There are over 100 libraries within the

University of Cambridge The University of Cambridge is a public collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world's third oldest surviving university and one of its most pr ...

. These include the main University Library, affiliated libraries, departmental and faculty libraries, college libraries, and various other specialist libraries associated with the university. Across all libraries, the university houses approximately 16 million books.

University Library

Cambridge University Library Cambridge University Library is the main research library of the University of Cambridge. It is the largest of the over 100 libraries within the university. The Library is a major scholarly resource for the members of the University of Cambri ...

, referred to within the university as "the University Library" or just
the UL
, is the central research library. It holds around 8 million items (including maps and sheet music) and, in contrast with the

Bodleian The Bodleian Library () is the main research library of the University of Oxford, and is one of the oldest libraries in Europe. It derives its name from its founder, Sir Thomas Bodley. With over 13 million printed items, it is the sec ...

or the

British Library The British Library is the national library of the United Kingdom and is one of the largest libraries in the world. It is estimated to contain between 170 and 200 million items from many countries. As a legal deposit library, the British ...

, many of its books are available on open shelves. It is one of the six legal deposit libraries in the United Kingdom, and is therefore entitled to request a free copy of every book published in the UK and Ireland. Through

legal deposit Legal deposit is a legal requirement that a person or group submit copies of their publications to a repository, usually a library. The number of copies required varies from country to country. Typically, the national library is the primary reposi ...

, purchases and donations it receives around 100,000 books every year.

Affiliated faculty/departmental libraries

There are thirty three faculty and departmental libraries associated with the main University Library, for the purpose of central governance and administration. This group is a growing network, with a remit to "maximise efficiency while catering to the diverse range of user needs."

Departmental and faculty libraries

College libraries

There is at least one library in every college within the university. All colleges have a working library, generally to support undergraduate teaching. Material in the college libraries will typically cover all

Tripos At the University of Cambridge, a Tripos (, plural 'Triposes') is any of the examinations that qualify an undergraduate for a bachelor's degree or the courses taken by a student to prepare for these. For example, an undergraduate studying mathe ...

subjects. Many of the colleges also have special collections such as early printed books and manuscripts, and are often kept in a separate library. For example, Trinity College's Wren Library holds more than 200,000 books printed before 1800, while the Parker Library at Corpus Christi College, has one of the greatest early medieval European manuscript collections in the world, with over 600 manuscripts.

Other libraries associated with the university

References

External links

Cambridge Libraries - All Libraries
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Cambridge University The University of Cambridge is a Public university, public collegiate university, collegiate research university in Cambridge, England. Founded in 1209 and granted a royal charter by Henry III of England, Henry III in 1231, Cambridge is the world' ...