Some national libraries in multilingual countries operate in multilingual societies and reflect the linguistic diversity of the countries they serve. Their collections encompass several official languages and preserve documentary heritage across different linguistic communities.
Belgium
Brussels — Koninklijke Bibliotheek van België
The KBR — Koninklijke Bibliotheek van België is Belgium’s national scientific library and is located at Mont des Arts in Brussels.
Reflecting Belgium’s multilingual character, its collections include documentary heritage in Dutch, French and German, as well as materials relating to the country’s history and cultural heritage. The KBR is therefore an example of national libraries in multilingual countries, whose collections reflect the linguistic diversity of the societies they serve.
The library holds important collections of medieval manuscripts associated with the Dukes of Burgundy, as well as historical newspapers, prints, manuscripts, maps, music and other documentary materials.
Its digital collections provide remote access to a growing selection of Belgium’s cultural and historical heritage.
Switzerland
Bern — Schweizerische Nationalbibliothek
The Schweizerische Nationalbibliothek / Bibliothèque nationale suisse reflects the multilingual character of the Swiss Confederation and provides another example of national libraries in multilingual countries.
Its mandate focuses on the collection, cataloguing and preservation of printed and digital publications issued in Switzerland, as well as works published abroad relating to Switzerland or written by Swiss citizens and residents. This body of material is known as Helvetica.
The institution’s collections reflect Switzerland’s principal linguistic traditions and include publications in German, French, Italian and Romansh.