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About the library

Here you can read about Umeå University Library and some of the areas we work with, such as open science. You will also find links to our social media channels.

Umeå University Library is the most extensive research library in northern Sweden. Our target groups are primarily students and employees at Umeå University and employees at the University Hospital, but the library is also open to the public.

Umeå University Library (UmUB) consists of three libraries:

  • the University Library (UB) in the centre of the campus
  • the Medical Library (MB) at the University Hospital
  • Arts Campus Library.

Here you can read more about the different libraries:

Our libraries

The library then and now

History

Umeå University Library originates from "Vetenskapliga biblioteket i Umeå" (the Scientific Library in Umeå) which was established at Umeå stadsbibliotek (Umeå City Library) in 1950. In 1958, when the government decided to establish a medical college in Umeå, a medical library was created as well, leading to an enhancement of the activities at Vetenskapliga biblioteket.

In 1965, when the Umeå University inauguration ceremony was held, its library had already existed for one year. The first library director at UmUB was Paul Sjögren. There were immediate plans to set up a new library building on Campus. The constructions were initiated in the spring of 1967, and in 1968 the main building of the University Library, in the heart of campus, was finished. The circulation desk opened on 2 December the same year, the Research Hall a few days later and the textbook reading room opened on 3 March 1969. At the time the library building attracted attention for its interior and open access system. Since then several reconstructions and additions have been made to UmUB, the latest in 2006. A new building for the Medical Library was built in the autumn of 2002.

Donations

Umeå University Library has received several donations over the years, for example those from Sigurd Curman and Olof Östergren, and through the Stiftelsen Seth M. Kempe minnesfond, has been able to receive parts of book collections belonging to Nils Ahnlund, Björn Collinder, Eli Heckscher and Gustaf Hellström. The library also houses the archive of author Sara Lidman.

Legal deposits to the library

Everyone who copies or publishes a work for general distribution in Sweden is obliged by law to send one copy each to seven specific libraries. Umeå University Library is one of these libraries, and this is an important part of the development of the library collection. The Law for Legal Deposits encompasses printed books, newspapers, brochures, maps, posters, postcards etcetera. Umeå University Library makes a selection of the material. 

European Documentation Centre (EDC)

Umeå University Library is a European Documentation Centre (EDC).
EDC is a body designated by the European Commission. The purpose is to develop studies and research and make information from the European Union (EU) available to the general public. There are ten EDC libraries in Sweden.

You can access EU databases via the library:

EU legislation (list of databases)

Eurostat (EU statistics)

Contact the library for information on how to find legislation and statistics from the EU.

Contact person for EDC

Equal opportunities

At the library, we work with equal opportunities on the basis of Umeå University's policy and vision. 

We are currently actively working on equal opportunities in the following ways:

  • The library has an equal opportunities officer as support for the management team.
  • We have rainbow flags visible on the information desk in all our libraries, this is part of our goal to make visible and include LGBTQ+ people and show that the library supports equal rights.
  • Pride at the libraries - book exhibition in all our libraries in connection with the Pride week in Umeå every year.
  • Focus on the protected grounds of discrimination in signage and selection of books.
  • Thematic signage in national minority languages.
  • Information about accessibility in our physical premises on the web.
  • Reading and writing support for students.

Open science

Open science is about making research more accessible, transparent, and inclusive. Research results should be easy to disseminate, read, and use. Here are some examples of how the library works with open science:

  • We work to ensure that Umeå University’s research is disseminated, for example through agreements with various publishers who offer discounts for open access publishing in journals. We also manage the university's publication database DiVA, where many research publications are available in full text.
  • We conduct analyses of the University's publications, for example to examine the dissemination and impact of the University's research and to evaluate the University’s open access publishing. We also support the University Management by compiling bibliometric data for allocating funds and evaluating research projects.
  • We support the University's researchers in their research data management, for example by advising and reviewing data management plans and providing the DMP online service. We also quality review metadata descriptions of research data made available by university researchers in SND's catalogue for research data (the Swedish National Data Service).
  • We are continuously digitising our collections to preserve them and make them accessible. We include open resources in the library’s search tools and catalogue services so that they are equally visible as the resources we subscribe to or purchase.
  • We provide education on areas of open science, including courses given to doctoral students and researchers. We also work with developing freely available courses and other open educational resources.

Photos of our libraries

Opening hours

  • University Library
    12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      30/9
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      1/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      2/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      3/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      4/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      5/10
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      6/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      7/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      8/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      9/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      10/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      11/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      12/10
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      13/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      14/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      15/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      16/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      17/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      18/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      19/10
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      20/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      21/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      22/10
      10:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      23/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      24/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      25/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      26/10
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      27/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      28/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      29/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      30/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      31/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      1/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      2/11
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      3/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      4/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      5/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      6/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      7/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      8/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      9/11
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      10/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      11/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      12/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      13/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      14/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      15/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      16/11
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      17/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      18/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      19/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      20/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      21/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      22/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      23/11
      11:00–17:00
      Sunday
      24/11
      12:00–18:00
  • Medical Library
    12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      30/9
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      1/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      2/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      3/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      4/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      5/10
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      6/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      7/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      8/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      9/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      10/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      11/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      12/10
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      13/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      14/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      15/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      16/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      17/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      18/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      19/10
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      20/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      21/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      22/10
      10:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      23/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      24/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      25/10
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      26/10
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      27/10
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      28/10
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      29/10
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      30/10
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      31/10
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      1/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      2/11
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      3/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      4/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      5/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      6/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      7/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      8/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      9/11
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      10/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      11/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      12/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      13/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      14/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      15/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      16/11
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      17/11
      12:00–18:00
    • Monday
      18/11
      08:00–22:00
      Tuesday
      19/11
      08:00–22:00
      Wednesday
      20/11
      08:00–22:00
      Thursday
      21/11
      08:00–22:00
      Friday
      22/11
      08:00–18:00
      Saturday
      23/11
      11:00–16:00
      Sunday
      24/11
      12:00–18:00
  • Arts Campus Library
    12:00–16:00
    • Monday
      30/9
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      1/10
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      2/10
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      3/10
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      4/10
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      5/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      6/10
      12:00–16:00
    • Monday
      7/10
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      8/10
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      9/10
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      10/10
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      11/10
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      12/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      13/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      14/10
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      15/10
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      16/10
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      17/10
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      18/10
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      19/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      20/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      21/10
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      22/10
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      23/10
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      24/10
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      25/10
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      26/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      27/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      28/10
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      29/10
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      30/10
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      31/10
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      1/11
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      2/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      3/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      4/11
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      5/11
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      6/11
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      7/11
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      8/11
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      9/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      10/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      11/11
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      12/11
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      13/11
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      14/11
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      15/11
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      16/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      17/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      18/11
      10:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      19/11
      10:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      20/11
      10:00–16:00
      Thursday
      21/11
      10:00–16:00
      Friday
      22/11
      10:00–16:00
      Saturday
      23/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      24/11
      Closed
  • Archives and Special Collections
    Closed
    • Monday
      30/9
      09:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      1/10
      09:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      2/10
      09:00–16:00
      Thursday
      3/10
      09:00–16:00
      Friday
      4/10
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      5/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      6/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      7/10
      09:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      8/10
      09:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      9/10
      09:00–16:00
      Thursday
      10/10
      09:00–16:00
      Friday
      11/10
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      12/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      13/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      14/10
      09:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      15/10
      09:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      16/10
      09:00–16:00
      Thursday
      17/10
      09:00–16:00
      Friday
      18/10
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      19/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      20/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      21/10
      09:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      22/10
      09:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      23/10
      09:00–16:00
      Thursday
      24/10
      09:00–16:00
      Friday
      25/10
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      26/10
      Closed
      Sunday
      27/10
      Closed
    • Monday
      28/10
      09:00–16:00
      Tuesday
      29/10
      09:00–16:00
      Wednesday
      30/10
      09:00–16:00
      Thursday
      31/10
      09:00–16:00
      Friday
      1/11
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      2/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      3/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      4/11
      09:00–17:00
      Tuesday
      5/11
      09:00–17:00
      Wednesday
      6/11
      09:00–17:00
      Thursday
      7/11
      09:00–17:00
      Friday
      8/11
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      9/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      10/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      11/11
      09:00–17:00
      Tuesday
      12/11
      09:00–17:00
      Wednesday
      13/11
      09:00–17:00
      Thursday
      14/11
      09:00–17:00
      Friday
      15/11
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      16/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      17/11
      Closed
    • Monday
      18/11
      09:00–17:00
      Tuesday
      19/11
      09:00–17:00
      Wednesday
      20/11
      09:00–17:00
      Thursday
      21/11
      09:00–17:00
      Friday
      22/11
      09:00–12:00
      Saturday
      23/11
      Closed
      Sunday
      24/11
      Closed

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Quick facts

4000
Visit our libraries every day
1 500 000
Books
1 300 000
Searches in the library's search tool every year
350
Accessible databases

Contact us

Latest update: 2023-08-08