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Library
*** Shopping-Tip: Library
:''Alternative meanings:
Library (computer science),
Library (electronics),
Library (biology)''
Image:Chambery interieur mediatheque 600px.jpg Chambéry.html" title="Meaning of right right|300px|thumb|A modern-style library in [[Chambéry.html" title="Meaning of 300px|thumb|A modern-style library in [[Chambéry">right|300px|thumb|A modern-style library in [[Chambéry">300px|thumb|A modern-style library in [[Chambéry">right|300px|thumb|A modern-style library in [[Chambéry
In the traditional sense of the word, a '''library''' is a collection of
books and periodicals. It can refer to an individual's
private library private collection, but more often it is a large collection that is funded and maintained by a
city or
institution. This collection is often used by people who choose not to--or cannot afford to--purchase an extensive collection themselves.
However, with the collection or invention of media other than books for storing information, many libraries are now also repositories and access points for
maps,
print (art) prints or other
artwork,
microfilm,
microfiche,
audio tapes,
Compact disc CDs,
vinyl record LPs,
video tapes and
DVDs, and provide public facilities to access
CD-ROM databases and the
Internet.
Thus, modern libraries are increasingly being redefined as places to get unrestricted access to
information in many formats and from many sources. More recently, libraries are understood as extending beyond the physical walls of a building, providing assistance in navigating and analyzing tremendous amounts of knowledge with a variety of digital tools.
Etymology of the word
The word is derived from
Latin ''liber'', which means "book." Derivations from the
Greek language Greek Βιβλιοθήκη ''Bibliotheke'' (from Βίβλος ''Biblos'', book) are used in at least
German language German,
French language French,
Italian language Italian,
Norwegian language Norwegian,
Spanish language Spanish,
Swedish (language) Swedish,
Danish language Danish,
Polish language Polish,
Portuguese language Portuguese,
Romanian language Romanian,
Russian language Russian,
Serbian language Serbian,
Dutch language Dutch, and of course
Modern Greek. The
English language English word ''bibliotheca'', a synonym for library, also shares this root. Other languages, such as
Icelandic language Icelandic,
Finnish language Finnish,
Estonian language Estonian and
Persian language Persian, use words that derive from their own words for book (''Bokasafn'', ''Kirjasto'', and ''Raamatukogu'' and ''Ketabkhaneh'', respectively). Some European languages use a
cognate of ''library'' to mean ''
bookshop''.
* For more translations of the word, see the
Wiktionary entry for library: [http://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Library].
Image:NYCPubLibRsrchRmMed.JPG New York Public Library.html" title="Meaning of thumb thumb|300px|right|One of two traditional Research Rooms in the main branch of the [[New York Public Library, now equipped with modern computers.html" title="Meaning of 300px|right|One of two traditional Research Rooms in the main branch of the [[New York Public Library">thumb|300px|right|One of two traditional Research Rooms in the main branch of the [[New York Public Library, now equipped with modern computers">300px|right|One of two traditional Research Rooms in the main branch of the [[New York Public Library">thumb|300px|right|One of two traditional Research Rooms in the main branch of the [[New York Public Library, now equipped with modern computers
History
The first libraries were only partly libraries, being composed for the most part of the unpublished records that make up
archives. Archaeological findings from the diggings of the ancient
city-states of
Sumer have revealed temple rooms full of
clay tablets in
cuneiform script. These archives were made up nearly completely of the records of commercial transactions or inventories, with only a few documents touching theological matters or legends. Things were much the same in the
Papyrus based government records of
Ancient Egypt.
Private or personal libraries made up of
non-fiction and
fiction books, (as opposed to the state or institutional records kept in archives) first appeared in
classical Greece. The first ones appeared some time near the
5th century BC. They were filled with
parchment scroll (parchment) scrolls and later on
papyrus scrolls. There were a few institutional or royal libraries like the
Library of Alexandria which were open to an educated public, but on the whole collections were private. In those rare cases where it was possible for a scholar to consult library books there seems to have been no direct access to the stacks. In all recorded cases the books were kept in a relatively small room where the staff went to get them for the readers, who had to consult them in an adjoining hall or covered walkway.
Little is known about early
China Chinese libraries, save what is written about the imperial library which began with the
Qin Dynasty. One of the curators of the imperial library in the
Han Dynasty is believed to have been the first to establish a library classification system and the first book notation system. At this time the library catalog was written on scrolls of fine
silk and stored in silk bags.
Image:Geisel library.jpg University of California, San Diego thumb|325px|right|The Geisel Library at [[University of California, San Diego|UCSD, with its unique
architecture, is a
San Diego, California San Diego landmark..html" title="Meaning of UCSD.html" title="Meaning of thumb|325px|right|The Geisel Library at [[University of California, San Diego|UCSD">thumb|325px|right|The Geisel Library at [[University of California, San Diego|UCSD, with its unique
architecture, is a
San Diego, California San Diego landmark.">UCSD.html" title="Meaning of thumb|325px|right|The Geisel Library at [[University of California, San Diego|UCSD">thumb|325px|right|The Geisel Library at [[University of California, San Diego|UCSD, with its unique
architecture, is a
San Diego, California San Diego landmark.
In
Iran Persia many libraries were established by the
Zoroastrian elite and the
Persian Kings. Among the first ones was a royal library in
Isfahan (city) Isfahan. One of the most important public libraries established around 666 AD in south-western
Iran was the
Library of Gundishapur. It was a part of a bigger scientific complex located at the
Academy of Gundishapur.
In the West, the first public libraries were established under the
Roman Empire as each succeeding emperor strove to open one or many which outshone that of his predecessor. Unlike the Greek libraries readers had direct access to the scrolls, which were kept on shelves built into the walls of a large room. Reading or copying was normally done in the room itself. The records give only a few instances of lending features. As a rule Roman public libraries were bilingual: they had a Latin room and a Greek room. Most of the large
Roman baths were also cultural centers, built from the start with a library, with the usual two room arrangement for Greek and Latin texts.
During the
Early Middle Ages, after the
fall of the Western Roman Empire and before the rise of the large
Christianity Christian monastery libraries,
Islam Islamic libraries knew a period of great expansion in the
Middle East,
North Africa,
Sicily and
Spain. Like the Christian libraries they mostly contained books which were of a
codex or modern form instead of scrolls.
By the
8th century first Iranians and then Arabs had imported the craft of paper making from China, with a mill already at work in
Baghdad in
794. By the
9th century completely public libraries started to appear in many Islamic cities. They were called "halls of Science" or ''dar al-'ilm''. They were each endowed by Islamic sects with the purpose of representing their tenets as well as promoting the dissemination of secular knowledge. The libraries often employed translators and copyists in large numbers, in order to render into Arabic the bulk of the available Persian, Greek and Roman non-fiction and the classics of literature. After but a few centuries many of these libraries were destroyed by
Mongolia Mongolian invasion. Others were victim of wars and religious strife in the Islamic world. However, a few examples of these medieval libraries, such as the libraries of
Chinguetti in
West Africa, remain intact and relatively unchanged even today. Another ancient library from this period which is still operational and expanding is the
Central Library of Astan Quds Razavi in the Iranian city of
Mashhad, which has been operating for more than six centuries
The contents of these Islamic libraries were copied by Christian monks in Muslim/Christian border areas, particularly Spain and Sicily, and from there they eventually made their way into other parts of Christian
Europe.
The design of the
medieval library arose very directly from the fact that these books were manuscripts created via the labor-intensive process of hand copying, and were valuable possessions, were therefore likely to be stolen, and were far too expensive for most people to own. Its architecture derived from the need to chain these books, first to
lecterns and later to
armaria and
bookshelf shelves, in areas that were illuminated by sunlight. Early libraries were located in monastic
cloisters associated with
scriptorium scriptoria and were collections of lecterns with books chained to them. Shelves built above and between back-to-back lecterns were the beginning of
bookpresses. The chain was attached at the fore-edge of a book rather than to its spine. Book presses came to be arranged in
carrel desk carrels (perpendicular to the walls and therefore to the windows) in order to maximize lighting, with low bookcases in front of the windows. This ''stall system'' (fixed bookcases perpendicular to exterior walls pierced by closely spaced windows) was characteristic of
England English institutional libraries. In
Continental Europe Continental libraries, bookcases were arranged parallel to and against the walls. This ''wall system'' was first introduced on a large scale in Spain's
El Escorial.
As books became cheaper, the need for chaining them lessened, but as the number of books in libraries increased, so did the need for compact storage and access with adequate lighting, giving birth to the ''stack system'', which involved keeping a library's collection of books in a space separate from the
reading room, an arrangement which arose in the
19th century. Book stacks quickly evolved into a fairly standard form in which the
cast iron and
steel frameworks supporting the bookshelves also supported the floors, which often were built of translucent blocks to permit the passage of light (but were not transparent, for reasons of modesty). With the introduction of
Electric light electrical lighting, the use of glass floors was largely discontinued, though floors were still often composed of metal grating to allow air to circulate in multi-story stacks.
Ultimately, even more space was needed, and a method of moving shelves on tracks ("
compact shelving") was introduced to cut down on otherwise wasted aisle space.
Types of libraries
Libraries can be divided into categories by several methods:
* by the entity (institution, municipality, or corporate body) that supports or perpetuates it
** school libraries
** private libraries
** corporate libraries
** federal libraries
** academic libraries
** historical society libraries
* by the type of documents or materials it holds
** digital libraries
** picture (photograph) libraries
** slide libraries
**
list of tool-lending libraries tool libraries
* by the subject matter of documents it holds
** architecture libraries
** fine arts libraries
** military libraries
**
medical libraries
**
law libraries
* by the users it serves
** military communities
* by traditional professional divisions:
** '''Academic libraries''' — These libraries are located on the campuses of colleges and universities and serve primarily the students and faculty of that and other academic institutions.
** '''School libraries''' — Most public and private primary and secondary schools have libraries designed to support the curriculum.
** '''Public libraries''' or '''public lending libraries''' — These libraries provide service to the general public and make at least some of their books available for borrowing, so that readers may use them at home over a period of days or weeks. Many public libraries also serve as community organizations that provide free services and events to the public, particularly children.
** '''Special libraries''' — All other libraries fall into this category. Many private businesses and public organizations, including hospitals, museums, research laboratories, law firms, and many government departments and agencies, maintain their own libraries for the use of their employees in doing specialized research related to their work. Special libraries may or may not be accessible to some identified part of the general public.
Also, the governments of most major countries support
national library national libraries. Two noteworthy examples are the U.S.
Library of Congress and the
British Library.
Description
Image:Library book shelves.jpg thumb|right|Libraries almost invariably contain long aisles with rows and rows of books.
Libraries have materials arranged in a specified order according to a
library classification system, so that items may be located quickly and collections may be browsed efficiently. Some libraries have additional galleries beyond the public ones, where reference materials are stored. These reference stacks may be open to selected members of the public. Others require patrons to submit a "stack request," which is a request for an assistant to retrieve the material from the closed stacks. Libraries are often staffed by a
librarian working from a
library reference desk reference desk or information desk to help users find what they are looking for. A
Special Collections department will also provide access to old or rare material.
Library use
Many potential library patrons nevertheless do not know how to use a library effectively. This can be due to lack of early exposure, shyness, or anxiety and fear of displaying ignorance. These problems drove the emergence of the
library instruction movement, which advocates library user education. Library instruction has been practiced in the U.S. since the 19th century. One of the early leaders was
John Cotton Dana, and an example of a more recent leader is
Michael Lorenzen. Library instruction is closely related to the study of
information literacy.
Libraries inform the public of what materials are available in their collections and how to access that information. Before the computer age, this was accomplished by the card
library catalog catalog — a cabinet containing many drawers filled with
index cards that identified books and other materials. In a large library, the card catalog often filled a large room. The emergence of the
Internet, however, has led to the adoption of electronic catalog databases (often referred to as "webcats" or as
OPACs, for "online public access catalog"), which allow users to search the library's holdings from any location with Internet access. This style of catalog maintenance is compatible with new types of libraries, such as
digital library digital libraries and
distributed library distributed libraries, as well as older libraries that have been retrofitted.
Finland has the highest number of registered book borrowers per capita in the world. Over half of Finland´s population are registered borrowers.
Library management
Basic tasks in
library management include the planning of acquisitions (which materials the library should acquire, by purchase or otherwise),
library classification of acquired materials, preservation of materials (especially rare and fragile archival materials such as manuscripts), patron borrowing of materials, and developing and administering library computer systems. More long-term issues include the planning of the construction of new libraries or extensions to existing ones, and the development and implementation of outreach services and reading-enhancement services (such as adult literacy and children's programming).
Funding problems
In the
United States, among other countries, libraries in financially-strapped communities are in the precarious position of being relatively expensive, but justifiably less crucial to the community than absolute necessities, such as
police,
firefighters,
schools, and
health care. (Closing libraries to fund police forces might be viewed as
false economy if the library system keeps a large percentage of the population's youth occupied, the argument being that it helps keep them "off the street" and out of trouble, and perhaps reduces the crime rate by helping improve the overall education level of the local populace.)
At any rate, many communities are beginning to feel they have no option but to close down or reduce the capability of their library systems to balance their budgets. In
December 2004,
Salinas, California almost became the first city in the United States to completely close down its entire library system. Many other communities are dangerously close to a similar outcome.
Image:Bibliotheque alencon 670px.jpg right|300px|thumb|Library of Alençon (built c.1800)
Some famous libraries
Some of the greatest libraries in the world are research libraries. The most famous ones include The Humanities and Social Sciences Library of the
New York Public Library in
Education in New York City New York City, the
British Library in
London,
Bibliothèque nationale de France in
Paris, and the
Library of Congress in
Washington, D.C..
*
Assurbanipal's library at
Nineveh
*
Bibliothèque Nationale de France (BNF) in
Paris
*
Bodleian Library at
University of Oxford
*
British Library in
London
*
British Library of Political and Economic Science in
London
*
Cambridge University Library at
University of Cambridge
*
Carolina Rediviva at
Uppsala University
*
Dutch Royal Library in
The Hague
*
Egypt's ancient
Library of Alexandria and modern
Bibliotheca Alexandrina
*
Fisher Library at the
University of Sydney (largest in the Southern Hemisphere)
*
Free Library of Philadelphia in
Philadelphia
*
Garrison Library in
Gibraltar
*
Harold B. Lee Library at
Brigham Young University, one of the largest single-building university libraries in the world
*
Widener Library at
Harvard University in the city of Cambridge (the largest academic library in the world)
*
Jenkins Law Library in
Philadelphia
*
John Rylands Library in
Manchester
*
Leiden University Library at
Leiden University in
Leiden
*
Library of Congress in
Washington, D.C.
*
Library of Sir Thomas Browne
*
National Library of Australia in
Canberra,
Australia
*
New York Public Library in
New York City New York
*
Osler Library of the History of Medicine,
McGill University,
Montreal,
Canada
*
Iran Persia's ancient
Library of Gondishapur
*
Russian National Library in
St Petersburg
*
Russian State Library in
Moscow
*
Royal Library, Copenhagen Royal Library in
Copenhagen
*
Staatsbibliothek in
Berlin
*
Vatican Library in
Vatican City
Image:Library of Congress.jpg thumb|300px|Library of Congress
Other libraries:
* The St. Phillips Church Parsonage Provincial Library, established in
1698 in Charleston, South Carolina, was the first public lending library in the American Colonies. ''See also''
Benjamin Franklin's free
public library in
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
*
Boston Public Library, an early public lending library in America, was established in
1848.
*
Haskell Free Library and Opera House, "The only library in America with no books".
* St. Marys Church, Reigate, Surrey houses the first public lending library in England. Opened
14 March 1701.
Some libraries devoted to a single subject:
*
Chess libraries
*
Esperanto library Esperanto libraries
*
Family History Library in
Salt Lake City, Utah, the world's largest genealogy library.
For more extensive lists, see
*
:Category:Libraries List of libraries that are the subject of a article
*
List of libraries
*
List of national libraries
*
List of university libraries
See also
*
Bookend
*
Bookcase
*
Carnegie library Carnegie libraries
*
Controlled vocabulary
*
Dewey Decimal Classification
*
Digital reference services
*
Interlibrary loan
*
Librarian
*
Library and information science
*
Library of Congress Classification
*
Library of Congress Subject Headings
*
Library 2.0
*
Literature
*
open access
*
Public library
*
Public Library of Science
*
Slide library
*
Tool-lending Libraries
External links
{{Commons|Library}}
*
:wikisource: Wikisource, ''The Free Library''
-
Libraries : Frequently Asked Questions
-
LibLinks - Directory of library resource links organized by US states
-
LibWeb - Directory of Library servers via WWW
-
Private Libraries in Ancient Rome
-
International Federation of Library Associations and Institutions
-
Professional Library Associations from Jenkins Law Library
-
A Library Primer, by John Cotton Dana, 1903, setting out the basics of organising and running a library
-
"The Infinite Library," Technology Review article on the
Google Library Project.
-
American Library Association's list of largest libraries
-
Libros en español (spanish,english)
-
"How did public libraries get started?" from ''
The Straight Dope''
Category:Library and information science
be:бібліÑ?Ñ‚Ñ?ка
da:Bibliotek
de:Bibliothek
eo:Biblioteko
es:Biblioteca
fa:کتابخانه
fi:Kirjasto ja informaatiotieteet
fr:Bibliothèque
he:ספרייה
hu:Könyvtár (intézmény)
it:Biblioteca
id:Perpustakaan
ja:図書館
ko:�서관
la:Bibliotheca
nl:Bibliotheek
nn:Bibliotek
pl:Biblioteka
ro:Bibliotecă
ru:Библиотека
simple:Library
sv:Bibliotek
th:ห้à¸à¸‡à¸ªà¸¡à¸¸à¸”
tl:Aklatan
zh:图书馆
{{Shortcut|
WP:Lib}}
The purpose of this project is to create a list of books that people own, particularly reference books. That way, if facts come into question, we can easily ask someone with a relevant authoritative text to help resolve problems.
Books
*
/Fiction Fiction
* Non fiction
**
/Places Places, local geography & travel
**
/History History
**
/Science Science, mathmatics, medicine & nature
**
/Technology Technology & computer science
**
/Philosophy Philosophy
**
/Social science Social science & anthropology
**
/Reference Reference & encyclopaedias
**
/Religion Religious & religious studies
=Popular Music
=
*''The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits'', Joel Whitburn, 2000 (7th ed.) (
User:Bumm13 Bumm13)
=Culinary
=
==Wine
==
*''The Oxford Companion to Wine'', edited by
Jancis Robinson, 1994. (
User:Jimbo Wales Jimbo Wales)
=Biographies
=
*
Douglas Adams Adams, Douglas: ''Hitchiker: Douglas Adams'', M.J. Simpson, 2003. (
User:Steinsky Joe D User talk:Steinsky (t))
*
Bill Clinton Clinton, Bill: ''My Life''; Hutchinson 2004 -
User:Ta bu shi da yu Ta bu shi da yu
*
Julian Huxley Huxley, Julian: ''Memories'', auto, 1970 (
User:Steinsky Joe D User talk:Steinsky (t))
*
Bertrand Russell Russell, Bertrand: ''Russell'', A.J. Ayer, 1972. (
User:Steinsky Joe D User talk:Steinsky (t))
*''
Genghis Khan His Life and Legacy''; Paul Ratchnevesky 1991 -
User:Rentastrawberry Rentastrawberry
=Other
=
* ''The Book of Heroic Failures, or the Official Handbook of the Not Terribly Good Club of Great Britain''; Stephen Pile; Penguin Books 1979
User:Ta bu shi da yu Ta bu shi da yu
* ''The Return of Heroic Failures''; Stephen Pile; Penguin Books 1988
User:Ta bu shi da yu Ta bu shi da yu
*
Harvard Classics 1909
#fn_7_back Note 7:
*
Syntopicon 1952
#fn_8_back Note 8:
*
Propaedia 1975: ISBN 0-85229-297-X 1989: ISBN 0-85229-493-X
#fn_9_back Note 9:
*Barbara Ann Kipfer
1997, ''The World of Order and Organization'': How things are arranged into hierarchies, structures, and pecking orders. Random House. ISBN 0-517-20868-7
#fn_11_back Note 11:
Members
# User:Danny Danny 00:59, 16 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:Adam Bishop Adam Bishop 01:29, 16 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:Bumm13 Bumm13 01:39, 16 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:Jimbo Wales Jimbo Wales 02:29, 16 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:Steinsky Joe D User talk:Steinsky (t) 20:02, 27 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:spm Smári 20:15, 27 Oct 2004 (UTC)
# User:Ta bu shi da yu Ta bu shi da yu 11:51, 6 Jan 2005 (UTC)
# User:Neutrality NeutralityUser talk:Neutrality talk 05:09, Jan 7, 2005 (UTC)
# User:Paul August Paul August User_talk:Paul August ☎ 03:24, Jan 18, 2005 (UTC)
#User:Ancheta Wis#fn_1 1 #fn_2 2 #fn_3 3 #fn_4 4 #fn_5 5 #fn_6 6 #fn_7 7 #fn_8 8 #fn_9 9 #fn_10 10 #fn_11 11 #fn_24 24 09:51, 5 Feb 2005 (UTC)
# User:Kingturtle Kingturtle 03:32, 5 May 2005 (UTC)
# User:Llywrch llywrch 00:58, 31 May 2005 (UTC)
Category: resources for researchers
de: :Bibliothek
This page is part of the
:Library library, a list of a reference books owned by ns for the purpose of checking the accuracy of wikipedia articles.
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