About Us: Facts About the Collection

The Herskovits Library's collection of print materials published in or relating to Africa includes more than 260,000 bound volumes. Among these is a non-circulating rare book collection of 5000 volumes. The library also receives more than 3000 periodicals, journals, and newspapers. To locate specific titles of monographs and serials, consult NUcat, the Northwestern University Library's online catalog.

Other print resources include extensive collections of uncataloged materials (housed in vertical file cabinets) and conference papers (interfiled amongst the Africana stacks). To access these titles, consult the Africana Vertical File Index and the Africana Conference Paper Index, also available through NUcat.

Quick Facts

• 285,000 volumes
• 2,800 current serials
• 250 current newspapers
• 15,000 books in 300 different African languages
• Archival and manuscript collections
• Extensive collections of ephemera, maps, posters, videos, and photographs
• Electronic resources for the study of Africa

Last reviewed: August 31, 2007