Preskočite do glavnog sadržaja

Latest acquisition to NSK Foreign Croatica Collection spotlighting legacy of Croats in South Africa 

NSK Senior Public Relations Adviser Maja Mlinarević, NSK Foreign Croatica Collection staff member Dr Iva Vrkić Seidl, Elena Anne Bielich and Mary Anne Sinovich.
NSK Senior Public Relations Adviser Maja Mlinarević and NSK Foreign Croatica Collection staff member Dr Iva Vrkić Seidl with Elena Anne Bielich and Mary Anne Sinovich.

Members of the Croatian diaspora in South Africa Mary Anne Sinovich and Elena Anne Bielich donated to the National and University Library in Zagreb (NSK) a comprehensive monograph documenting generations-long legacy of South African Croats.

Soon to be available to NSK’s users as part of the NSK Foreign Croatica Collection, the monograph is a valuable addition to almost 12,000 titles which the Collection currently holds. Entitled The Life, Times and Legacy of Our Grandparents, it offers insight into the contribution of Croats to their local communities, their efforts to preserve their Croatian identity and close ties with their ancestors’ homeland.

"The Life, Times and Legacy of Our Grandparents".

South African Croats fostering the culture and traditions of their homeland

Authored by Mary Anne Sinovich and Rosemary Antoinette Francescutti, who belong to the fourth generation of Croatian emigrants in Pretoria, the monograph consists of two volumes. Its almost 1,000 pages resulted from an entire decade of dedicated research focusing on the authors’ family history since 1891, when their great-grandfather Jure Sinovčić left Mirca, on the Croatian island of Brač, and arrived in South Africa.

"The Life, Times and Legacy of Our Grandparents".

An indispensable source of data on South Africa’s Croatian community

Featuring historical documents, archival content, photographs, interviews, personal testimonies and other relevant material, the title is an indispensable source of data for researchers with interest in the Croatian diaspora.

Aware of the importance of Croatian emigrant heritage as an integral part of CROATICA, Croatia’s national library collection, the Library continuously seeks opportunities for cooperation with Croatian emigrants all across the globe.

Head of the NSK Foreign Croatica Collection Dr Iva Vrkić Seidl, Rosemary Antoinette Francescutti, Mary Anne Sinovich and Head of the NSK Acquisition and Collection Development Department Dr Vesna Golubović.
NSK Foreign Croatica Collection staff member Dr Iva Vrkić Seidl, Elena Anne Bielich, Mary Anne Sinovich and Head of the NSK Acquisition and Collection Development Department Dr Vesna Golubović.

During their visit to NSK on 5 June 2026, Mses Sinovich and Bielich made a guided tour of the Library and learned more about its services, collections, projects and events. They met with the Head of the NSK Acquisition and Collection Development Department Dr Vesna Golubović and a member of staff of the NSK Foreign Croatica Collection Dr Iva Vrkić Seidl, who presented to them the titles in the Collection published by Croats in South Africa.

Photo: © NSK