Largest Libraries in the World is an important topic for the General Awareness section of Government exams or other competitive exams.
Candidates appearing for exams such as SSC, RRB, Bank, or other government examinations might encounter 1-2 questions related to libraries of the world in the general knowledge section of these examinations.
Candidates can check the relevant link for assistance in government exam preparation:
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| SSC General Awareness | Bank General Awareness | Idioms & Phrases |
This article will read about the list of the largest libraries in the world. Candidates will also know about the largest libraries in India.
The list of largest libraries in the world is available in PDF format. Candidates can download the list of largest libraries PDF given below.
List of Largest Libraries in the World PDF:-Download PDF Here
List of Largest Libraries in the World
British Library in the United Kingdom is the world’s largest library in terms of its catalogue size i.e. the number of books, periodicals, etc it manages.
The table given below highlights the World largest libraries based on their catalogue size. It includes libraries that store 15 million or more items.
| Largest Libraries in the World | ||
| Name & Country | Location | Catalogue size |
| British Library, United Kingdom | London and Boston Spa | 170–200 million |
| Library of Congress, United States | Washington D.C. | 170 million+ |
| Library and Archives, Canada | Ottawa | 54 million |
| Shanghai Library, China | Shanghai | 50 million |
| Russian State Library, Russia | Moscow | 47.2 million |
| Royal Danish Library, Denmark | Copenhagen and Aarhus | 42.5 million |
| National Diet Library, Japan | Tokyo and Kyoto | 41.9 million |
| Bibliothèque Nationale de France | Paris | 40 million |
| National Library of China | Beijing | 37.7 million |
| National Library of Russia | Saint Petersburg | 36.5 million |
| German National Library, Germany | Leipzig and Frankfurt | 36.1 million |
| Biblioteca Nacional de España, Spain | Madrid | 33.1 million |
| Library of the Russian Academy of Sciences, Russia | Saint Petersburg | 26.5 million |
| Berlin State Library, Germany | Berlin | 23.4 million |
| Boston Public Library, United States | Boston, Massachusetts | 22.4 million |
| New York State Library, United States | Albany, New York | 20 million |
| Harvard Library, United States | Cambridge, Massachusetts | 18.9 million |
| National Library of Sweden | Stockholm | 18 million |
| Vernadsky National Library of Ukraine | Kiev | 15.5 million |
| Yale Library, United States | New Haven, Connecticut | 15.2 million |
| National Library of Iran | Tehran | 15 million |
Reference – Wikipedia [https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_largest_libraries]
Now that you know the largest libraries of the world, let’s take a look at largest libraries in India.
Largest Libraries in India List
Do you know which is the Largest Library in India? or Do you know the name of the oldest library in India?
The State Central Library, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala established in 1829 is the very first public library in India and the National Library Of India, Kolkata established in 1836 is the largest library of India.
The table below enlists India’s largest library by volume, prominence, along with their establishment year:
| Largest Libraries In India | ||
| Library Name | Est. Year | Prominence |
| The National Library of India, Kolkata | 1836 | 26,41,615 books along with other periodicals, maps, manuscripts etc |
| Delhi Public Library, New Delhi | 1951 | 18 lakh books in English, Hindi, Urdu, Punjabi & other Indian Languages |
| Saraswathi Mahal Library Or Tanjore Maharaja Serfoji’s Sarasvati Mahal Library, Tamil Nadu | 1918 | A rare collection of palm leaf manuscripts in various regional languages of India. |
| Anna Centenary Library, Chennai, Tamil Nadu | 2010 | Collection of 5 lakh books and Braille section for blind readers |
| Krishnadas Shama Central Library, Goa | 1832 | Total 1.8 lakh books in different languages & pre-liberation collection are over 40,000 volumes |
| Allahabad Public Library, Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh | 1864 | 1.25 lakh books on various subjects and rare Arabic manuscripts along with papers of Parliament. |
| Smt. Hansa Mehta Library, Baroda, Gujarat | 1950 | 3,500 precious collection of books dated back to 16th century |
| Connemara Public Library, Chennai, Tamil Nadu | 1896 | One of the 4 National Depository Libraries also serves as a depository library for the UN |
| State Central Library, Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala | 1829 | 3, 67,243 documents in Sanskrit, Tamil, English, Malayalam, and more |
Candidates are advised to download World’s largest libraries PDF given below. The PDF also contains the list of largest libraries in India.
List of Largest Libraries in the World PDF:-Download PDF Here
Candidates preparing for competitive exams can check relevant articles for General Awareness section:
| Longest Bridges in India | Famous Books and Authors |
| List of Prepositions | Letter Writing Format |
| IPL Winners List | Tenses Rules |
| List of Country, Capital & Currency | Prepositions Rules |
Largest Libraries in World – Sample Question For General Awareness
To understand the relevance of the topic largest libraries in the World in competitive exams, it is important to know the types of questions asked in the examination based on it.
Given below are sample question asked in the general awareness section of competitive exams for World’s largest libraries:
Q.1. Where is the world’s largest library?
- Russia
- France
- Denmark
- Washington DC
Answer (4) Washington DC
Q.2. Which country has the maximum number of public libraries?
- India
- Russia
- China
- United States
Answer (3) China
Q.3. What is the name of the Oldest Library in the World?
- Al-Qarawiyyin library
- Imperial Library of Constantinople
- Royal Library of Ashurbanipal
- National Library of Iran
Answer (1) Al-Qarawiyyin library
Q.4. Which is the biggest library of the World?
- British Library
- Library of congress
- Shanghai Library, China
- Royal Danish Library, Denmark
Answer (2) Library Of Congress
Q.5. Which Library has the maximum number of books or catalogues?
- Library of Congress, United States
- British Library, United Kingdom
- Biblioteca Nacional de España, Spain
- Harvard Library, United States
Answer (2) British Library, United Kingdom
Apart from the sample questions given above, candidates can check Previous Year Question Papers with solution PDF to understand the type of questions asked in the general awareness section of these examinations.
Candidates appearing for any of the government examinations can check the details and syllabus from the given links:
