Ostend (Brussels Morning Newspaper) – The Raversyde Provincial Domain in Ostend seeks help to decode a 1943 diary in Groote’s shorthand. Jürgen Valerberghe, Sarah Dalle; AI and volunteers invited.
As VRT News reported, the Raversyde Provincial Domain in Ostend is calling on the public to help decipher a diary from 1943. Provincial Executive Member Jurgen Valerberghe (Vooruit) said the document could provide a rare glimpse into daily life in Ostend during the German occupation.
“This diary may reveal how people lived, worked, and coped with the war,”
he said. Museum staff can read only a few words so far, which makes the diary difficult to understand.
“The entire diary is written in shorthand, a form of abbreviated writing,”
says researcher Sarah Dalle of Atlantikwall Raversyde.What Can Experts Reveal in Ostend’s 1943 Groote Diary?
The diary is written in a special shorthand, believed to have been created by Dutch General Arnold Willem Groote. The system writes letters and words in a simplified, phonetic way. Words are often joined in one continuous motion, and common terms are abbreviated. The method was designed to save time, but it makes reading the diary a challenge now.
The diary includes a translation key that explains some of the shorthand symbols used by its author. Many entries contain political terms, including “mayor,” “city council member,” and “receipts.”
“For someone who isn’t a shorthand reader, it’s incredibly difficult and time-consuming to decipher the text.” That’s why the provincial government is launching a call for help. “Those who are familiar with shorthand can read the text much more easily,”
says Dalle.
“So we hope a specialist will come forward, and that the texts can offer interesting insights into World War I and regional history.”
Provincial Executive Member Jurgen Valerberghe said,
“For someone who doesn’t know this system, reading the diary is very hard and takes a lot of time.”
To help unlock its secrets, the provincial government is calling on experts, historians, and volunteers to assist. The museum has also explored using artificial intelligence to decode the text. However, no AI system exists that can read this type of shorthand automatically.
“We would first need to develop and train a special AI model, which could take even longer than manual decoding,”
Vanlerberghe explained. He added that AI specialists who are up for the challenge are welcome to contact the museum.
The Raversyde Provincial Domain in Ostend has been preserving World War history since it opened as an open-air museum in 1984. The site displays a wide range of artefacts from both the First and Second World Wars, including bunkers, military equipment, and historical documents.
Among its collection is a diary from 1943, which the museum acquired several years ago. Over the years, the museum has focused on preserving such documents and studying them to reveal life in occupied Belgium.
