The most comprehensive library in the world is the Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. Its collection consists of more than 178 million items, including books, manuscripts, maps, photographs, audio recordings, and other materials in more than 470 languages.
Below are the leading libraries by the size of their collections. The figures may slightly differ in different sources, as some include all types of materials, while others only printed editions.
| Rank | Library | Location | Collection Size |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Library of Congress | USA, Washington, D.C. | 178 million items |
| 2 | British Library | United Kingdom, London | 170 million items |
| 3 | Russian State Library | Russia, Moscow | 128 million items |
| 4 | Shanghai Library | China, Shanghai | 58 million items |
| 5 | New York Public Library | USA, New York | 56 million items |
| Library | Location | Collection Size |
|---|---|---|
| Library and Archives Canada | Ottawa | more than 50 million items |
| National Diet Library of Japan | Tokyo, Kyoto | about 47.5 million items |
| National Library of China | Beijing | more than 45 million items |
| German National Library | Leipzig, Frankfurt am Main | about 44 million items |
| Russian National Library | St. Petersburg | about 39.7 million items |
If you are interested in any specific library from this list, let me know — I will prepare a detailed material.
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