|
|
Israel
|
Directory Information
|
The Jewish National and University Library in Jerusalem serves a dual purpose as the National Library of Israel (and inherently of the entire Jewish people) and as the central library of the Hebrew University. The Library was begun in 1884 as a small collection mostly donated by European philanthropists, which merged with the library of the Bnei Brith Lodge in Jerusalem in 1892. In 1920 the World Zionist Organization took responsibility for its operation and named it "the Jewish National Library. "
In 1925 the Library was incorporated into the newly founded Hebrew University and was renamed the Jewish National and University Library. The Library was destroyed during the War of Independence, then rebuilt on the campus of the Hebrew University.
The Library, which grew to more than 3,000,000 volumes by the early 1990s, collects material about Israel, Palestine, Jews, and Judaism; material written by Jews regardless of the place of publication; and books written in Hebrew script or in a Jewish language. Priority is given to acquiring Hebrew and Jewish manuscripts, incunabula, and rare books. Private donors and organizations from all parts of the world have collected and sent books and archives to JNUL, and every effort was made to find and collect material salvaged from the Jewish communities annihilated by the Nazis in Europe during World War 11. Since 1933, the JNUL has received two copies of any book published in Israel as legal deposit.
The JNUL's collection of Judaica and related subjects is one of the finest in the world. The Library also contains one of the largest and best-organized collections on Arabic and Islamic subjects in the Middle East. In its permanent collection, there are more than 200 incunabula, 11,000 original manuscripts, 47,000 reproductions of manuscripts, and 200,000 reproductions of fragments.
The JNUL's activities include publishing Kiryat Sefer, an annotated bibliography which includes entries for all imprints on Israel, Jews, and Judaica published in Israel and abroad; critical reviews of books; bibliographical research; and descriptive articles about important rare items in the JNUL's collections. The Library also publishes a bibliography of periodical literature called Index of Articles on Jewish Studies, which covers journals and serials from all parts of the world.
Statistics & Contacts
f 1892; 4,000,000 vols, including those in departmental libraries; 10,000 MSS; 49,000 fil. I Hebrem, MSS; microfilms of Jewish and Israeli newspapers; 200 incunabula (1 20 Hebrew and 80 in other languages); 15,000 current periodicals; special collections include the -Abraham Schwadron Collection of Jewish Autographs and Portraits, the Harry Friedenwald Collection on the History of Medicine, the National Sound Archives and the Jacob Michael Collection of Jewish Music, the Sidney M. Edelstein Collection on the History of Chemistry, the Eran Laor Cartographic Collection, the Archives of Albert Einstein Dir Prof. SARA JAPHET, publs Kiryat Sefer (bibliography, quarterly), Index of Articles on Jewish Studies (annually).
Sources:
|