What libraries are for: history, types and reviews

2024 Author: Henry Conors | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-02-12 02:55

An amazing creation of people is a book, and libraries are an integral part of the culture of every country. Likhachev Dmitry Sergeevich once correctly said that if the book depositories are properly organized, then culture can really be revived, even if educational institutions disappear. But not all people understand what libraries are for.

Need for libraries

In ancient times, libraries were repositories of manuscripts, and after ancient times they were transformed into community centers that were supposed to popularize knowledge. Russia saw them for the first time somewhere in the XI-XII centuries.

Today it is in this place that you can find completely different books from the desired field for work, study and just pleasure. So what are libraries for?

The main purpose of book depositories is to organize the collection, preservation, and social use of books and other printed publications. Initially, libraries were needed for self-study and knowledge acquisition. Absolutely everyone needs them: preschoolers, schoolchildren,students, pensioners and scientists.

Scientists have proven that the human brain can hold more information than the Library of Congress of America. However, mankind has not yet learned to use all the possibilities of the brain, and therefore book storage will not disappear and will be needed. Now everyone knows what libraries are for.

First Libraries

Even in the old days, so-called libraries were formed in Asia. In Nippur, a unique collection of clay tablets (2500 BC) was found, which is called the primitive book depository. A little later, papyri were found in the pharaoh's pyramid.

In the fourth century B. C. in Hercules opened the first so-called open library of Greece. In the third century BC. founded the Alexandria Book Depository, which is deservedly considered a colossal center of ancient books. The library included astro-observatories, gardens of botany and zoology, rooms for living and reading books. And a little later it was turned into a museum, which was filled with stuffed animals, statues, supplies for medicine, as well as astronomy. It should be noted that such institutions were built at the sanctuaries. Are libraries needed? In those days, such a question was not asked. People skillfully recorded their knowledge to pass on to future generations.

Valuable Manuscripts

In the Middle Ages, workshops for copying manuscripts functioned in Russian monastic libraries. Church publications were often copied. Manuscript production wasa very difficult and time-consuming process, and therefore the books were of the highest value. That is why they were chained in special vaults.

When publishing houses appeared, the life of libraries changed drastically, because they ceased to act as archives. Funds of book depositories began to grow very quickly. They became most relevant when the period of mass addition to literacy began. Whether we need libraries in the 21st century is difficult to answer. Many prefer digital media, but without real books, they would not exist either.

Types of libraries

Libraries can be:

• national;
• regional;
• public;
• special;
• for the blind;
• university;
• school;
• family.

It's worth taking a closer look at what each kind of library is for.

National Reading Rooms are designed to preserve and guarantee unhindered access to government printed publications. To replenish resources, some countries adhere to mandatory pattern rules.

Regional Library - a division of the above-mentioned institutions, which is necessary for residents living far from cities. It is worth noting that such book depositories also have every right to receive a mandatory sample.

In public libraries, users have the right to consult the most up-to-dateand popular literature. Are Libraries Necessary in the Digital Age? This question has been asked repeatedly. But only thanks to libraries can the scientific and literary heritage of the whole world be preserved.

Special Book Depositories

Special libraries store special purpose publications such as patents, government standards, or music publications. Often such reading rooms are created in connection with the need to save books in certain conditions.

The Library for the Blind allows the blind and visually impaired readers to access information. In such institutions, audiobooks and books that are written in a special font are stored. The State Library for the Blind is considered the largest in Russia, because in addition to books it has three-dimensional models, thanks to which the blind can get acquainted with the appearance of various objects.

Books are knowledge

School and university libraries provide schoolchildren and students with literature. Their peculiarity is that they serve users of a narrow circle. However, you can find university reading rooms with free access. Do libraries have a future? This question was asked to modern students. Most said no - they prefer digital textbooks and audiobooks.

Not so long ago, a new round appeared in librarianship - the virtual library. Any user, having access to the Internet, has the ability to download any book from specialized sites. The younger generation leaves reviews in favor of electronic book depositories. But older people prefer"living" books.

Structured libraries

In book depositories, users can be served in two forms. In the first case, the reader purchases a subscription. Thanks to this pass, you can get any edition for use for a specified period. Another form of service is the reading room: here the user can read the desired publications exclusively in the library.

An important characteristic of the reading room is the structure of the fund. Part of the publications, which are the most relevant among readers, is often freely available, where the visitor has the opportunity to immediately familiarize themselves with them. All other editions are stored in the vault and can be obtained by the reader by selecting from the catalogue.

Old rare editions, as well as those books in which a secret of national importance may be kept, are issued only with a special permit.

You can also find mobile library units that facilitate the access of people from remote areas to books, as well as the Internet. This form of service is used by the disabled, as well as residents of nursing homes.

Today, libraries have been modernized, and their funds contain not only printed books, but also microfilms, transparencies, documents on electronic media. Not a single library can do without a computer, and therefore it will be in demand not only by the older generation, but also by modern schoolchildren and students.

Now you know whylibraries are needed and that they cannot be dispensed with.