New Version of the Indigenous Historical Publications Dataset is Now Available

The latest version of the Indigenous Historical Periodicals Dataset is now available for viewing and download via Borealis (https://doi.org/10.5683/SP3/JGN15S). Documentation, including project history, data collection, and contributions, is also available at the link. This dataset was created by members of the COPPUL Indigenous Historical Publications Working Group and North: the Canadian Shared Print Network/Nord: Réseau canadien de conservation partagée des documents imprimés.

What is the Dataset?

This dataset includes periodicals (newspapers, newsletters, magazines, and journals) created by Indigenous communities and organizations, primarily from Canada, with some from bordering U.S. states. The dataset is an inventory of titles, not a content search tool, and the materials are held in Canadian libraries, archives, and museums. This version expands the list across Canada. 

Why is this Important?

Indigenous historical publications enhance understanding of how Indigenous peoples have communicated about their communities through print media, capturing regional histories, changes, and celebrations. Preserving and making these publications digitally accessible supports the preservation of fragile physical formats.

Organizations can use this list to cross-reference against their collections and prioritize digitization strategies. We encourage institutions to localize their outreach and engagement and consult with Indigenous groups, prior to digitization.This list can also be used to track what is being digitized and where it is available.

Call for Contributions: 

The data gathered is not perfect. The Working Group asks for assistance from Indigenous individuals, communities, organizations, and researchers to make this dataset better. If a periodical should not be on this list, if a periodical is missing, or if there is a mistake, let us know. Guidance and feedback are essential to ensure the dataset’s relevance and accuracy.

If you are from the GLAM community and would like to use this list to guide your digitization efforts, let us know. We would love to know what you are working on and how we can make this dataset more useful to you for your local efforts.

Next Steps:

Our primary goal is to promote this dataset beyond COPPUL, encourage further participation and track usage of this dataset locally. We plan to post a series of blog posts, describing how this data was compiled, call for support from the Indigenous community, describe the challenges and issues in this data, how to compile similar datasets, and ideas for mobilizing this dataset including a future pilot project. We’ll also host a webinar to talk more about these elements. 

North/Nord is planning to use the dataset to guide shared print selection efforts and supplement with holding information.

Get in touch: 

To get in touch with the Indigenous Historical Publications Working Group, contact us at coppul_ihpwg@coppul.ca. 

Read this and future blog posts from the Indigenous Historical Publications Working Group here.