An Introduction to the Library of Center for Southeast Asian Studies, Xiamen University

Founded in 1956, the reference room of Research School of Southeast Asian Studies, Xiamen University is the predecessor of the Library of Center for Southeast Asian Studies (CSEAS). Research School of Southeast Asian Studies was reorganized in 1996. After the establishment of CSEAS in March 2000, the reference room was renamed as the Library of CSEAS. The Library is organized along with the four core functions of acquisition, collection management, access/reference services and databases building.

The library has approximately 100,000 titles in its print collection related to Southeast Asian and overseas Chinese studies. The collection consists of over 30,000 Chinese books and over 20,000 books in other languages, such as English, Japanese, Dutch, Russian, French, Germany, Indonesian, Vietnamese, Thai, Malay and so on. Nearly 6000 titles of monographic study material and newspaper clipping as well as more than one thousand journals are collected, which includes around 880 titles, almost 20,000 bound journals in foreign languages. In addition, it collects 310 titles, more than 20,000 bound newspapers published at home and abroad.

Beside the print materials, the library also provides access to related electronic resources by subscribed databases such as Taylor & Francis ST & SSH, JSTOR, Proquest and self-built databases as below. 

The Southeast Asian and overseas Chinese databases founded and being established consist of Southeast Asian and overseas Chinese studies indexes, dissertations on Southeast Asian and overseas Chinese studies in China, Southeast Asian Affairs and Southeast Asian Studies (A Quarterly Journal of  Translations)  database, etc. In addition, the Library compiled and published catalogues and bibliographies on a series of specific subjects.

The library of CSEAS has been a specialized library with the best collection on Southeast Asia in China, which is also one of the internationally acknowledged prominent resource centers of Southeast Asian studies