Aims and Function
The National Repository Library (NRL) is a resource shared by all Finnish libraries and information service centres. The NRL is the most economic way of storing library material. Because of the NRL, the need for extra shelf space in libraries throughout the country is decreased and can be controlled.
The basic function of the NRL is to receive, store and offer material for the use of other libraries. The NRL serves university and special libraries as well as public libraries, and acts as a connecting link in the library network.
Contents of the collections
The NRL collections include monographs and periodicals as well as series in all languages and in all fields: fiction and non-fiction, dissertations and books in Braille. The materials are organised in ‘numerus currens’ sequences (according to the date of arrival).
The National Repository Library’s collections include almost three million catalogued items. NRL receives material from all libraries and information service centres in Finland.
The NRL has about 500,000 uncatalogued dissertations arranged in alphabetical order. These are titles published in Central Europe or Scandinavia before 1990. All Finnish dissertations as well as all dissertations published in or later than 1990 have been catalogued into the database as monographs.
- loanable material approx. 103 self kilometres. (31.12.23)
- Monographs approx. 2 195 000
- Periodicals approx. 119 300
- There is currently music material (24. 2. 2022 situation) approx. 75,000 titles in the collection (figures rounded to the nearest thousand), of which approx. 31,000 LPs, approx. 24,000 CDs and approx. 20,000 note releases.
The NRL has no systematic classification for its catalogued material. The collections include more material in English (32,1 %) than in any other language. Finnish and German come second and third.