Read up on heritage at new Sharjah library

Visitors at Al Mawrouth library is a part of Sharjah Heritage Day at Heart of Sharjah - Photo by M.Sajjad

Located in the Heart of Sharjah, the Heritage Library has received a large number of researchers, visitors and heritage lovers since the 14th edition of the Sharjah Heritage Days Festival was opened on April 7.
The Heritage Library, which is part of the Sharjah Institute for Heritage (SIH), was opened under the slogan "With reading, we progress!" and it also coincides with 2016 being marked as the Year of Reading in the UAE.
The library is set to be a key resource and destination for researchers and those interested in cultural heritage. It will make available important sources and references on historical artifacts and data, as well as providing support for researchers, students, and encouraging academic research in the fields of tangible and intangible heritage.
The Heritage Library contains more than 5,000 books of historical interest, including a large variety of sources and references. It can also accommodate more than 1,000 additional titles, as required. The Heritage Library is, therefore, a substantial addition to the libraries in Sharjah and in the UAE, with its collection of unique sources and invaluable reference tools.
Coinciding with the UAE's Year of Reading initiative - declared by the President, His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the library was developed in direct response to the directives of His Highness Dr Shaikh Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, Member of the Supreme Council and Ruler of Sharjah, with the aim being to produce a generation of readers who are well informed about their culture and history.
Abdulaziz Almusallam, Chairman of the Sharjah Institute for Heritage, and Chairman of the Supreme Committee of the Sharjah Heritage Days Festival, said: "Reading is a manifestation of culture, civilisation and the progress of nations. The Heritage Library complements the government's initiatives to promote reading and call this year the "Year of Reading". The SIH Heritage Library is packed with a variety of books and references on cultural and heritage, in addition to some local, GCC, Arab and international periodicals."
He pointed out that the Heritage Library is receiving a large host of readers, festival visitors, heritage fans and researchers who find their information in the vast array of the library's holdings, references, books, periodicals and general information.
The Heritage Library also contains publications of Dr Shaikh Sultan; studies, periodicals and books specialising in UAE heritage and history; dictionaries, encyclopedias, research papers; and studies concerned with tangible and intangible cultural heritage, printed in, or translated into, Arabic.
The library also holds a great number of books about the UAE in the areas of history, literature, arts, social and human sciences, in addition to local, Arabic and international periodicals about popular heritage.
Almusallam pointed out that SIH also has several publications, including the quarterly 'Heritage Magazine', which is concerned with cultural heritage, 'Sabr Magazine', a quarterly periodical issued by SIH, and the 'Turathiya Bulletin', which is issued during Sharjah Heritage Days.
afkarali@khaleejtmes.com

• Sharjah