Discover Jena's History Digitally
From “Altstadt” to “Zwätzen,” knowledge about our city’s history is now accessible to everyone. The Jena Digital City Encyclopedia combines historical research, digitization, and urban topography on a user-friendly platform that invites visitors to explore and learn more.
An interactive city map currently features around 300 entries on places, buildings, notable figures, and events in Jena. When compared with today’s city map, the city’s urban development becomes visible and easy to follow. Images from the collections of the City Museum and the City Archives supplement the information and provide a scientifically sound source on the city’s history.
Whether for personal research, teaching, a stroll through the city, or out of personal interest—this resource is aimed at anyone who would like to learn more about Jena. The encyclopedia is designed as an open knowledge resource that is continuously being expanded. Next year, additional existing articles will be added and linked to images.
“The digital city encyclopedia translates Jena’s city history into the digital present and future. This brings history to life in a new way and allows us to reach a broader audience,” says Mayor and Head of Digitalization Benjamin Koppe. “The technical solution developed for this purpose as part of the Smart City project lays the foundation for bringing together historical texts, images, and locations on a digital platform. This allows citizens to rediscover their city: vividly and with a direct connection to the places that define Jena.”
The project is based on the 2018 print edition of “Jena Lexikon zur Stadtgeschichte” (Jena Encyclopedia of City History), published by Tümmel Verlag. This comprehensive work includes contributions from 261 authors, over 1,000 articles, and more than 1,100 illustrations spanning Jena’s early history to the present. The digital city encyclopedia brings this knowledge to life in a new way and carries it forward.
The digital Jena City Encyclopedia was developed in close collaboration between the Jena Smart City Project and JenaKultur. The digital city encyclopedia is an open-source application and can therefore also be reused by other municipalities.
“We would like to thank all the authors, as well as all the institutions and supporters who have contributed to the creation and further development of this encyclopedia through texts, images, sources, and expertise,” said Friedrun Vollmer, project director at JenaKultur. “Special thanks go to the participating municipal departments and the Jena Smart City Project, all of whom are contributing with great dedication to making Jena’s cultural heritage digitally accessible.”
Contact:
Dr. Jenny Price, City Historian
stadtlexikon@jena.de
Mit dem digitalen Stadtlexikon lässt sich Jenas Stadtgeschichte direkt vor Ort entdecken: Historische Texte, Bilder und Orte werden auf einer interaktiven Karte zusammengeführt und mobil zugänglich gemacht.
© Stadt Jena