The Bodleian Library ( /ˈbɒdliən/ or /bɒdˈliːən/), the main research library of the University of Oxford, is one of the oldest libraries in Europe, and in Britain is second in size only to the British Library. Known to Oxford scholars as "Bodley" or simply "the Bod", under the Legal Deposit Libraries Act 2003 it is one of six legal deposit libraries for works published in the United Kingdom and under Irish Law it is entitled to request a copy of each book published in the Republic of Ireland. Though University members may borrow some books from dependent libraries (such as the Radcliffe Science Library), the Bodleian operates principally as a reference library and in general documents may not be removed from the reading rooms.
All Oxford colleges have their own libraries, which in a number of cases were established well before the foundation of the Bodleian. Historically, the college libraries were entirely independent of the Bodleian. However, recent years have seen them brought together for certain purposes under the umbrella of what was formerly known as Oxford University Library Services (OULS), and now as Bodleian Libraries. A major product of this collaboration has been a joint integrated library system, OLIS (Oxford Libraries Information System), and its public interface, SOLO (Search Oxford Libraries Online), which provides a union electronic catalogue covering all member libraries.
Read more about Bodleian Library: Sites and Regulations, 14th and 15th Centuries, Sir Thomas Bodley and The Re-founding of The University Library, Schools Quadrangle and Tower of The Five Orders, Later 17th and 18th Centuries, Radcliffe Camera, Clarendon Building, Twentieth Century and After, Present and Future of The Libraries, Copyright and Preservation of Material, Treasures of The Library, Bodley's Librarians, Cultural Associations
Famous quotes containing the word library:
“It is the interest one takes in books that makes a library. And if a library have interest it is; if not, it isn’t.”
—Carolyn Wells (1862–1942)