The role of the national library in preservation protection of old and rare book collections and dissemination of Knowledge in Ethiopia

Abstract

The aim and functions of national libraries are the problems of great interest, which are discussed quite extensively among librarians everywhere. It is due to this fact the main role of a national library in a library system of a given country plays an important role in the collection of its' materials which is mostly a representation of culture and literary output of that nation. In Ethiopia the national library is defined as a Central Depository of all published literature in the state, almost inevitably can have a big and general collection of manuscripts. The objectives of the National Library have been formulated by the need of saving old prints and manuscripts especially those which escaped the destruction of the different invasions by the Turks, the Egyptians, the Portuguese and lately by the Italians and the British colonialists. Due to this fact a great many historical documents and ancient manuscripts of historical value are found in the British Museum. The Bibliotheque National of France, and at the Vatican Library in Vatican City.