Spanish & Portuguese Language & Literature

A. Purpose and Program Description

The Libraries seek to support research in both the linguistic and literary aspects of Iberian, Spanish and Portuguese studies, including the teaching of basic and advanced language skills, grammar and syntax, the history of the languages, Romance philology, including a detailed study of major literary authors together with their most important literary masterpieces. It supports the needs of undergraduate, MA/MS and Ph.D. students, the teaching faculty, post-docs, researchers, and visiting scholars.

During the 1990’s, changes in the user population include an expanding interest in the areas of women writers and 20th century poetry, fiction and drama.

Areas of established specialization: Strengths in the collection include Spanish philology, El Siglo de Oro, La Generacion del Noventa y Ocho. Compete sets of collected works, especially definitive editions, are collected as are most of the important periodicals and monographic series in the field. Thorough coverage of the various aspects of the Spanish and Portuguese languages--their history, grammar, phonetics, morphology, syntax, rhetoric, style, composition, lexicography and philology--are maintained.

B. General Selection Guidelines (see classed analysis for detailed statement)

Overall, the Libraries’ existing collection and collecting goal for Spanish Language in Literature are at the research level while its current acquisitions commitment, based upon available resources, is at the study and teaching level.

C. Specific Delimitations

  1. Formats collected: We collect annuals, monographs, periodicals, reference tools and scholarly series extensively. CD-Roms and other electronic tools, newspapers, and dissertations are collected selectively. Audio-visual materials, maps and textbooks are excluded.
  2. Imprint Dates Collected: We collect current publications extensively and twentieth, nineteenth, and earlier centuries selectively.
  3. Chronological Focus: We collect materials focusing on current, twentieth, nineteenth, and earlier century topics extensively.
  4. Languages Collected: We collect Spanish, Portuguese, and English extensively. Other Western European languages are collected selectively, and all other languages are excluded.
  5. Place of Publication: We collect materials published in Spain, Portugal, North America, The United Kingdom, and South America extensively; and other areas of the world selectively.