Landsbókasafn

Books

The book collection of the National and University of Iceland counts about one million items of different types. The books are arranged according to the Dewey Decimal Classification System. They are also catalogued into a union catalogue of Icelandic libraries which is to be found on leitir.is.

Books for circulation are accessible on 3rd and 4th floor in the Main Library (Þjóðarbókhlaða), but books for circulation are also in the Library’s store-rooms and the staff is in charge of handling those. The Icelandic National Collection preserves Icelandic books that are only available in the Reading Room of the National Collection. Reference works are accessible for use on 2nd floor but are not for circulation.

Online catalogue

Bækur.is

Reproductions of old Icelandic books

Íslensk bókaskrá

Icelandic bibliography 1534-1844

Íslensk útgáfuskrá

Statistical summary of Icelandic materials published till 2017

Special Collections

The special collections form a part of the Icelandic National Collection. Most of them have been donated to the National Library and the University Library by individuals and institutions upon the conditions that they be kept together as a collection. The collections are often donated in memory of former owners, and they are intended to strengthen research in their fields.

Icelandic National Collection

Collects everything that has been printed in Iceland from the beginning. It also collects foreign printed material that deals with Iceland and Icelandic people. It shall preserve the Icelandic cultural heritage which has been arranged in the Library and provide the best possible care of the material.

Reference Works

Reference works are accessible in working and reading spaces in the National and University Library and in the Law Library.

E-books

Ebooks are accessible on various search engines and collections.

Islandica Extranea

The collection places its main emphasis on the acquisition of translations of Icelandic books into other languages, books that Icelanders have written in other languages and books by foreign authors that deal with Iceland and Icelandic subjects.

Donations

The National and University Library receives donations which strengthen the library collection and are in line with its acquisition policy. Those who want to donate material to the Library should prior to a delivery, contact the correct intermediary of the Library.

Acquisitions

Students, scientists and other users of the Library can also suggest new acquisitions.

Interlibrary loans

The Library provides to its users, books and journal articles from other university- and research libraries. Books are not borrowed from the Reykjavik Public Library or public libraries in the Reykjavík area.

ISBN number

The International Standard Books Number- ISBN is a standard from the International Standard Organization - ISO. Each number is unique, and the main purpose of this international book number system, is to separate each individual item as well as possible from all others.

New books

List of new books in the National Library

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