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Country report. Japan 2005
13th CDNLAO Meeting, 2005
(Back to main CDNLAO meetings page)
The National Diet Library in FY2004
The NDL has been continuing its efforts to providing better service through its three facilities, that is, the Tokyo Main Library, the Kansai-kan and the International Library of Children’s Literature. The NDL drew up its “NDL Vision 2004” in January 2004, which specifies four priority areas: 1.Enhancement of legislative support function, 2. Creation of digital archives, 3. Improvement of access to information resources, and 4. Promotion of cooperation.
To give a concrete shape to one of the priority areas of the Vision “creation of digital archives”, the NDL formulated the NDL Digital Library Medium Term Plan 2004 and throughout FY2004 it worked hard to expand the digital contents it provides via its website.
The NDL also introduced an evaluation system to inform the people of its performance. In the framework of the evaluation system, the NDL sets up specific objectives and standards every fiscal year to fulfill the NDL Vision 2004 and publishes the results of the evaluation in the following fiscal year. Through these efforts, it will continue to improve its services.
After about a year of remodeling, the Tokyo Main Library launched several new services on October 1, 2004. In this renewal the NDL made drastic changes to its infrastructure system. Now most of the materials are requested directly on the NDL-OPAC terminal in the Library.
The Legal Deposit System Council submitted a report to the Librarian of the National Diet Library in December, 2004, which said that Internet information should be acquired without any content-based selection. The NDL is now working on making it into the law.
Board of Inquiry on Expansion of Library Services of the International Library of Children’s Literature, which was set up in September 2004 to study the future development of the services as a national juvenile literature center, submitted a report to the Librarian of the National Diet Library in March 16.
Library Administration
In Japan the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology is responsible for library administration. Though the NDL belongs to the legislative branch and has no power to administrate libraries in Japan, it has responsibility to assist them by every appropriate means.
(1) Library Organizational Structure (National Map) (as of 2004)
(i.e.) Number of
- Library Councils/Associations/Foundations
Associations |
17 |
Councils |
16 |
Learned societies |
12 |
Study groups, etc. |
18 |
- Public Libraries 2,825
- Academic Libraries 1,643
- Special/Private Libraries 975 (as of 2003)
- Government Libraries 159 (as of 2003)
References: Statistics on Libraries in Japan 2004
Directory of Special Libraries, Japan 2003(2) New Libraries that are being built (av. Annually, how many last FY)
New libraries built in 2003:
Public Libraries |
66 |
Academic Libraries |
29 |
Reference: Library Year Book 2004
Collection Profile
- Total volume of collection at the national level (as of 2004)
Public Libraries |
333,962,000 |
Academic Libraries |
290,155,000 |
Special/Private Libraries |
Approximately 26,101,000 (as of 2003) |
Government Libraries |
Approximately 11,306,000 (as of 2003) |
National Diet Library |
8,145,191 (as of March 2003, books only) |
References: Statistics on Libraries in Japan 2004
Directory of Special Libraries, Japan 2003
Annual Report of the National Diet Library (FY2003)
- Unique Collections/Rare Collections (describe)
Major collections of the National Diet Library:
Modern Japanese Political History Documents
Collections of private papers which trace Japanese modern political history in and after the latter half of the 19th century. The 300,000 items comprise mainly diaries, letters, drafts and memorandums once owned by eminent statesmen, diplomats, military men, government officials and businessmen who were involved in Japan’s modern politics.Materials on the Allied Occupation of Japan
A microform collection of documents concerning the Allied Occupation of Japan in the post WWⅡ period. Main part of the collection comprises documents of GHQ/SCAP(General Headquarters, Supreme Commander for the Allied Powers) currently owned by the U.S. National Archives & Record Administration.Laws and Parliamentary Records
The greatest collection of laws and parliamentary materials in Japan, comprising 170,000 Japanese and 200,000 foreign books, 370,000 volumes in total, and 620,000 items in microform. They include minutes and other parliamentary documents of about 70 countries and areas, and official gazettes, statutes, court reports and treaties of about 150 countries.Map Collection
Approximately 440,000 domestic and foreign maps. A collection of official maps of Japan since the Meiji Era, such as topographic maps, geological maps and hydrographic charts, and topographic and other kinds of maps of foreign countries.Musical Materials
Approximately 500,000 copies of phonographic records and CDs issued in Japan are held by the Library.Foreign Books on Japan
Since the era of the Imperial Library, the predecessor of the NDL, books on Japan written in foreign languages have been given high priority in the acquisition policy.Science and Technology Materials
The collection includes technical reports, doctoral dissertations of foreign countries, papers of academic associations, proceedings in western languages, national and international standards, and patents of foreign countries.Rare Books and Old Materials
The NDL holds about 300,000 volumes of rare books, semi-rare books, Japanese old books up to the Edo Period, Chinese old books up to the Ch'ing Dynasty, Dutch books, etc. They include special collections such as The Tokugawa Shogunate Government Succession Documents, Ito Bunko, Shirai Bunko, and Shinjo Bunko."The Ito Bunko, The Shirai Bunko"
These two collections comprise a combined total of about 8,000 handwritten and block-printed books produced from the Edo to the Meiji Period on the subject of "honzo" or medicinal herbs."The Shinjo Bunko"
This is a collection of 11,000 items of old writings on astronomy and calendars.Asian Materials
The collection contains materials in Chinese, Korean and other Asian languages as well as Japanese and Western languages concerning East Asia, Southeast Asia, South Asia, Central Asia, the Middle East and North Africa.Reference: National Diet Library booklet (2005)
- Bibliographies and Indexes Published
Bibliographies and indexes published by the National Diet Library in FY 2004:
a) Catalog of Books
Book Catalog
Japanese National Bibliography Weekly List (Weekly)
CD-R
JAPAN/MARC(M) [Japanese National Bibliography (Books)] (1977-) (Weekly)
CD-ROM
J-BISC [Japanese National Bibliography (Books)] Current Edition (1992-) (6/Y)b) Catalog of Serials
CD-R
JAPAN/MARC(S) [Japanese National Bibliography (Serials)] (2/Y)c) Japanese Periodicals Index
CD-R
National Diet Library Japanese Periodicals Index CD-R (25/Y)
HD or DAT
National Diet Library Japanese Periodicals Index (1948-2003)d) Special Bibliographies
NDL CD-ROM Line: National Union Catalog of Braille and Recorded Books (2/Y)Reference:
Guide to available NDL publication (Supplement), National Diet Library Monthly Bulletin, February 2005
- National Databases
a) Web-accessible NDL databases and information services:
National Diet Library Online Public Access Catalog (NDL-OPAC)
NDL holdings and the Japanese Periodicals Index are searchable in both Japanese and English.
NDL Asian Language Materials OPAC
Japanese National Bibliography Weekly List
Books on Japan
Database Navigation Service (Dnavi)
Directory of Japanese Scientific Periodicals
Bibliography of Persons in Modern Japanese PoliticsReference: National Diet Library website http://www.ndl.go.jp/en/data/opac.html
b) Union Catalogs managed by the NDL
National Union Catalog Network
Union Catalog of Newspapers in Japan Database
National Union Catalog of Braille and Recorded Books (included in NDL-OPAC)
ILCL Union Catalog Database of Children's LiteratureReference: National Diet Library website http://www.ndl.go.jp/jp/library/backlist_network.html
Services
- Reference Services (any new initiatives, etc)
a) NDL has been developing the Collaborative Reference Database System as a three-year trial project. It collects and makes available reference inquiries and answers to them provided by the NDL and other libraries in Japan.
b) NDL is also developing a Reference Information System that consists of several databases useful for reference services. - Lending Services
Volumes lent out: (as of FY 2003)
Public Libraries |
624,281,000 |
Academic Libraries |
30,097,895 |
Government Libraries * |
193,772 |
National Diet Library |
44,024 |
*Statistics of national government libraries only
References: Statistics on Libraries in Japan 2004
Annual Report of the National Diet Library (FY2003)
- National Bibliographic (Agency) Services
Provision of the national bibliography
“Japanese National Bibliography” is available on the NDL website http://www.ndl.go.jp/jp/publication/jnbwl/jnb_top.html. It is published weekly on the Internet and covers books, serials and electronic publications. In FY 2003, it started to cover maps, audio-visual materials and Asian materials published in Japan.
- Digital Library Services (Digital Library services and projects of the NDL)
(1) The following online catalogs, bibliography and databases are available on the NDL website.http://www.ndl.go.jp/en/index.html
a) NDL-OPAC (National Diet Library Online Public Access Catalog) http://opac.ndl.go.jp/ covers books, serials and newspapers in Japanese and Western languages, Japanese Periodicals Index, Japanese doctoral dissertations, digital resources, standards, technical reports, etc. Registered users can request online copying service.
b) NDL Asian Language Materials OPAC http://asiaopac.ndl.go.jp/index_e.html covers Asian books and periodicals.
c) Japanese National Bibliography Weekly List (see “National Bibliographic (Agency) Services”)
d) Books on Japan http://www.ndl.go.jp/en/publication/books_on_japan/boj_top_E.html provides bibliographic information of books on Japan in Western languages processed by the National Diet Library (NDL) in and after 2002 on a quarterly basis.
e) The Directory of Japanese Scientific Periodicals Database covers serials on science and technology edited and published by organizations operating in Japan.
f) Full-Text Database System for the Minutes of the Diet
http://kokkai.ndl.go.jp/ offers search and full-text display of debates in the plenary sessions and committee meetings of both Houses since the 1st session (May, 1947).
g) Rare Books Image Database provides colorful images from the collections of the NDL published mostly in the Edo Period. Image data can be searched and viewed for enjoyment.
h) Digital Library from the Meiji Era is an image database of the books published in the Meiji Period held by the NDL.
i) Electronic Exhibition includes “Rare Books of the National Diet Library”, “Nippon in the World”, “Birth of the Constitution of Japan”, “The Japanese Calendar”, “Japanese Ex-libris Stamps”, “Portraits of Modern Japanese Historical Figures”, “Incunabula-Dawn of Western Printing”, etc.(2) The NDL is conducting the following three test projects:
a) Dnavi (Database Navigation Service) help users to find databases on the Internet.
b) WARP (Web Archiving Project) collects and preserves websites and online periodicals on the Internet as cultural heritage.
c) Collaborative Reference Database System collects and provides reference inquiries and answers to them provided by the NDL and other libraries in Japan.
- Inter-library loan and Exchange services
NDL holdings are available from overseas through university libraries or other community libraries by the inter-library loan service, provided under some conditions.
The guideline on how to apply for the international loan service is on the NDL website. http://www.ndl.go.jp/en/service/oversea/index.html
- Special Services – (eg. Disadvantaged, etc.)
Since April 2002 the NDL has been producing recorded academic literature in DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System) format CD-ROM.
Training
- Number of Professional Librarians (as of 2004)
Public Libraries |
full-time librarian |
7,217 |
full-time staff |
7,447 |
|
concurrent librarian |
126 |
|
concurrent staff |
1,218 |
|
part-time librarian |
3,863.3** |
|
part-time staff |
2,771.2** |
|
temporary librarian |
2,259.3** |
|
temporary staff |
4,121.8** |
|
Academic Libraries |
full-time staff (including librarians) |
7,132 |
concurrent staff (including librarians) |
1,418 |
|
part-time staff (including librarians) |
2,243 |
|
temporary staff (including librarians) |
2,509 |
|
Government Libraries* |
full-time staff (including librarians) |
130 (as of 2003) |
concurrent staff (including librarians) |
90(as of 2003) |
|
National Diet Library |
full-time staff (including librarians) |
939 |
*Statistics of national government libraries only
**Calculated based on one person = 1,500 working hours / yearReferences: Statistics on Libraries in Japan 2004
Directory of Special Libraries, Japan 2003
- Number of Library training schools
Number of schools that have courses for librarians and for teacher librarians: (as of FY2004)
For librarians |
242 |
For teacher librarians |
72 |
Reference: Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology website http://www.mext.go.jp/a_menu/shougai/gakugei/shisyo/04040502.htm
http://www.mext.go.jp/b_menu/gyouji/2000/000602a.htmCopyright
Number of Copyright Clearance Centres 33
Reference: Agency for Cultural Affairs website http://www.bunka.go.jp/ejigyou/script/ipzenframe.asp
From the IFLA/PAC Regional Centre for Asia
1. Creation of the directory and mailing list of the preservation organizations in Asia
There are three national libraries designated as IFLA/PAC regional centres in the Asia-Oceania region: The National Diet Library, Japan, is the regional centre for Asia, the National Library of Australia is the centre for Oceania and Southeast Asia and the National Library of China is the centre for China. The centre at the National Diet Library is responsible for the whole Asian region while the National Library of Australia is for Oceania and Southeast Asia and the National Library of China is domestic. Although the National Library of Australia disseminates PAC publications around Southeast Asia and the National Diet Library does so around the rest of Asia (the National Library of China takes charge of its domestic dissemination), apart from this, the National Diet Library works for Southeast Asia in cooperation with the National Library of Australia.
The centre at the National Diet Library wishes to develop closer contacts with the major preservation organizations in Asia and facilitate the information sharing on preservation through the centre actively gathering and disseminating the information. This is the reason the centre is now creating a mailing group for the whole Asian region.
The centre at the National Diet Library will be grateful if each attending country here will send e-mails to the following address giving the names and e-mail addresses of the people who are in charge of preservation in major organizations.
pacasia@ndl.go.jp
Mr. Masaki Nasu, Director, IFLA/PAC Regional Centre for AsiaThe centre at the National Library of Australia and the centre at the National Diet Library conducted a joint survey on preservation needs in Asia in 1992. It is assumed that the needs of each country must have changed since then in step with the altering information environment. Another survey should be done in the near future. In the meantime the centre at the National Diet Library asks each national library to send e-mails to the above address and let it know any substantial changes, the status reports and any request to the centre.
2. Meeting of the directors of the IFLA/PAC regional centres in Asia/ Lecture meeting on the damage caused by the Indian Ocean Tsunami
The centre at the National Diet Library will hold the above meetings from late November to early December this year.
The National Library of China was designated as a regional centre last year and another centre is expected in Southeast Asia and/or South Asia. Under this circumstance the meeting of the directors will aim at discussing burden sharing and cooperation among the centres. It will also attempt to specify the preservation needs around Asia in the new information environment such as digital information so that the preservation activities around Asia will fully develop.
A lecture meeting on the damage caused by the Indian Ocean Tsunami will be held at the same time. It will be an occasion to figure out how Japan and other countries will be able to support the recovery through their cooperation with the IFLA relief program now under consideration as well as to raise awareness of disaster prevention.