ThingsAsianAsian Libraries - Japan
Waseda University Library, Tokyo, Japan.
Image © 2003 Waseda University
Chiba
Japan
The University Library consists of the Central Library on Nishichiba campus, and the Inohana Library (The Library of health Science), mainly serving the needs of the medical, biological and nursing fields, and the Horticulture Library in Matsudo. The total number of volumes is about 1.4 million. There are about 20,000 domestic and foreign journals. The Library is fortunate to contain some rare book collections and also provides digital collections. The Central library, located in the center of the university's Nishichiba campus, serves the scholarly needs of the faculty and undergraduate as well as graduate students in humanities, education, law and economics, natural and pharmaceutical science and engineering.
Books in many fields of science and technology amount to more than 1,050,000 and periodicals number more than 13,000. The Central library consists of new building and an old building. The library has a total area of 9,597square meters.
The Inohana Library (Library of Health Sciences), located at the Inohana campus, houses books and materials necessary for education and research in the Medical Faculty, the Science of Nursing Faculty, the University Hospital and the Research Center for Pathogenic Fungi and Microbial Toxicoses. There are 260,000 books and 4,500 periodicals available in this library. Books on life sciences, medical science and nursing account for 95 percent of the holdings. There is also a collection of Old Medical Books that includes secondhand translations from Dutch to Japanese and foreign books published from the 18th century to the 19th century with translations from European physics books.
The Inonaha Library has a total area of 3,784 square meters. The Horticulture Library, located at Matsudo campus, houses books and materials concerning the sciences of agriculture, horticulture, biology, architecture and business administration. There are over 90,000 books and 2,000 periodicals available in this library. The Kodera Library contains materials on Japanese and foreign topography and the plans of parks and green zones. The total area of the library is 1,009 square meters.
Kameoka
Japan
The library collection at Kyoto Gakuen University consists of approximately 240,000 volumes, ranging from reference materials to technical works and professional journals, and includes a magazine collection of 1,500 titles, both in Japanese and other languages, in addition to the 15 daily newspapers found in the newspaper lobby. The collection is especially strong in economic fields both in Japanese and foreign languages.
Kobe
Japan
Kobe University Digital Library System provides digital archives such as The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Disaster Materials Collection, Rare collections on the Economics and Business Administration of the Library, and other products of internal research for worldwide access via the Internet. The core of this system is the digitization of materials concerning the Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Disaster that occurred on Jan. 17, 1995.
'The Great Hanshin-Awaji Earthquake Disaster Materials Collection', started Oct. 1995, including not only books and journals, but also newsletters posters, photographs, maps, and audio visual materials, are published on the Web. It also digitizes the research products on the Earthquake disaster that Kobe University, being situated in the affected region, has made effort to build. Added to this, rare collections such as the 'Sumita Collection' a maritime materials collection from the Edo to Meiji era, and also academic serials of each faculty of the University are provided in digital archives.
Kyoto
Japan
For the first 22 years since the foundation of Kyoto Sangyo University in 1965, the Library was operated under a ""Coordinated decentralization system"" which consisted of a small central office and 6 branch libraries. In the course of time, endeavoring to enrich its materials and services, the Library succeeded in automating its system, laying stress on cataloging, and became one of the pioneers in this field in the Japanese library world.
The Central Library opened in the year 1987. With this as a turning point, almost all of materials and services were centralized. At the same time, the Library developed greatly its functions through the beginning of its document delivery service, introduction of state-of-the-art equipment and many other improvements. As of April 2001, with holdings of 920,000 volumes and 20 full-time librarians, the Library aims at being more user-friendly through class guidance for students and cooperation with other university libraries.
Kyoto University of Foreign Studies
Kyoto
Japan
Kyoto University of Foreign Studies Library and Kyoto Junior College of Foreign Languages Library consist of a central library known as the Main Library, and an Asia Library known as the Branch. The books held in this library span a wide range of languages offered as subjects for specialist study within the university including English, Spanish, French, German, Brazilian-Portuguese, Chinese and Japanese as well as Russian, Italian, Dutch, Arabic and others.
The structure of the collection is designed to reflect the academic curriculum as closely as possible, including literature, history, the arts and social sciences. The library also holds many rare and antiquarian books forming a mine of cultural information relating to the areas mentioned above, and has amassed a number of special collections accessible for the advancement of education and research both within the university and beyond.
Nara Institute of Science and Technology
Nara
Japan
NAIST inaugurated its digital library in April 1996. In it, resources stored in digital form are available to users through a network, unlike a conventional library in which information is available only in the form of books and magazines. The digital library also has a media center, in which multimedia information from books and magazines as well as videos and other AV sources are integrated into the database. NAIST is the 7rst university in Japan to have a comprehensive digital library that meets the needs of the multimedia era.
This library seeks to maintain the most up-to-date level of service by actively pursuing R & D that is directly related to the latest library innovations, such as multimedia database systems and a full text-retrieval system.
Oimachi
Japan
The Bunkyo Gakuin University Fujimino Library, established in 1982 as The Bunkyo Women's Junior College Library, contains approximately 120,000 books and 1,000 periodical titles in the humanities, the social sciences, and the natural sciences.
Osaka
Japan
The Life Sciences Branch Library was established in April 1992 on the Suita Campus, as a new branch library integrating the Nakanoshima Branch Library and the Faculty of Pharmaceutical Sciences Branch Library. It has a supporting function in education and research for the Faculty of Medicine and the University Hospital, the Faculty of Dentistry and the Dental Hospital, the Faculty of the Pharmaceutical Sciences, the Institute for Protein Research, the Research Institute for Microbial Diseases and the Institute for Molecular and Cellular Biology on the Suita Campus.
As mentioned above, in 1977 the Nakanoshima Branch Library was appointed as a national resource library in the fields of life sciences by the Ministry of Education, Science, Sports and Culture, with a special budget to purchase foreign journals not received in any other library in Japan. The Life Sciences Branch Library has continued this role.
Sapporo
Japan
The Fuji Women's College Library is a common institution of both Fuji Women's College and Fuji Women's Junior College. The Beginning of the College Library goes back to the founding of Fuji Women's High School in 1925. Activity of the library was started in two small rooms within the school in 1950. The Main Library stores 228,432 books and 4,933 periodicals. This library combines in harmony of the old and new, for the two departments of the Faculty of Literatures of Fuji Women's College, the Department of English Literatures of Fuji Women's College, Japanese Literature, as well as for the three Departments of Fuji Women's Junior College, the Departments of English Literature, Japanese Literature and Kindergarten Education.
The Collection of the library contains unique titles, particularly concerning Japanese and English Literature, e.g. both the collections of Akutagawa's prize and Naoki's prize are typical. It has also a unique collection of religious and theological books, especially the Roman Catholic theology books.
The Hanakawa Library was opened in 1992, and houses 49,737 books and 699 periodicals for the two departments of the new Faculty of Human Ecology of Fuji Women's College, the Department of Home Economics for Fuji Women's Junior College. The collections are in the field of Social Science, Natural Science and Home Economics. There are audio-visual materials on LD and VHS tapes. In addition to these, there are also several on-disc databases such as HIASK, ZASSAKU that can connect to online databases such as NIKKEI-telecon, JOIS etc.
Sapporo
Japan
The history of the library started with the foundation of Gifu University in May 1949. Today the library consists of two divisions; the Central and the Medical Libraries. The former was reorganized in July 1984 by annexing two branch libraries, is located on the main campus of Yanagido. The latter was established in April 1965 for School of Medicine, is placed on the campus of Tsukasa.
One of the characteristic features in the University Library is a device to centralize the management of the two divisions so that they can be function- ally well organized and administrated under the Director of the University Library. To facilitate various library services, the Library has been automated in almost all library functions; acquisition, cataloging, circulation, payment, bibliographic data retrieval, and information retrieval. The collection of the library has already exceeded more than 860,000 volumes, to which about 20,000 acquisitions are added annually. This collection consists of over 570,000 volumes of Japanese books and 280,000 volumes of foreign books, including 14,000 periodical titles.
Sapporo
Japan
The Hokusei University Library contains about 320,000 volumes, divided into Japanese and foreign language books and arranged according to the Nippon Decimal Classification System. It also subscribes to about 6,300 magazines, university journals and other periodic publications.
Shizuoka
Japan
Since its establishment in 1949, the library has been developing to fulfill the needs of the four faculties, the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Faculty of Education, the Faculty of Sciences and the Faculty of Agriculture, as well as the four graduate schools, the Graduate School of Humanities and Social Sciences, the Graduate School of Education, the Graduate School of Science and Engineering and the Graduate School of Agriculture and the United Graduate School of Agricultural Sciences, Gifu University.
The books acquired since 1988 and most periodicals can be searched using the online library catalogue. Books acquired before 1988 have not been entered in the online library catalogue yet.
Suita
Japan
The Osaka University Main Library has a collection of over 1,300,000 volumes of books and bound journals and receives 6,000 titles of current serials. Included in the collection are books for undergraduate students, academic books, rare books, audio-visual materials, microforms. Electronic resources such as OPAC, CD-ROM databases, online databases are also available in the Library.
The Main Library has two branch libraries, the Life Sciences Library specialized in biomedical sciences and the Suita Library specialized in engineering sciences, and other department libraries
Tokyo
Japan
Hitotsubashi University is a national educational institution under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. It is the only university in Japan to specialize exclusively in the humanities and social sciences. The University Library has approximately 1,600,000 written volumes and 15,000 periodical titles in Japanese, as well as numerous other Eastern and Western languages. In terms of both the size and quality of its collections, it is regarded to be one of the finest social science libraries in the world.
The Center for Historical Social Science Literature is another of the University's first-rate research facilities, holding a number of priceless collections including that of Carl Menger, a renowned book collector and author on modern economics. Hitotsubashi also has a variety of athletic facilities and sports fields on its three campuses as well as the surrounding Tokyo area. There, students can take part in numerous activities including track and field events, tennis, swimming, rugby, handball, hockey, and rowing. The facilities rival those of universities that specialize in physical education, and reflect the importance that the University attaches to physical, as well as mental, training.
International Christian University
Tokyo
Japan
The ICU Library was first installed in ""Honkan"" (the main building of the university) in 1953 with university foundation. In 1960, a new three-story building was established. Extension took place in1972 doubled the building size. The Mildred Topp Othmer Library established in 2000 provides 122 PCs for students to write reports retrieving information and to communicate. At present, about 570,000 books and 7,000 title journals are stored in the library.
The ICU Library is famous for its spirit of innovation. It is the very first library which adopted open stuck system in Japan. Automation by digital technology, too, was acquired early. The Othmer Library is the first library building in Japan which ASRS (Automated Storage and Retriving System) was built in. The number of visitors per day counts up to half the number of all university students. These facts rank them within top university libraries of Japan.
Tokyo
Japan
Starting from only 71 books, which fortunately survived the Tokyo earthquake on Sep.1st 1923, the Meiji University Library has grown to be one of the largest in quantity and has achieved a reputation as one of the highest in quality in Japan. The collection mainly covers such subjects as law, economics, literature, etc. And also, it houses the ASHIDA Antique Map Collection.
This library has about 40,000 open-shelf books, 960,000 books in the stacks, and 10,000 reference books. In addition, 5,024 foreign periodicals, 1,738 Japanese periodicals, as well as many foreign newspapers are kept here. There are a circulation desk and OPAC corner on the third floor; reference desk, periodicals desk and a Braille reading room on the second floor.
Tokyo
Japan
The National Diet Library (NDL) is the only national library in Japan. It was established in 1948 by the National Diet Library Law, based on Article 130 of the National Diet Law, ""The National Diet Library shall be established in the Diet by a separate law, in order to assist Diet Members in their study and research"". The NDL's primary function is to assist Diet Members in performing their duties. At the same time, it has a mission to provide library services for the executive and judicial branches of the national government and for the general public.
As the only depository library in Japan, the Library acquires all materials published in Japan, preserves them as national cultural heritage, compiles catalogs of these publications in a database or other format, and with these collections provides library services. As the Imperial Library was a pre-war depository library established by law, it had a comprehensive collection of materials published in modern Japan from the Meiji Era. Most of these collections were transferred to the present National Diet Library and formed the basis of the current collection. In August 1961, upon completion of Phase 1 of the library construction at the current Nagata-cho site adjacent to the National Diet, the NDL started its full service as Japan's foremost library with a stock of some two million books.
Tokyo
Japan
The Sophia University Central Library, consisting of 9 upper floors and 3 under floors, contains approximately 840,000 volumes and 11,000 periodicals in the humanities, the social sciences, and the science. The Ichigaya Campus Library Collection is strongest in Japanese studies, international relations, and comparative culture. The Shakujii Campus Library Collection consists primarily of books on theology; it also includes other books on religion, thought, and philosophy.
Tokyo
Japan
When new national universities started in 1949 under the postwar educational system, the former four government normal schools (previously, Tokyo prefectural normal schools whose oldest one was derived from the Shogaku Kyosoku Koshujo of 1873) in Tokyo were merged into one national institution for teacher education and upgraded to the university status.
Thus, Tokyo Gakugei University was founded as one of the new national universities. At that time, the existing libraries of the former normal schools were also united into one University Library, with their respective libraries becoming the main ( on the Setagaya Campus ) and the branch libraries ( on the other campuses ) of the new university. A new building was constructed in Koganei in March, 1961, and by March, 1964, all the branch libraries had been brought together to this new center by the joint move of the whole University. The present Library building was completed in March, 1974.
Tokyo
Japan
Built and opened in 1968, this building was awarded the Architectural Institute of Japan Prize the following year. The 50,000 books kept in open stacks on this floor are those used most frequently. Altogether, the library has about 500,000 holdings. The main acquisitions consist of classics in Social Sciences, Economics, Management Science and Sociology.
Tokyo
Japan
The history of Waseda University Libraries began with the library being established in part of the school buildings when the University was originally founded as Tokyo Semmon Gakko in 1882. After several expansions and rebuilding, one of the undertakings to commemorate Waseda University's centennial was the 1991 opening of the New Central Library and the International Conference Center, originally they were called the Center for Scholarly Information. It played a pivotal role for accumulation and dispatch of scholarly information in the University.
There are 31 libraries at the University. They include the Central Library, 4 Campus Libraries, and school libraries or reading rooms for students, and so on, which are attached to each school and institute. These libraries hold 4.3 million books and function like one huge organic library all cooperating to support various information needs on and off-campus.
The academic information system which provides an on-line catalog of the collections in Waseda's libraries is called WINE (Waseda University Information NEtwork System). WINE is accessible from personal computers in offices on campus or from home through INTERNET.
The Central Library is one of the most extensive libraries in Japan. It has a large collection of high quality research materials, modern information equipment, specialized staff, and more than 1 million users per year. The Central Library houses 2 million books, 13,OOO academic journals, 2 national treasures. 187 important cultural properties, and other valuable materials including rare books, and it also holds audio-visual materials, such as LP, CD, LD, and microforms. It houses more than 400,000 books which were previously contained in the 5 faculty libraries and 3 research institutes located on the Nishi-Waseda campus. It has a building of 4 floors above ground and 1 basement floor and other department libraries in the office building.
While most books in the learning collection are written in Japanese, and the research collection contains Chinese, Western, and Russian books as well as many microforms. Since Takata Library was opened in 1994, department libraries in the Nishi-Wascda campus have changed from their independent operating policies into the policy of resource sharing, enabling common use of all Waseda academic collections.
International University of Japan
Yamato-machi
Japan
The MLIC primarily serves the instructional and research needs of the IUJ students and faculty. Today, MLIC holdings total approximately 120,000 volumes and 335 periodical and serial titles. A growing part of their collection is available in electronic form. Broad subject areas covered by their collection include international relations, political science, area studies, economics, business administration, finance and accounting. Other related areas such as language, philosophy, statistics and communications also form part of the collection.
The collection generally reflects the academic program at IUJ, and it is strongest in the areas of economics, business administration, finance and accounting, political science, international relations, and Asian studies. The collection is primarily in English, but Japanese and other non-English language materials have been added when they were considered the only reliable source on a subject.
Yokohama
Japan
Yokohama National University Library started its service in May 1949, when Yokohama National University was founded by conjoining four independent colleges under the National Establishment Law. In 1985, the annex building was built at the south side of main building. In consists of special collection room, two stack floors and office. And then, all over the main building is available as reading room.
At present, the University Library consists of three parts: a central library (containing educational and human sciences) and two branch libraries (one for social sciences and the other for natural sciences and technologies) The cumulative number of books retained in the University Library is increasing every year and is now over 1,100,000. There are over 14,000 kinds of academic journals.
The Central Library is located in the center of Tokiwadai Campus. It exists mainly for undergraduate students in various academic disciplines as well as various kinds of reference books. The Research Library for Social Sciences is situated in a building in the Faculty of Economics, and is available for researchers and students engaged in social science researches. The library has a large collection of literature on economics and social sciences published before World War II, as well as an extensive array of foreign journals on economics, management and other related fields.
The Research Library for Science and Technology is housed in a separate building in the middle of the Faculty of Engineering compound. It has rare early twentieth-century chemical journals. These are frequently used by researchers from other institutions. It also collects journals for natural and applied sciences, abstracts, cumulative indices, such as Chemical Abstracts, Analytical Abstracts, Science Abstracts and so on.
Tokyo
Japan
The origin of The Toyo Bunko, a library and research institute specializing in Asian studies, dates back to 1917 when IWASAKI Hisaya (1865-1955) purchased the private library of George Ernest Morrison (1862-1920), advisor to the Office of the President of the Republic of China. Morrison, an Australian by birth, went to China as the special correspondent for The London Times, and later served as political advisor to the Office of the President of the Republic of China.
The Toyo Bunko has greatly contributed to the development of Asian Studies both at home and abroad through the acquisition of books and other source materials, the publication of research by Japanese scholars, the dissemination of knowledge about Asian Studies and international exchange. The Toyo Bunko, in co-operation with other Asian countries, has come to participate in the task of introducing Asian cultures to the world.
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