodies, as well as public-private partnership, organization of scientific research, improvement of legislation, creation of a favorable business climate and ensuring conditions of fair competition, combined with adaptation of our domestic legislation to international standards – will jointly prepare conditions for our country's popularization around the globe and promotion of quality tourist products in the world information space. Tourism is important as a potentially highly profitable sector of the economy. That at the same time encourages the revitalization and activation of number of related sectors and industries, in particular, the development of infrastructure objects; prompts the need to protect the environment, urges improving the quality and environmental cleanliness of food, accelerates development of network trade, contributes to the growth of demand for intellectual and cognitive products, etc. Originality. The modern world, which is extremely full of standardized information content, constantly provokes the erosion of certain national and cultural entities. Humankind is increasingly internationalized in tastes and preferences, and this is the process of globalization of culture. At the same time, national identity, cultural uniqueness, and the artistic phenomenal nature of individual peoples, cultural regions, or small national communities are increasingly being lost and marginalized. Tourism policy, in these circumstances, is now a real chance and can be an effective means to revive and give new strength to the authentic national culture, to support the national original arts. All this is important, because the bearer of another cultural environment (actually, a foreign tourist) can be most attracted to entities that would be clear to him in content and would look unusual in form. Conclusion. Preserving the distinctive features of our national culture, and even more so, to represent at a decent level of cultural treasures as a brand in the field of international tourism is possible only with properly organized promotion and financial support. That is why tourism policy should not be based solely on economic gain, but must include a humanitarian component. After all, elements of national culture can also be commercialized to a certain extent, but setting such a goal as the main task is extremely incorrect. And the respect of European peoples to the samples of their national cultures should serve as an example and a guide for us.

Exploring Global Heritage in Digital Outline: An Evaluative Study of World Digital Library

The recent developments in Information and Communication Technology ICT, particularly the World Wide Web (WWW), have changed the scenario of accessing information beyond the concrete walls of traditional libraries, which in turn paved the way for the novel concept of digital libraries. Accordingly, this phenomenon led to the creation of an increasing number of digital library projects globally which is designed to bring a paradigm shift in the ways information is created, retrieved, disseminated and used worldwide. Consequently, present study attempts to evaluate the World Digital Library (WDL) to explore its varied characteristics in terms of no. and range of collection formats, geographical distribution, language diversity, and type of contributing institutions. The evaluation apparently reveals that WDL has emerged to be a vital cultural asset that has duly transformed the traditional concept of library and information system through assimilation of technological advancements and make it possible to discover, study, and enjoy cultural treasures and significant historical documents on one site, in a variety of ways.