FRANKFURT. “Goethe University is deeply honored to be entrusted with Jürgen Habermas’ preliminary legacy, which acknowledges his alma mater as his intellectual home. The fact that he wishes to localize research on his work in Frankfurt, the focal point of his development and contributions, is evidence of the close relationship of trust and appreciation Mr. Habermas has for our university,” says Goethe University President Prof. Enrico Schleiff about the latest addition to the University Library. “The Frankfurt School, Critical Theory, and the work of Jürgen Habermas are among the most significant components of our university’s identity: We seek answers to societal questions through a diversity of disciplines.”
The second part of the preliminary collection – i.e. a collection of materials donated during the lifetime of a prominent individual to an institution – was handed over to Frankfurt University Library in February 2025, with the goal that the extensive materials be promptly processed. The materials span the period from 1994 to the present, seamlessly continuing from the first part of the preliminary collection, which was donated to the University Library in 2011 and covers materials up to 1994, the year of Habermas’ retirement. Unlike the first part, this installment primarily consists of digitally stored documents.
Also included in the collection are documents related to Habermas’ extensive political commitment, including statements on politics, Europe, and religion. It also features his academic works created after 1994, materials related to their development, publishing correspondence about his works and their translation, as well as his complete correspondence with notable figures such as publisher Siegfried Unseld, social historian Hans-Ulrich Wehler, and former European Central Bank President Mario Draghi. Additionally, 90 file folders containing letters were handed over, along with several boxes of correspondence related to milestone birthdays and other occasions. Habermas’ own letters, stored on his private computer since 1994, were also included in the donation. The computer data also contains unpublished manuscripts and drafts of works created after his retirement.
In 2011, Jürgen Habermas donated the first compendium to Frankfurt University Library. To ensure the extensive and complex collection is properly processed, a dedicated position was created at the time. In close coordination with Jürgen Habermas himself, the writings were cataloged and made accessible in the archives – albeit under strict regulations. The processing took approximately two years.
“The second part of the preliminary estate is far more extensive than the first, and processing is expected to take longer this time,” says Dr. Mathias Jehn, Head of the Department of Curation, Specialized Information, and Placement at Johann Christian Senckenberg University Library. “In its completeness as a continuation of the first materials batch on the one hand, and its openness to international networking on the other, this part of the preliminary estate is even more valuable than the first. It represents a high-level, identity-shaping library asset for both academics and cultural memory.”
The University Library has the expertise and technical know-how required to handle the complex, demanding, and extensive materials. Both analog and digital archival materials are now being processed, preserved, and stored professionally – most importantly, they are being systematically cataloged using the library’s in-house archive management system, Arcinsys. The catalog will also be supplemented with cross-references to the central estate database Kalliope, which documents materials and estates from the German-speaking world, such as the estate collections of the Marbach Literature Archive. “Crosslinking all information will one day be of great importance for the diverse and nuanced perception and appreciation of Jürgen Habermas. The correspondence, in particular, highlights the international network of relationships in which he operates,” says Mathias Jehn.
Once they have been processed, the collections will not be freely accessible without restrictions. During his lifetime, Habermas, as the creator, retains the final say, as do the individuals involved, including his correspondents. Be that as it may, Mathias Jehn points out that thanks to the interlocutors’ close relationship with Jürgen Habermas, in the past, access for academic purposes was granted in a rather straightforward manner. Under the Hessian Archive Law, certain protection periods also apply posthumously, and special interest must be demonstrated.
Habermas has also offered to donate his entire private library – though only after his passing.
Jürgen Habermas, born in 1929, studied philosophy, history, psychology, literature, and economics in Göttingen, Zurich, and Bonn. In 1956, as a research fellow at the Institute for Social Research, he connected with key figures of the Frankfurt School, including Theodor W. Adorno, Max Horkheimer, and Herbert Marcuse. After positions in Marburg, Bonn, and Heidelberg, he returned to Frankfurt in 1964, where he succeeded Max Horkheimer as chair of philosophy and sociology. He held this position until 1971, during which he significantly shaped the second generation of Critical Theory. From 1983 until his retirement in 1994, he taught again at Goethe University, where he held a professorship in philosophy with a focus on social philosophy and the history of philosophy. Habermas is one of the most widely read philosophers and sociologists of our time.
The Johann Christian Senckenberg University Library is one of Germany’s most important academic libraries, thanks to its extensive collections and holdings. It combines the functions of a university library with numerous state-level responsibilities, serving as a scientific library for the city of Frankfurt and the Rhine-Main region, as well as a specialized library within the nationwide system for literature and information resources.