Library Days are held nowadays in many countries as a day for celebrating libraries, highlighting their importance in today’s society. Sometimes they are devoted to a specific theme each year, or focus in reading, or in a specific target audience… Sometimes the activities last the whole month!

In this section you’ll find a compilation of the National Library Days in different countries.

This list was collectively compiled thanks to the contributions of our readers through their Comments. We’d like to enrich this section with further information, so…

If you know about a public library that develops an activity celebrating their National Library Day, or you want to add a country that’s not in the list, please tell ust! Use the Comments to this section or our e-mail address, naple.sisterlibraries@gmail.com

EUROPE

Croatia

11 November

Poland

8 May we celebrate Librarian Day in Poland. The day starts Week of Libraries, which lasts until 15 May.

Spain

In Spain we celebrate Libraries Day on 24th October every year since 1997 to commemorate the destruction on the Sarajevo National Library, set on fire in 1992 during the Balcans War.

See here our last edition 2022

Finland

In Finland we celebrate ladies called Laina on 8th February. Laina is a womans name but the word also means “a loan”. Usually libraries organise some happenings on that day, overdue fees can be forgiven etc. Read all about it here!

Slovenia

In Slovenia we celebrate 20 November as Public Libraries’ Day. See announcement video and speeches at http://www.zbds-zveza.si/?q=node5/dan_splosnih_knjiznic2013

Belgium

In Belgium it’s Week of Libraries, mostly half October. Every year on a different theme.

Ireland

The Library Association of Ireland celebrates Library Ireland Week each year in November. Last edition was in 2016 and the theme was Libraries: Empowering through Online Access. You can read about at https://libraryassociation.ie/events/library-ireland-week

UK

Libraries Week, 9 – 14 October 2017, replaced National Libraries Day, previously held in February. In 2017 it was about “discovering the range of things you can do at your library, from play and learning for children, to managing your health, to accessing wifi and games, to finding a job, a hobby or starting a business. It’s not just public libraries – libraries of all kinds in schools, workplaces and universities have amazing services that help us all.”

You can read all about it here: http://www.librariesweek.org.uk/

Ukraine

Ukrainian Library day is celebrated  annually on September 30

REST OF THE WORLD

Kiribati Republic

One of the librarians of the school of nursing library in Tarawa (Kiribati Republic) explains: “we don’t have a library day here but we’re thinking of that idea for all of us librarians in here to admire the day when there is and also I think it will be a great contribution to the libraries here and to the librarian themselves… it will be an honour for the librarians here,, if we have that library day …”

Aruba

In Aruba we celebrate Library Day on January 20th.

Pakistan

We celebrate library day on 20 february all across our country!

South Africa

They celebrate Library Day 10 July each year.

Paraguay

Librarian Day is October 16th in Paraguay.

Phillipines

In the Philippines, two laws were promulgated to promote the use of books and libraries:
1. PROCLAMATION NO. 109 was signed last November 10, 1936 by MANUEL L. QUEZON, President of the Philippines Designating the period from November 24 to 30 of each year as National Book Week
2. PROCLAMATION NO. 837 was signed November 19, 1991 by Corazon C. Aquino, President of the Philippines – DECLARING THE MONTH OF NOVEMBER 1991 AND EVERY YEAR THEREAFTER AS “LIBRARY AND INFORMATION SERVICES MONTH”

India

National Library Day is celebrated in India on 12th of August Every year in memory of Birthday of Mr. S.R. Ranganathan, the man who gave a lot in Library and Information Science field.

Ecuador

In Ecuador they celebrate this day on October 24th https://www.culturaypatrimonio.gob.ec/24-de-octubre-dia-internacional-de-la-biblioteca/