Leiden University teachers wishing to stream audiovisual materials during online classes, can book the University Library's media room (ground floor) for this purpose.

The fellowship programs support researchers who are interested in doing research using the special collections.

Address Bibliotheca Thysiana Rapenburg 25 2311 GG Leiden

The Library offers several instructions and courses on information literacy. You can come to us for: An introduction to the Library catalogue; Courses on searching and appraising information; Plagiarism; And the use of reference management software. Please do not hesitate to get in touch with your…

Digital Collections contains over 500,000 digitized primary sources, reference works and digital born materials held by Leiden University Libraries. In this repository you will find digital facsimiles of prints, drawings, photographs, maps and archival documents; digital facsimiles of manuscript books…

This Subject Guide is designed to support students of Korean studies at Leiden University in their research process. For every step of the research process, this guide introduces a number of tips and recommended resources. You can find several sub-guides and contacts in the 'quick links' in the tab…

Read all about the most important functionalities of EndNote.

This Subject Guide is designed to support students of International Studies with writing their BA thesis and research papers. This guide focuses on the research process, and suggests effective ways to: 1. find a topic and formulate a good research question; 2. search, find and evaluate literature; 3.…

Open educational resources, better known as OER, are freely accessible, reusable learning materials in various forms. OER can be extremely valuable for both teachers and students. On this page, we will discuss what OER entails, what their advantages and disadvantages are, what restrictions may apply…

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in English language and culture.

Looking for a book? Materials within the Leiden University Libraries (UBL) collection are (mostly) arranged according to the Library of Congress Classification.

The Southeast Asian Special Collections contain text and audiovisual materials pertaining to the languages, histories, philosophies, religions, literatures, and (material) art of the region. The focus lies on the Malay world, in particular on the Nederlands-Indies/Indonesia. Apart from books and periodicals…

The archives created by Leiden University and the private archives of Leiden professors are an invaluable source for the history of the university and its functioning. The main sources have been edited (nearly always in Dutch). In addition, several studies have been published, describing the development…

Searching for relevant scholarly information can be a challenge. These tutorials can help you navigating the catalogue and other databases.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) has introduced itself into everyone's lives. Naturally, Leiden University Libraries also has to address the development of AI. In this subject guide, we will give a short introduction to (Gen)AI and its effects on the university library. This subject guide has also been…

The Library of Leiden University holds c. 550 manuscripts and an extensive collection of rare printed books in Hebrew, Aramaic, Syriac, the languages of Ethiopia, South Arabic, Coptic and Armenian, as well as a collection of rare books on the Jewish World.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Education and Child Studies

Everyone working with research data will, at some point, come across the acronym of FAIR, which stands for Findable, Accessible, Interoperable and Reusable.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Computer Science.

According to a rough estimate the western manuscripts collections and (private) archives contain some 500,000 letters, of which over 300,000 are catalogued. The letters kept in the University archives are not catalogued; the same holds for most letters kept in the oriental collections. They can be found…

Leiden University alumni and PhD graduates can continue to use library facilities free of charge.

The Walaeus Library is Leiden University Libraries' medical library. The library is located on the first floor of the Leiden University Medical Center (LUMC).

The libraries offer several group study rooms, for use by Leiden University students. Rooms need to be reserved in advance, using the university's study places booking system.

Geographic information systems (GIS) are computer-based systems for editing and displaying spatial data. GIS tools allow users to create interactive queries, analyze spatial relationships, patterns or trends and visualize the output of all these efforts.

What we now call ‘early printed books’ used to be ‘modern’ works in former centuries.

The UBL develop collections which support the needs of faculty and students of the University.

Study support

Copyright is designed to protect you as the author of your work (moral rights) and to encourage the distribution of your work (exploitation rights).

UBL has assigned a Subject Librarian or Medical Information Specialist to each department and program who provides in-depth assistance for researchers and teachers

From July 2025 to March 2026, various major renovations will take place in the University Library. Both the transparent domes, the skylight between both halls and the installations for air treatment and heating will be replaced. This will allow the University Library to be cooled and heated more sustainably…

Relocation Digital Collections

overview of Leiden University research data management policy documents like regulations and protocols

The Centre for Digital Scholarship (CDS) supports Open Science by providing information, consultancy, and training on the following topics.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Philosophy

Welcome to the Sub-guide for North Korea. This Sub-guide is designed for students looking to locate, access and use a wide variety of scholarly and non-scholarly sources which are either (1) published or produced in North Korea or (2) about North Korea. This Sub-guide is a part of the General Subject…

This Subject Guide will provide you with an overview of useful databases and online resources available within and outside the University Library. This subject guide is your starting point, aiding you in finding sources for any research field within the field of International Studies and International…

A personal library account and LU-Card is needed to enter the libraries and use on-site facilities.

The domain of the post-medieval manuscripts and private archives covers the period from about 1550 to the present. A clear distinction with the medieval manuscripts, however, is difficult to make. There are many undated manuscripts and it is often difficult to date them even within a decade or a quarter…

There are several excellent options for teachers and researchers to engage students and other audiences with primary sources. Either by requesting items from the Special Collections for use during lectures or by integrating our educational resources into your lesson plans.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Italian Language and Culture

All University staff involved or interested in research data management are invited to join Leiden University Research Data Management Community.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Molecular Science & Technology

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in Physics.

Overview of databases, reference works and websites for research in African Studies

The Netherlands Code of Conduct for Research Integrity defines plagiarism as ‘the use of another person’s ideas, work methods, results or texts without appropriate acknowledgement’. The definition at Oxford University is somewhat more extensive: ‘Plagiarism is presenting someone else’s work or ideas…

The number of historical and contemporary photographs of Leiden University approaches a half million.

We have inspiring study places at all our locations. Some 2300 in total. Whether you want to work alone or in a group or need a computer, you will find the perfect spot in the library. Some study places have to be booked first.

From as little as €45.00 per year, Friends enjoy special benefits. As a Friend you: support the UBL financially. The foundation of Friends regularly contributes to the purchase of a unique items or make a financial contribution to the organisation of exhibitions; become part of a network of…