The University of Toronto Libraries’ Slavic and East European collection is the largest and most comprehensive of its kind in Canada. The Library acquires materials in most disciplines of the humanities and social sciences from East-Central Europe, Russia, and Central Asia, and from various émigré communities from these areas throughout the world. The distribution of holdings by language is Russian (46%), Polish (19%), Ukrainian (8%), Czech (7%), Bosnian-Croatian-Serbian (4%), Hungarian (4%), Bulgarian (3%), and the remainder in Slovak, Romanian, Estonian, Belarusian, Slovenian, Macedonian, and other languages.
Books and journals are acquired primarily for the John P. Robarts Library and the Thomas Fisher Rare Book Library, with the remainder purchased for several specialized collections on campus. The Library subscribes to research article databases related to Slavic and East European studies and offers online access to current and historical newspapers from this world area.
The University of Toronto Libraries’ special collections of rare books and manuscripts are particularly strong in 20th-century Czech, Slovak, Polish, Russian, and Ukrainian culture and history. Of especial significance are the holdings of material on dissident movements, for example, Edice Petlice, “Padlock Editions,” and other underground writing and publishing in Czechoslovakia; hundreds of publications by members of NSZZ Solidarność and other workers’ movements in Poland; and Russian samizdat and independent press in the Igor Belousovitch collection.
The Petro Jacyk Central and East European Resource Centre provides user-support for questions about collections and offers guidance on research tools, strategies, and resources. Its staff publish an annual newsletter highlighting collections, digital projects, and services in Slavic and East European studies across the University.