Academia operosorum (academy of hard-working fellows) - a forerunner of the modern
Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (
http://www.sazu.si/) - was founded in
1693 in
Ljubljana as an association of 23 scientists, most of whom were of
Slovenian descent. From the beginning its purpose was to organise scientific work in the fields of
law,
medicine,
philosophy and
theology. The members of the Academia adopted the Latin name
apes (bees) and the academic tag
Nobis atque aliis - operosi. Every year they would organise an annual meeting, as well as four other academic meetings, where the results of scientific research would be discussed. The newly-founded library became an important centre of activity of the "Operosi". At the time of its greatest prosperity, around
1714, it was an international association of 42 members from
Carniola and the counties of central Austria assembled under the patronage of the bishop
Franz Karl von Kaunitz[?]. The Academia fell into decline in the summer of
1725. It was revived in
1781, thanks to the efforts of Slovenian members of the
Enlightenment. Unfortunately, it was only active for another 20 years or so and declined again because of the different outlooks of its members.
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