Introducing The Richard C. Rudolph East Asian Library
The Richard C. Rudolph East Asian Library was established in 1948 to support the University's teaching and research programs in East Asian Studies. The Library selects, organizes, and makes available Chinese, Japanese, and Korean language materials. Its staff provides reference and instruction services to optimize access and use of the collections.
Brief History of the Library
In 1948, Richard C. Rudolph, Chairman of the Department of Oriental Languages (now the Department of Asian Languages and Cultures) at UCLA, traveled to China on a Fulbright grant to study archeology and, on a personal mission, to purchase books to support the Chinese program at the University. In the wake of the Communist takeover, Dr. Rudolph hurriedly combed through bookstores in Beijing and Chengdu for reference works, encyclopedias, and large collected works known as "collectanea," all of them original wood-block printed books. On his way home he bought some more books in Japan. A collection of over 10,000 volumes was purchased on this trip.
In 1948, the Oriental Library was installed in the basement of the Powell Library building. It provided both a basic reference collection and a cultural retreat for faculty and students on campus. In 1971, after the second phase of the University Research Library building was constructed, the Library moved to its current location--the second floor of the Charles E. Young Research Library. On April 10, 1981, Richard C. Rudolph Oriental Library was formally named in honor of Rudolph's most substantial and distinguished efforts in the building of the collection. In 1990, the name of the Library was changed again to the "East Asian Library" to accurately reflect its collection of Chinese, Japanese, and Korean materials and the name of the program the Library supports, East Asian Studies.
Collections
As of November 1, 2007, the total holdings of the East Asian Library consisted of approximately 542,705 volumes (including 290,804 in Chinese, 178,475 in Japanese, 47,692 in Korean, 20,707 microform items, and 5,027 CD-ROM and other non-print materials). The library currently receives 3,023 serial titles (1,957 in Chinese, 856 in Japanese, and 210 in Korean) annually.
The East Asian collection is strong in Chinese archeology; religion (especially Buddhism); folklore; pre-modern history and classical literature of both China and Japan; as well as Chinese and Japanese fine arts. Special efforts have been made in recent years to strengthen Chinese and Japanese local historical materials and Chinese statistical yearbooks. The Library's Korean collection, developed since 1985, has strengths in the areas of history, literature, and religion.
