The East Asian Collection at Davis Library was established in 1964 when UNC began teaching courses on East Asia. The University of North Carolina and nearby Duke University have been sharing area studies library resources since the 1930s, and have agreed early on to share the responsibility of East Asian collection development. UNC concentrates on developing Chinese resources for both schools, while Duke focuses on Japanese material. The scope of this ongoing partnership includes not only library resources, but extends to various library services as well. At present, UNC library boasts one of the largest Chinese collections in the South, with a total holding of more than 200,000 volumes in print. The library is also actively expanding our collection to acquire digital resources and image materials, such as eBooks, databases, films, microforms and maps from East Asia in order to support the growing academic programs in Asian studies.
UNC library's Chinese collection is strongest in the following areas: