National Diet Library

The origins of the National Diet Library (NDL) are rooted in the Imperial Library, on the one hand, and the Library of the House of Peers and the Library of the House of Representatives, on the other. In February 1948, the National Diet Library Law was enacted, and the NDL was established. Since then, the NDL has served as the research library for the Diet legislators and the national deposit library. The National Diet Library's branch libraries within the government ministries and agencies and the Supreme Court extend its lending, copying, and reference services to the executive and judicial branches of the government. The NDL also manages the ISSN Center for Japan; provides services to public, university, and specialized libraries; and is open to all of the country's citizens. In recent years, the NDL has been developing its digital library services.