At a ceremony to mark the 70th anniversary of the establishment of the National Library of Korea (NLK) on May 14, Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Kim Jong-deok displayed a book on which he had written his signature. The book was important because it was the 10 millionth book NLK added to its shelves, ranking it 15th in the world in terms of book volume.
NLK is Korea’s representative library. It’s charged with collecting and preserving all publications and materials being printed in Korea. The library’s collection of 10 million books signifies the fact that creative capacities Korea have accumulated and Korean culture and literature sectors have reached world-class levels.
The library dates back to October 1945 when it opened at a location in Sogong-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul, with some 280,000 books the Japanese Imperial Government’s library possessed. NLK has maintained explosive growth, as the library topped 1 million books shortly before the 1988 Seoul Summer Olympic Games, 5 million books in 2004 and 10 million books in 2015, representing a 30-fold jump since its establishment.
Library users totaled 1,621,100 last year.
The library tries to keep up with the trend of digitalization. NLK aims at digitalizing 2.5 million books, which are allowed to be transferred among libraries under a law governing patents. The library plans to digitalize 250,000 books this year.
In his speech at the 70th anniversary event, MCST Minister Kimt, said, “NLK has served as a wise friend of people as a hub of national knowledge information resources, compiling capabilities of Korean culture and literature.” The library’s 70-year history and 10 million books are a solid foundation for the nation to cope with rapid change in the future, he said.
NLK Chief Executive Lim Won-soon said in a message posted on library’s website, “The National Library, founded in 1945, is a comprehensive and treasured repository of national literature from domestic publications to digital information that has been systematically organized for all citizens.”
“Responding to the changes in the modern era, the Library is building an extensive collection of digital resources as well as books and other paper documents,” he said. “In order to provide advanced information services, the library is making efforts to implement such projects as The Library at Your Fingertips, through which people can have access to the library whenever and wherever they want.”
“The dramatic and rapid changes that have taken place in information technology during the past decades are expected to usher in an era of smart technology that will have a huge impact on libraries worldwide,” Lim said.
He added: “The National Library of Korea strongly believes that knowledge and information is one of the most significant resources for national development. The Library will put the intellectual achievements of our ancestors together with the high-end digital resources of today to serve as a living information repository.”
“Furthermore, the National Library of Korea will take a very active role in the global library community through collaborative relationships with libraries and institutions,”
