Icelandic books in several foreign languages can be borrowed at the National Library
Collaborative agreement between the Icelandic Literature Center and the National Library ensures overview, preservation, and access to Icelandic literature in foreign language translations
The National Library ensures preservation and access to the books that the Icelandic Literature Center presents to the library, and also passes on additional copies, if any, to other libraries.
Around the middle of 2014, the Icelandic Literature Center and the National Library entered into an indefinite agreement to collect detailed information on the publishing of Icelandic literature in other languages that Icelandic, and ensuring access to it.
The purpose of the agreement is to achieve a comprehensive list of Icelandic books published abroad in international translations. To this end the Icelandic Literature Center provides at least one copy of each book that has received a translation grant from the Icelandic Literature Center, and has done so since 2014, rendering close to one thousand books delivered to the National Library for preservation and lending.
The National Library ensures preservation and access to the books that the Icelandic Literature Center delivers to the library and undertakes to pass on additional copies, if any, to other libraries.
Furthermore, the agreement stipulates that both parties collect detailed information on the publication of Icelandic literature in other languages than Icelandic, in addition to the books that receive translation grants from the Icelandic Literature Center, and make them accessible in Gegnir/Leitir.
And now we are drawing close to the launching of a detailed translation register in leitir.is where it is possible to look up immense amounts of information on Icelandic books, their authors, and translators, and this register marks a turning point in the preservation and access to this information.