The National Library of Wales
Wales’s India Connection
Wed, 13 May 09 10:36:00
As a staggering 714 million voters in the world’s largest democracy, India, vote in the 828,804 polling stations in the country’s 15th general election since independence, The National Library of Wales, Aberystwyth, revealed the extent of their relatively unknown ethnic materials. The Library’s interest in these and other international collections is such that a new heading page has been especially placed on the Library’s website to make access to these collections easier.
As a legal deposit Library it is entitled by law to receive a copy of every book published in the UK but the Library also purchases books and publications issued by other countries, such as India.
The Library possesses a number of works in and about Indian languages and one of the Library’s regular readers and researchers, Mr Bijon Sinha, has kindly helped the Library identify some of the strengths of this collection.
Works in the collection include linguistics and comparative linguistics, particularly on the links between Indian and European languages and works on individual languages, especially Sanskrit. The collection also encompasses literature in Bengali, including poetry, prose and folk tales and an extensive collection of British Imperial Documents, which contain administrative, judicial, education and public health reports for many of the Indian provinces in the period before independence and Partition. Of interest to those following their family history, the Library collections also includes printed volumes of the Census of India, 1901, 1911, 1921 and 1931. The Library also includes a fascinating collection of letters by Clive of India which give a native Indian interpretation of the British conquest of the sub-continent.
According to Mr Bijon Sinha, a member of The National Library of Wales's ethnicity board: ‘Treasures from Tagore, veritable gems from Vedic philosophy and rites … these form only part of the vast collection of materials awaiting re-discovery and modern research on the rich collection at the National Library that comprises Indian literature, language (ancient and modern), linguistics, social anthropology, Sanskritic philosophy, ancient and modern Indian history and geography. There is material here to do any Indologist proud, and worthy of a national library of international repute!
Mohammad Asghar Plaid Cymru AM for South Wales East, who was born in Pashawar in 1945 and who is the only member of the National Assembly for Wales to come from an ethnic minority, added: ‘I have just returned from a visit to India and am very interested to learn of the extent of the Library’s collection of books and documents relating to the country.
‘I am extremely surprised to learn of such Indian gems available for viewing in Wales. I will certainly make a point of calling in at the Library to see the collection for myself when I am in Aberystwyth next.
I would urge other people from ethnic minorities and from the wider community to call in to the Library and have a look at this wonderful collection.’
Other collections in the Library include the David Hawkes collection – a collection of works donated to the Library by the former professor of Chinese at Oxford and eminent Sinologist. His collection includes over 4,500 volumes relating to Chinese language, literature, history and philosophy. The Library has a card catalogue of the entire collection. This has been copied and scanned and can be viewed via a PDF on the Library’s website.
Andrew Green, Librarian said, ‘The National Library of Wales has also cooperated closely with many ethnic minority groups in Wales and is keen to develop that side of the Library’s collections so as to give as complete a picture as possible of contemporary Wales and her history. The international collections from India and China confirm the Library as a leading international research centre.’
Links
Further Information
Medi Jones-Jackson, NLW Press Office: 01970 632 534 medi.jones-jackson@llgc.org.uk
