The Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies and Library Collections at the University of California-Berkeley

The University of California (UC), Berkeley Library’s Slavic, East European, and Eurasian Studies collection has evolved over the past hundred years in response to major historical events and processes. The October Revolution and the Cold War both brought about a meteoric rise in attention to the field, while the fall of the Soviet Union in 1991 and the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022 have further stimulated collection development. This article highlights the people and collecting practices that have shaped the collection today, focusing on the history, languages, and literature departments. Slavic and East European Studies faculty have been instrumental in shaping the collection development priorities since the inception of instruction in the field. The article also acknowledges the role of the political sciences department in stimulating collection development during the Cold War.