The National Library of China

The National Library of China is the People's Republic of China's national library and one of the largest libraries in the world for book readers. As of December 2020, it has approximately 41 million pieces. It is home to the world's biggest collection of Chinese literature and historical records. The Ministry of Culture and Tourism sponsors the National Library, which is a public benefit institution.

Since the Southern Song Dynasty, the National Library has inherited royal collections, as well as private collections from the Ming and Qing dynasties. The oldest collections date back over 3,000 years to the oracle bones of the Yin Ruins.

The National Library is a large research and public library with collections in 123 languages and a variety of print and digital formats, including books, manuscripts, journals, newspapers, magazines, sound and music recordings, videos, play scripts, patents, databases, maps, stamps, prints, and drawings. The collection now has about 41 million books and is growing at a rate of one million volumes each year as of December 2020. The overall volume of digital materials surpasses 1000TB, with an annual growth rate of 100TB.

The Imperial Peking Library was established in 1909 by the Qing administration as the National Library of China. It was renamed the National Library of China in 1999 after multiple name changes and administrative modifications. The South Complex, the North Complex, the Children's Hall, the Ancient Book Hall, and seventeen deployed research libraries to central government agencies and the Academy of Military Sciences now make up the National Library.

Location: Beijing, China