The Nobel Library of the Swedish Academy

The Nobel Library of the Swedish Academy was established in 1901. Since 1921 the library has been situated in the premises of the Swedish Academy in the Exchange (Börshuset) in the Old Town of Stockholm.

The Nobel Library is funded by the Nobel Foundation and the Swedish Academy. The primary task of the library is to acquire and make accessible recent works of literature, along with literary critisism and linguistics. It concentrates mainly on contemporary literature, which in many cases is acquired in the original language.

Currently the library subscribes to approximately 150 literary journals, the majority published outside Sweden. These journals play an important role in the acquisitions proccess. Articles, reviews, surveys, interviews, and the like are continuously recorded in the library's database. With collections consisting of 200,000 volumes, the Nobel Library is one of the largest libraries specializing in literature in the Nordic countries.

Searches may be made of the library's foreign language titles using the national databaseLibris (www.libris.kb.se). The library makes interurban loans to public libraries, research libraries and university libraries, most frequently in the Nordic countries but also to libraries elsewhere in Europe.

The Nobel Library is open to the public, particularly to those seeking access to contemporary literature and literary criticism for advanced studies. Special reading places are available for researchers either temporarily or for longer periods.

The Nobel Library also considers that one of its tasks is to assist all those who work with books, such as librarians and the staff of bookshops, by arranging lectures and seminars on contemporary literature.