Documents on library science

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In Hungary, it is the Library of Book History, Library and Information Science (Hungarian abbreviation: KSZK) that operates as a collection of nation-wide scope of authority in the field of professional literature on library and information science. As a member library of the National Document Supply System (Hungarian abbreviation: ODR), KSZK provides the entire Hungarian librarian community, and foreign colleagues as well, with relevant documents and information.

Library of Book History, Library and Information Science is the biggest collection of its discipline, with its stock exceeding 100,000 items. It was founded in 1949, within the framework of Hungary’s National Library Center.

Scope of collection of KSZK includes:

  • Library and information science,
  • Librarianship and information work,
  • Workflow in librarianship information service,
  • History of printing houses, books, periodicals, reading and libraries.

It also collects literature on borderline disciplines such as automation, cultural history, theory of communications, etc.

As far as its timeframe and regional coverage are concerned, the collection is rather diverse. The entire Hungarian professional literature can be found in KSZK (from the mid-19th century when the first publications of the kind came out), and also selected international professional literature (German and French library literature from the 19th century onwards, British an US literature from the turn of the century and almost all of the documents published in the one-time Soviet Union and in the Soviet-block countries between 1950 and 1990).

The general collection is completed with several special collections containing dissertations, theses, lectures delivered at IFLA conferences, library guides, PR materials, press cuts, photos, libary posters, audiovisual items, library reviews and official travel reports.

KSZK’s collection has been expanded by quite a few heritage collections. At the same time, there have also been institutions, such as Municipal Ervin Szabó Library, which donated their entire library-related sections to KSZK. Municipal Ervin Szabó Library handed over its old stock related to library science: a rich collection of 2,000 volumes comprising major works of the professional literature of the turn of the century. (These items are mainly works once acquired by Ervin Szabó, Béla Kőhalmi and László Dienes).

Related contents:

KSZK website

Online catalogue