National Library of Armenia

National Library of Armenia
Name	National Library of Armenia
Native name	Ազգային գրադարան
Established	1832
Location	Yerevan, Republic of Armenia
Director	(see Organization and Administration)
Collection size	(see Collections and Holdings)

National Library of Armenia is the principal national repository located in Yerevan, founded in the early 19th century and charged with collecting, preserving, and providing access to Armenian printed and manuscript heritage. The institution serves as a research hub for scholars associated with Matenadaran, Yerevan State University, American University of Armenia, Russian Academy of Sciences scholars, and international partners such as the British Library, Library of Congress, Bibliothèque nationale de France, Vatican Library, and National Library of Russia. Its collections support studies linked to figures and events including Mesrop Mashtots, Movses Khorenatsi, Hovhannes Tumanyan, William Saroyan, Alexander Pushkin, Leo Tolstoy, Nikolai Gogol, Adam Mickiewicz, Lord Byron, Friedrich Schiller, Immanuel Kant, Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, Aristotle, Plato, Herodotus, Thucydides, Tacitus, Saint Gregory the Illuminator, Komitas, Sergei Parajanov, Andranik Ozanian, Aram Khachaturian, Ruben Daryan, Hrachya Kochar, Soviet Union, First Republic of Armenia, Republic of Armenia.

History

The library's origins trace to philanthropic collections and printing activities linked to Tiflis, Alexandropol, Echmiadzin, Garegin Nzhdeh, and merchants active in the Russian Empire; early patrons included members of the Armenian Apostolic Church, diaspora benefactors from Constantinople, Bursa, Isfahan, Venice, and families associated with Mehmet Emin Yurdakul and Abraham Hovhannisyan. During the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878), acquisitions expanded alongside donations from émigré intellectuals such as Khachatur Abovian and Hovsep Arshakian. Under the Soviet Union, the institution was reorganized with influences from the Academy of Sciences of the Armenian SSR, directives mirroring policies from Lenin Library administrators and exchanges with the All-Union Central Library network. Post-independence reforms connected it to initiatives involving the Presidential Administration of Armenia, the Ministry of Culture of Armenia, and cultural diplomacy with entities including UNESCO, Council of Europe, European Union cultural programs, and bilateral projects with France, Germany, Russia, United States, Greece, Israel, Lebanon, Iran, and India donors.

Collections and Holdings

Holdings comprise printed books, periodicals, manuscripts, maps, posters, photographs, and audio-visual materials collected through legal deposit, gifts, purchases, and exchanges with institutions like the Bodleian Library, Harvard University, Columbia University, Yale University, Princeton University, Oxford University, Cambridge University, Leipzig University, University of Vienna, University of Bologna, University of Padua, Jagiellonian University, Charles University, Uppsala University, Stockholm University, National Library of Spain, National Széchényi Library, National Library of Poland, National Library of Lithuania, National Library of Latvia, National Library of Estonia, Swiss National Library, Austrian National Library, National Diet Library (Japan), Seoul National University Library, National Library of China, National Library of India. Significant items include early Armenian imprints from Venetian and Padua presses, medieval manuscripts linked to scribes in Artsakh, colophons describing patronage by families from New Julfa, liturgical codices associated with Etchmiadzin Cathedral, annotated copies connected to Khachatur Abovian, periodicals from the Zartonk and Shirak movements, and archival collections from activists in the Armenian Revolutionary Federation, writers tied to the Nahapet Kurghinian circle, and photographers who documented the Armenian Genocide diaspora routes through Smyrna, Aleppo, Cilicia, Bucharest, Paris, Buenos Aires, Los Angeles, Montreal, Toronto, Beirut.

The library holds rare editions by Nikolai Berdyaev, Ivan Aivazovsky materials, correspondences of Raffi, marginalia from Grigor Narekatsi manuscripts, scores by Aram Khachaturian, ethnographic collections linked to Komitas Vardapet, and cartographic holdings referencing Caucasus routes, maps produced during the Treaty of Sèvres period and the Treaty of Kars negotiations.

Building and Architecture

The main edifice in Yerevan reflects design influences from Alexander Tamanian-era planning and incorporates elements inspired by Neoclassicism and Soviet public architecture found in Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Tbilisi, and Baku. Renovations have involved architects and conservators associated with projects supported by UNESCO World Heritage Centre, specialists from Italy, France, Germany, and collaborations with the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia. The site is proximate to civic landmarks such as Republic Square, Yerevan, Opera and Ballet Theatre (Yerevan), Charles Aznavour Square, Cafesjian Center for the Arts, and municipal urban plans by designers trained at École des Beaux-Arts, Moscow Architectural Institute, and Vienna University of Technology.

Services and Programs

Public and scholarly services include reference, interlibrary loan, special collections reading rooms, exhibitions, lectures, and partnerships with cultural festivals such as Golden Apricot Yerevan International Film Festival, Yerevan International Book Festival, Yerevan Jazz Festival, and educational outreach to institutions including Yerevan State Medical University, Armenian State Pedagogical University, National Conservatory of Armenia, State Engineering University of Armenia, Institute of Archaeology and Ethnography (Armenia), and museums like History Museum of Armenia, Cafesjian Museum of Art, Charents Museum. Programming features collaborations with international awards and initiatives such as the Prince Claus Fund, European Cultural Foundation, Getty Foundation, Open Society Foundations, and exchange residencies with writers from France, Germany, United Kingdom, United States, Canada, Russia, Georgia, Iran, Syria, Lebanon, Argentina.

Organization and Administration

Governance aligns with national cultural policy frameworks administered through the Ministry of Culture of Armenia and advisory input from committees including members of the National Academy of Sciences of Armenia, representatives from universities such as Yerevan State University and American University of Armenia, and liaisons with diplomatic cultural sections of embassies from France, Russia, United States, Iran, Greece, Italy, Germany, and Canada. Directors and chief librarians historically interacted with scholars from Matenadaran, curators connected to Etchmiadzin, and administrators trained at institutions like Library of Congress staff exchange programs, British Library training, and archival coursework at International Council on Archives events.

Digital Initiatives and Preservation

Digital projects include mass digitization of manuscripts and periodicals in collaboration with international partners such as the World Digital Library, Europeana, HathiTrust, Digital Library of India, International Internet Preservation Consortium, and technical assistance from teams at Yerevan State University Computer Science Department, Center for Armenian Studies (UCLA), Project Gutenberg volunteers, and vendors from France, Germany, Estonia, and Switzerland. Preservation efforts address paper conservation, digitization of audio recordings related to Komitas Vardapet and Sayat-Nova, long-term digital repositories compliant with standards promoted by UNESCO and Open Archival Information System models, and disaster preparedness influenced by case studies from Library of Congress, British Library, National Library of Russia recovery operations after crises in World War II and regional conflicts.

Category:Libraries in Armenia Category:National libraries