German Libraries Throughout History and Today

Abstract

This article provides a brief overview of the history of libraries in the German-speaking world from the Middle Ages to 2021. After introductory information about the German-speaking world in the past and present, there are some references to the libraries that probably existed there in Roman times. It is followed by information about the first royal and monastic libraries during the Carolingian and Ottonian dynasties and then about the first German university libraries in the 14th century. The focal points of this article are the Gutenberg Revolution and the Reformation and their impact on the spread of literacy and education and the development of libraries. The author goes on to describe the flourishing of libraries in German courts in the 17th and 18th centuries, the opening of the first commercial libraries, and the great progress of university libraries during the Enlightenment era, as well as the expansion of the modern library network in the German Empire after 1871. Throughout the 20th century, different library focuses in West and East Germany were of particular interest, and then the integration of East German libraries into the West German system after the fall of the Berlin Wall in 1989 and the reunification of Germany in 1991. Data from the beginning of the third decade of the 21st century shows that in all three countries that make the core of today’s German-speaking world libraries are facing some decline in users and visitors. It is partly, but not entirely, attributable to the COVID-19 pandemic, as libraries are also facing other challenges, primarily the need to continually adapt to changes brought about by rapid developments in information technology.