Definition of public library
From an etymological point of view library mean wardrobe or custody of books. A public library is a space devoted to reading and reference books. You can also take a series of associated activities: consultation of files, documents, print media (the well-known newspaper archives), loan of books, music library, internet access, etc. In a nutshell, all activities that are carried out are in relation to the knowledge and the book has a special role. Public libraries are, as its name suggests, a service public, which means that it is promoted by some agency of the State (e.g., municipal libraries) and its role is to spread culture to the whole of society. For this reason, access to libraries is free and open, although it is common for users to have a specific license to access the service of loan books.
During the middle ages the libraries were in monasteries, where copyists hand reproduced copies of the works classical (copies held at the scriptorium). By then, the access to books and knowledge was generally restricted to the clergy and the nobility, and the majority of the population did not have contact with the culture or libraries.
From the century XVll began to create libraries in some European cities, which was due to two main reasons: the development of printing from the 15th century and the consolidation of a new social class, the bourgeoisie.
In the century XVlll are the first public libraries and in the nineteenth century consolidated as cultural centers to report access to education as a service aimed at the whole of society.
Evolution of the concept of library
The most remarkable historical reference from the library in ancient times is that existed in the city of Alexandria during the Hellenistic period. Is estimated that it was founded in the century lll C and its ultimate destruction occurred in the century lV d. C. This institution was something more than a simple library, because it was a center of research in which there were different areas (botany, zoology, Anatomy, rooms for meetings, etc.).During the middle ages the libraries were in monasteries, where copyists hand reproduced copies of the works classical (copies held at the scriptorium). By then, the access to books and knowledge was generally restricted to the clergy and the nobility, and the majority of the population did not have contact with the culture or libraries.
From the century XVll began to create libraries in some European cities, which was due to two main reasons: the development of printing from the 15th century and the consolidation of a new social class, the bourgeoisie.
In the century XVlll are the first public libraries and in the nineteenth century consolidated as cultural centers to report access to education as a service aimed at the whole of society.