İBB Atatürk Kitaplığı Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality Atatürk Library

History and Founding

The Istanbul Metropolitan Municipality (IMM) Atatürk Library has its roots in the Şehremaneti Library, established in 1924 as Istanbul's first public municipal library. In 1939, Istanbul Mayor Muhittin Üstündağ formally established a Municipal Museum and Library at the historic Beyazıt Madrasa. The library separated from the museum in 1945 as its collections grew. In 1973, the Vehbi Koç Foundation constructed a dedicated building on Miralay Şefik Bey Street in Taksim to mark the 50th anniversary of the Turkish Republic; the building was transferred to the municipality in 1976 and formally named the Atatürk Library in 1981. Today the library is operated by the IMM Directorate of Libraries and Museums.

Collections and Holdings

The Atatürk Library is one of Turkey's most important research libraries, holding more than 700,000 items. Its collections include Ottoman printed books, periodicals, manuscripts (over 5,000 manuscripts in approximately 2,000 volumes), rare foreign-language works, maps, postcards, yearbooks, calendars, and private archives. Particularly notable are: the complete set of 17 books from the 18th-century Müteferrika Printing House; the largest map archive of Istanbul, dating back to the 16th century and including insurance maps by Pervititch and Goad; a rich Armenian-language collection; and Ottoman manuscripts including the Mekece Foundation Charter of Orhan Gazi (dated 1324 CE).

Digital Resources Gateway

The library's digital portal at ataturkkitapligi.ibb.gov.tr provides access to a digital archive of more than 6 million records. Digitization has been a major ongoing priority, with approximately 1 million printed pages converted to digital format. The digital gateway enables access to catalogs of all IMM libraries, manuscript images, periodicals, maps, and special collections. The portal also links to other libraries in the IMM network.

Access and Usage

The physical library is freely open to the public. Researchers and students ranging from primary school level to international academics use the library's reading rooms. Digital collections are accessible online. Membership for lending services can be obtained via the IBB Library Mini application or through the Turkish e-government portal.