Abstract

This study traced the origin and transformation of word library linked with archives in the ancient Near East, and Greece and Rome. First, the word library has two origins. One is derived from the Latin bibliothēkē from the ancient Greek βιβλιοθήκη. The first trace is Pollux's Onomasticon in the second half of the 2nd century, and if considered as a set of literature texts, it is Lipsius's De Bibliothecis Syntagma in 1602. The other was established as an library in the early 14th century after Latin libraria (or librarium) was translated into Old French librairie (or librarie). The word library was coined by Chaucer in 1374. Second, the clay tablet repository that existed in the ancient Near East is close to an archive, but the official name is unknown. However, the Ashurbanipal clay tablet archive is far from the principle of respect for original order and origins emphasized by the archivists, so it is not a royal archive, but a prototype of the royal library. And the official name of the Library of Alexandria was 'Βιβλιοθήκη της Αλεξάνδρειας', and then it was changed to 'ALEXANDRINA BYBLIOTHECE'. Third, In ancient Greece and Rome, archives and libraries were separated. Greece libraries were at the level of a small libraries attached to gymnasiums, and had few independent titles. The names of the Roman libraries often attached to the public baths were mixed with βιβλιοθήκη and Bibliotheca. Finally, the ancient library was succeeded to the cathedral bibliothek, and was transformed into 'bayt al-hikmah' in the Islamic Empire. In Japan, China, and Korea, Japanese-Chinese word library was accepted at the end of the 19th century, but there are many issues that require follow-up research.