East Asian Language Collections
The National Library of Australia began collecting publications about Asia in the early 1950s. A separate section responsible for Asian language materials was formally established in 1962. Since then the Library has developed its East Asian language collections with particular emphasis on modern history, politics and government, economics, sociology, customs and folklore, defence, mathematics, statistics, archaeology and fine arts. An extensive reference collection has also been built up.
The East Asian language collections consist primarily of monographs, serials and microforms in Chinese, Japanese and Korean. By mid-1994 340,000 volumes of monographs were held, of which 224,000,000 were in Chinese, 91,000 in Japanese and 25,000 in Korean. In addition there were some 11,000 serial titles, and extensive microform holdings. Other East Asian languages including Manchu, Mongolian and Tibetan are also represented in the collection.
The Chinese collection has gained strength from the acquisition of collections originally owned by Fang Chao- ying, W.P. Yetts, Walter Simon, Herbert Giles, Otto van der Sprenkel, Wei Tung- fang, Audrey Donnithorne, the London Missionary Society and the Australian Buddhist Library. There are also extensive holdings of Chinese series (ts'ung shu). Special emphasis in developing the collections has been placed upon modern China since 1911. Over 4,000 titles of Chinese periodicals and newspapers relating to this period are held by the Library. The Chinese collection also contains important works on politics and government, economics, sociology, local history, archaeology and fine arts.
In Japanese, the Library has acquired the collection of General Sakakibara covering civil and military history and of Dr Tadashi Nakano on economics and the Japanese economy. Other important acquisitions include an extensive collection of biographical works and microfilms of Japanese archives on foreign affairs and army and navy activities. The Japanese collection, like the Chinese, is strong in modern history, the social sciences, particularly economics and politics, and fine arts. In addition, the Library holds more than 4,500 Japanese official and non- official serial titles.
The Library's holdings of Korean materials, including the McLaren- Human collection and 1,400 serial titles, are mainly in the fields of history, government, foreign relations, literature and Buddhism.
Works on Asia in Western languages are housed with the main body of the National Library's collections and access to these may be obtained through the catalogues in the Catalogue Room on the Ground Floor.
Services
The Asian Collections Reading Room on the Third Floor is open to readers from 9.00am to 4.45pm Monday to Friday. Library staff, fluent in Chinese, Japanese and Korean are available for consultation. At times when the reading room is closed, readers may use Asian language materials in the Petherick Reading Room by prior arrangement.
In the Asian Collections Reading Room, besides reference works for immediate use, there are public catalogues including the name, subject, serials and union catalogues, which enable readers to locate works held in the National Library and in other Australian and certain overseas libraries.
Access to the Collections
Readers can use books in Asian Collections by asking the Reading Room staff for a particular book which will be brought to them. Stack passes may be given to readers who need to browse the collections and select their own books.
The Library's online catalogue is available through AARNet. It is called janus.nla.gov.au and includes romanised Chinese, Japanese and Korean records.
Subject to certain limitations, Asian language materials are available for inter- library loan throughout Australia.
Enquiries including inter-library loan requests should be addressed to :
Asian Collections
National Library of Australia
Canberra ACT 2600
Telephone: (02) 62621519
Facsimile: (02) 62734327
E-mail: asiancol@nla.gov.au
