Middle East

Our Middle East collections comprise manuscripts, printed books, newspapers and journals from countries in today's Middle East as well as from Iran and Central Asia from the 5th century AD to the present day.

Collection guides

Arabic collections
Printed books, periodicals and newspapers, manuscripts and a range of other materials
Persian collections
Over 40,000 volumes of printed books, periodicals and newspapers, more than 11,000 manuscripts, and a range of other materials.
Hebrew collections
Manuscripts copied over 1,000 years ago to the most recent monographs and serials
Turkish and Turkic collections
Over 25,000 volumes of printed books, periodicals and newspapers, more than 4,000 manuscript texts, and other materials
Judeo-Persian
The British Library has a small but important collection of Judeo-Persian manuscripts and printed books
Ethiopian collections
The Ethiopian collections include over 600 manuscripts in addition to recent monographs and serials

View all related guides

Help

Readers at desks in the Asian and African Reading Room

Asian & African Studies Reading Room

Find information on the shelves
Access online databases and electronic books and journals
Order collection items to the Reading Room via our catalogues

If you need help, just ask our Information Specialists at the Reference Enquiry desk or contact the Asian & African Studies Reference Team.

We offer a range of free Reader sessions and 1-2-1 consultations to help you make the best use of the Library's collections.

You’ll need a Reader Pass

Mon: 10.00 – 17.00
Tue – Sat: 09.30 – 17.00
Sun & English Public Holidays: closed

Opening hours for all Reading Rooms

Blog posts

The disastrous paintings of Richard Greenbury

Thursday, April 6, 2023

Richard Greenbury was an artist and decorator of furniture in early 17th century London. In the 1620s, he received two important painting commissions from the East India Company. Both documented incidents of treachery and suffering. The first commission showed an...

Close Encounters of the ‘Sea Duck’ kind

Tuesday, March 28, 2023

The East India Company ship Martha under Captain Thomas Raynes (or Raines) set sail from England in April 1700, destined for Bombay. It zig-zagged across the globe on the prevailing winds, via the Canary Islands, Cape Verde, and Bahia de...

From Chester to Mesopotamia: Thomas Crawford of the Royal Welch Fusiliers

Tuesday, March 14, 2023

When sixteen-year-old Thomas John Crawford joined the Second Battalion Royal Welch Fusiliers in August 1906 he was escaping a turbulent home life. His parents Clara (née Jones) and Alfred were married on 8 July 1888 in Chester, and daughter Annie...

Akbar and Alexander the Great

Sunday, February 19, 2023

With the British Library exhibition Alexander the Great: The making of a Myth drawing to a close, I would like to highlight one of my special favourites: the Emperor Akbar’s personal copy of Nizami’s Khamsah (Quintet) of which the fifth...