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The British Library’s collections of African-language publishing
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 14 October 2022
Abstract
The British Library (BL) holds over 20,000 printed books, serials and newspapers in well over 100 languages of Africa south of the Sahara. These collections date from the seventeenth century, and continue to grow. Although not comprehensive, they reflect all the major developments in African-language publishing across the continent. This article analyses these collections in the context of the broader history of publishing in African languages, and discusses how they have been acquired. Through further analysis of the extent and composition of the collections, and how they compare to those of other UK institutions, I go on to show that the BL’s holdings are among the most extensive such collections in the UK, possibly the most extensive. At the same time, I reveal the difficulties that various cataloguing limitations create for such analysis. The article closes with brief practical guidance on accessing the collections.
Résumé
La British Library (BL) détient plus de 20 000 livres, périodiques et journaux imprimés dans plus d’une centaine de langues d’Afrique subsaharienne. Ces collections remontent au 17ème siècle et continuent de s’agrandir. Bien que non exhaustives, elles reflètent l’évolution de l’édition en langues africaines à travers le continent. Cet article analyse ces collections dans le contexte de l’histoire plus large de l’édition en langues africaines, et traite des modalités de leur acquisition. À travers une analyse plus approfondie de l’étendue et de la composition de ces collections, et en les comparant à celles d’autres institutions britanniques, je vais montrer que les fonds de la BL comptent parmi les collections les plus vastes du genre au Royaume-Uni, voire la plus vaste. Dans le même temps, je révèle les difficultés que créent les diverses limites du catalogage pour cette analyse. L’article conclut par de brefs conseils pratiques pour accéder aux collections.
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- © The Author(s), 2022. Published by Cambridge University Press on behalf of the International African Institute
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