Languages | National Library of Australia (NLA)

Languages

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A large, old text with Chinese characters is bound with traditional thread stitching, sitting on a shelf, supported by a white fabric strap wrapped around its cover. The edges of the pages are uneven, showing wear with the stitching slightly frayed. Other colourful books with Chinese characters are lined up alongside it on the shelf.
Chinese collections research guide

Get help to find and access material from the Library’s Chinese collection and beyond.

Research guide
Professor Matthew Spriggs is standing in front wooden bookshelves filled with books. He is wearing glasses, a red short-sleeve shirt patterned with yellow bananas and a black hat.

Prof Matthew Spriggs

Recovering Vanuatu's indigenous literature

Prof Matthew Spriggs talked about his recent Fellowship research focused on the indigenous languages of Vanuatu.

Event
Collection guide
Kern Collection

950 books on bibliography, history, law, religion, ethnography, archaeology and fine arts of Indonesia, 629 books relating to the languages of Austronesia and some manuscripts, including transcripts of a collection of Sudanese manuscripts.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Luce Collection

About 2000 books, pamphlets and serials in various languages, mostly about the history and culture of countries in Asia, particularly Burma/Myanmar.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Simon Collection

3,300 books and serial issues in a range of languages relating to Asian and European literature, politics, history, religion and more. 

Collection guide
Collection guide
Tobing Collection

About 600 books with particular strength in anthropology, sociology and linguistics and largely related to Indonesia, and most are in Dutch, Indonesian, German or English. Some writings by Tobing, himself.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Valente Collection

Around 6,000 books, mostly in Portuguese, mostly relating to literature, history and religion among many other topics.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Mathews Collection

About 5000 books, pamphlets, reprints and journals published 1760-1940 in English, French, German, Italian and Russian. They relate to all aspects of ornithology in all parts of the world, with a special focus on Australian birds.

Collection guide
Collection guide
Mauritius Collection

About 2,100 books, pamphlets, government publications, tourist booklets, magazines and other works about Mauritius and the Indian Ocean. Mostly in French or English, but also a few items in Mauritian Creole.

Collection guide
A page from La Stampa Italiana (or The Italian Press) newspaper.

LE DIRETTIVE DEL GOVERNO ITALIANO NELLA POLITICA MONDIALE IL DISCORSO DEL DUCE A NAPOLI. (1931, December 3). Stampa Italiana = The Italian Press (Perth, WA: 1931–1932), nla.gov.au/nla.news-article249697143

Italian

Topic

Migration from Italy to Australia can be dated back to the 1800s and, since that time, many groups have followed.

Digital Classroom
The front page of the Japanese Perth Times. The masthead is written in Japanese. There is a stylised rat on the front page with the text 'A Happy New Year!! 1996'

Japanese Perth times, 2018, nla.gov.au/nla.news-title1386

Japanese

Topic

Japanese migrants first came to Australia in the late 1800s.

Digital Classroom
The front page of To Ethnico Vema, a Greek-Australian newspaper

(2021). To ethnico vema : Greek national vema, nla.gov.au/nla.news-title1592

Modern Greek

Topic

Significant numbers of Greek migrants arrived during the gold rushes, but the largest waves came between World War II and the 1970s.

Digital Classroom

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