Laos 


Directory Information

 Formal Name:     Bibliotheque Nationale du Laos
 Address:             Ministry of Information and Culture, BP 122, Vientiane
 Phone:   (021) 212452, 222485;    Fax:    212408

Collections

The National Library of Laos in Vientiane includes the National Museum and National Archives. On the grounds of the School of Fine Arts, it is under the direction of the Ministry of Education. Its holdings are about 50,000 volumes in Lao, English, and French, the degree of continuity in its operations allowed by the government is uncertain. Prior to the declaration of a people's republic in 1975, the National Library received aid from the French and U.S. governments, private foundations, and Western scholars. For example, the Rockefeller Foundation presented 9,000 volumes, mainly in French, on a wide range of subjects; the Asia Foundation and the U.S. Library of Congress made other contributions. In 1974 the former Director of the National Library, Prachit Soulisak, told a representative of the U.S. Library of Congress that he had compiled a list of 84,000 titles available in Lao at various temples and libraries throughout the country; he said the list gave the location of each item.

Publications

The National Library of Laos published Lao National Bibliography in three volumes (1968- 72). The Director of the National Library compiled Bibliographie de Laos, Institut Francaise d'Extreme Orient, with a supplement covering the years 1962-70.



Sources:

World guide to libraries. New York: Saur, 1998.
World encyclopedia of library and information services. 3rd ed. Chicago: American Library Association, c1993.