Bhutan
The National Library of Bhutan was established in 1967 with the objective
of collecting and preserving ancient Bhuanese and Tibetan literary and
scriptural documents dealing with the religion, culture, traditions. and
history of the country. It has a Branch Library at Kungarabten Dzong, Tongsa
district, and a Public Library in the capital, Thimpu. The National Library
acquires material in three ways: purchase, exchange, and gift. Purchase
remains the most important method, but the others contribute significantly
to the collection. For example, in 1978 the National Library acquired the
Tibetan Buddhist Canon (Kanjur and Menjur) from the Beijing edition of
the complete works of the Sakyapa Masters by exchange with the Reiyukai
Library in Tokyo. Also, E. G. Smith, Field Director of the Library of Congress
in New Delhi, over the years donated more than 800 volumes of current Tibetan
publications. The government is making efforts to develop the National
Museum at Paro, one of the prominent cities of the country, where a large
collection of national archival materials is being organized.
Sources:
World encyclopedia of library and information services. 3rd ed. Chicago:
American Library Association, c1993.