History of Library
The national library of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy (till April 12, 2002 the State library of the Republic of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy) received the status of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan, "national" on the basis of the Decree, "About improvement of the organization of research activity" of February 20, 2002 No. UP-3029 and Resolutions of the Cabinet of the Republic of Uzbekistan "About creation of National library of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy" of April 12, 2002 No. 123.

The library was founded in 1870 as the Tashkent public library. Assistance in the organization of fund of library was rendered by the Ministry of national education, Academy of Sciences, Public library, Geographical society and General staff of Russia, the offered doublet editions from the book-depositories. By May, 1870 more than 2200 volumes (1200 names) which were the book center of future library were collected.
Тthe ashkentsky public library had to collect and store literature on various branches of knowledge, first of all, connected with the region and the adjacent countries. The famous Russian bibliographer V.I. Mezhov who carried out collecting the materials about the Turkestan region which laid the foundation for creation of the famous "Turkestan collection" in scientific community was involved to carrying out this work.
Nikolay Vasilyevich Dmitrovsky became the first director of library since May 11, 1872. The positive role in the fate of library during this difficult period was played by the "Supervisory committee" created in 1883. In different years the famous scientists, teachers, historians, ethnographers entered into committee: N.A. Mayev, N.V. Dmitrovsky, A.A. Semyonov, A.A. Divayev, N.G. Malitsky, etc.
Creation of the known "Turkestan album" also belongs to an initial stage of history of library. Drawing up this unique photo album was charged to the orientalist A.L. Kuhn.
According to the "Catalog of manuscripts of the Turkestan public library" made by the academician A.A. Semyonov, its hand-written fund by 1917 made 250 volumes.
During this period also the first lithographic books published in lithographs of Khiva and Tashkent are acquired. These are lithographs of Hams of A. Navoi (1880), "Divani munis", "Divani Radzhi", the work by the famous poet of the 18th century Sufi Allayar "Firmness weak" and many others.
In 1920 the library was given the status "state". From this year the library begins to receive obligatory copies of all editions which are published in the territory of the Turkestan region. In 1925 its fund made 140 thousand units of storage.
In a consequence of delimitation of the republics of Central Asia the library remained in Narkompros's submission of Uzbekistan and rendered the practical help to again created Central Asian republics in the organization of library science.
In July, 1925 at east department of the State public library of Uzbekistan the institute of probationers began to function. In December, 1929 the courses of studying of Uzbek created for library workers in August, 1930 – courses of preparation of cataloguers of scientific libraries, in January, 1932 – three-months courses on cataloguing, systematization and subject analysis, and in October, 1934 opened at Committee of sciences – courses for employees of scientific libraries.
The decision of the government of Uzbekistan the State public library in Tashkent in 1933 is announced by the Central storage of east manuscripts of the republic.
The great value in work of library in the 1920-1930th was occupied by the bibliography. To this period her employees wrote large bibliographic works.
In the late thirties the State public library became the original methodical center for other libraries of the republic which number exceeded 2,5 thousand by then. Opened at it an office of library science and the bibliography where lectures, reviews, consultations were constantly given.
In the years of World War II in halls of library worked: academicians to V.V. Struva and V.P. Filatov, corresponding members of Academy of Sciences of the USSR V.M. Zhirmunsky, A.Yu. Yakubovsky, N.K. Piksanov, A.N. Tolstaya, N.Je. Wirth's writers, Vs. V. Ivanov, M.A. Tsyavlovsky, V.G. Yang, K.I. Chukovsky, workers of arts – the honored worker of arts M.F. Gnesin, professor V.M. Belyaev, the composer N.V. Bogoslovsky, the people's artist of the USSR I.V. Yershov and many other evacuated to Tashkent. In post-war time replenishment of book funds becomes the main task of library. Books from Bulgaria, Hungary, the GDR, Poland, Romania, Czechoslovakia began to arrive. Friendly relations with libraries of Great Britain, the USA, France, Germany, Japan, etc. were established.
In 1948 the name of the great Uzbek poet and thinker Alisher Navoiy was appropriated to library and the new three-storyed building, with reading rooms on 350 places opened. Then the department of rare and ancient editions in which 2 thousand books were collected, including 250 with autographs, 151 – with ex-librises was organized. Now this fund contains over 16 thousand pieces.
In the 1970th new departments – research, scientific information on culture and art, depository storage, control and dispatching service, youthful are created.
In the 1980th work on all-union researches, such as "The book and reading in life of the Soviet village", "Dynamics of reading and reader's demand in mass libraries", "Rational placement of library resources" and also republican value, such as "Formation of a book kernel of mass libraries of Uzbekistan", "A form of the Uzbek authors in the Russian transcription in the bibliographic description", etc. is conducted.
Special attention began to be paid to replenishment of fund by literature in Uzbek. Now in it over 600 thousand copies – works by classics of the Uzbek literature, such as A. Navoi, Furkat, Mukimi, Zavki, Ibn Sino (Avicenna), Ulugbek, Biruni and also works of modern scientists and writers of the republic.
The next important period in the history of library begins in 2002 when on February 20, 2002 there was a Decree of the President of the Republic of Uzbekistan "About improvement of the organization of research activity". In the 8th paragraph of this Decree the offer of scientific institutions and departments of the republic on creation of National library of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy by merging of the State library of the Republic of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy and Republican scientific and technical library with submission to its Cabinet of the Republic of Uzbekistan was accepted. This decision was made for expansion of activity of library as center of national culture, treasury of national spiritual heritage of the people of Uzbekistan and further development of library science in the republic.
In April, 2002 the Cabinet of the Republic of Uzbekistan adopted the Resolution of April 12, 2002 No. 123 "About creation of National library of Uzbekistan of Alisher Navoiy". The resolution of the Cabinet of the Republic of Uzbekistan defined the status of library - the main state book-depository of a national and foreign press, multipurpose library and information and research establishment, the methodical center for all libraries of the republic.