Digital or digitised materials make it possible to answer traditional research questions in entirely new ways, whilst digital methods are also transforming the scope, form and, in some cases, the nature of questions posed in the humanities. The University Library Freiburg acts as an active partner in research and teaching. This creates opportunities for the humanities and digital methods to come together productively. In addition to working on our own DH projects, we advise and support researchers in the conception of ideas, the application process, technical implementation and long-term archiving. We view every project as a testbed or workshop in which we are constantly learning and developing new things, with the aim of making the resulting services available to the university and the public for the long term. We are guided by the following principles:
Historical sources, texts, and images must be digitised and catalogued to render them useful for research in the Digital Humanities. Through its Digitisation Centre, the University Library Freiburg has the technical expertise and established workflows needed to digitise sources in accordance with internationally recognised quality standards and to catalogue them using structured metadata. The goal is always to ensure complete, traceable and long-term access to the collections.
Automated text recognition using OCR (Optical Character Recognition) and HTR (Handwritten Text Recognition) forms a vital foundation for the Digital Humanities. We develop workflows for processing large collections of documents using OCR and HTR, train models for historical manuscripts and printed texts, and support projects with quality control and post-processing. In doing so, we work with modern tools and platforms (eScriptorium, Transkribus, LLMs via Open WebUI) and combine automated processes with specialist expertise – always with the aim of making error-free digital full-text documents accessible.
Digital editions make historical texts, letters, manuscripts and other sources accessible in new ways: structured, hyperlinked, contextualised and searchable. They combine editorial principles with technical capabilities. The University Library Freiburg supports editorial projects at every stage: from conceptual planning through annotation and encoding (XML/TEI) to publication and long-term archiving. In doing so, we work with established standards whilst seeking to integrate innovative approaches.
Digital Humanities are also a matter of education. We develop and support seminars and courses designed to familiarise students with digital methods: from basic introductions to OCR and text analysis to working with digital sources and conducting independent projects. Our courses combine theoretical understanding with practical application, preparing students to consider Digital Humanities as an integral part of their academic practice.