Ángela Rafaela Ana García Rives (1891–1968 or later) was a Spanish librarian and

archivist An archivist is an information professional who assesses, collects, organizes, preserves, maintains control over, and provides access to records and archives determined to have long-term value. The records maintained by an archivist can cons ...

. A philosophy and letters graduate from Madrid's Central University, in 1913 she was the first woman to join the Spanish Corps of Archivists, Librarians, and Archeologists. The following year she was engaged by the

Spanish National Library Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine ** Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

, heading the cataloguing department from 1946 until her retirement in 1961. In 1962, she was honoured with the

Civil Order of Alfonso X, the Wise The Civil Order of Alfonso X the Wise () is a Spanish civil order established in 1939, recognising activities in the fields of education, science, culture, higher education and research. The order was created on 23 May 1902 by Royal decree as t ...

Early life and education

Born in Madrid on 2 June 1891, Ángela Rafaela Ana García Rives (frequently known as Angelita) was the daughter of the lawyer and state librarian Moisés García y Muñoz and his wife Rafaela. The eldest of three children, her brothers were Luis (1896), who also became an archivist, and Moisés (1894), a lawyer. After completing her schooling at the Instituto Cardenal Cisneros, she trained as a teacher at the Madrid Normal School and at the College for the Deaf and Blind. She then studied philosophy and literature at the Central University, receiving the Special Prize for History at her graduation in 1912. She went on to earn a doctorate in 1917 with a thesis on

Ferdinand VI Ferdinand VI (; 23 September 1713 – 10 August 1759), called the Learned (''el Prudente'') and the Just (''el Justo''), was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death in 1759. He was the third ruler of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty. He was the ...

and

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Career

In 1913, García Reyes was the first woman to become a member of the Corps of Archivists, Librarians, and Archeologists. After working for short periods at the Jovellanos Public Library in

Gijón Gijón () or () is a city and municipality in north-western Spain. It is the largest city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality by population in the autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Asturias. It is located on the coa ...

and at the Central Archive in

Alcalá de Henares Alcalá de Henares () is a Spanish municipality of the Community of Madrid. Housing is primarily located on the right (north) bank of the Henares River, Henares. , it has a population of 193,751, making it the region's third-most populated Municip ...

, she passed the competitive examination allowing her to gain a post at the Spanish National Library in July 1914. She remained there for the next 46 years, heading the library's cataloguing department from January 1948 until her retirement in June 1961. Her success in becoming Spain's first female librarian was reported in the press in 1916. The date of Ángela García Rives' death has not been established but she was apparently still living in 1968 when she was nominated as a candidate for the Medalla del Trabajo. She had received the Civil Order of Alfonso X, the Wise in 1961.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Garcia Rives, Angela 1891 births 20th-century deaths Year of death uncertain People from Madrid Spanish librarians Spanish women librarians Complutense University of Madrid alumni Recipients of the Civil Order of Alfonso X, the Wise