About Library
KCHR Research Library & Resource Centre
Kerala Council for Historical Research has a well-stocked library and resource centre with a specialized collection of books on Kerala history, Indian history, and World history. Besides, a good collection of national and international journals and magazines on History, Archaeology, and other Social Science disciplines. To provide the learning resources needed to meet the academic and research demands of the institution and researchers. The Library acts as a center for advanced learning materials, and it serves as an important research agency by providing bibliographic advice.
The mission of the library of Kerala Council for Historical Research (KCHR) is to provide the learning resources needed to meet the academic and research demands of the institution and the public. The programs and services of the library are geared towards implementing the mission of the KCHR with the specific objectives of meeting the educational needs of the institution and providing community service.
Objectives of the KCHR Library
Act as a nodal agency for the generation and dissemination of historical knowledge in Kerala.
Develop resource collections that support and enrich research activities.
Encourage use of the library by the public and academic community.
Assist students, faculty, and staff with bibliographic guidance and usage support.
Adapt to evolving educational and research needs of the community.
Provide reference and research services using print and digital resources.
Library Collection
The KCHR library is a reference library. The library documents shall not be circulated for outside use.
1. General Books, Journals, and Magazines
KCHR library has a well-equipped and large collection of books on Kerala history, Indian history, world history etc., and a good collection of national and international journals in history, archaeology and other social science subjects.
Kerala History Indian History Historiography South Indian History Archaeology Architecture Caste Cultural Studies Religion Sociology Gender Studies Political Science Economics Linguistics Folklore Trade etc.Primary Sources
2. Featured Collections
KCHR library has a collection of Local History, Micro History, Family Histories and Biographies. Many published and unpublished works about Kerala are available in the library.
Malayalee Family Histories and Biographies
The family histories, including the life histories and household histories, are also part of featured collections. The public is invited to participate in this venture by donating family histories, autobiographies, souvenirs, monographs, grandhaavarees, naalvazhees, adhaarams, or any other document relevant to the context, and look forward to their voluntary involvement in this effort to preserve the Malayalee roots for posterity. Each contribution will be kept in the KCHR Library for reference. His Excellency the Governor of Kerala, Shri. R.L.Bhatia had inaugurated the Malayalee Family History & Biography Archives on 9th November 2004 at KCHR.
Kerala Local History collection
The local historical writings help us to get a micro-level understanding of its cultural formation. In the 1990s, the Government of Kerala had launched a project to write local histories in association with the Government-sponsored people’s planning campaign. It resulted in the production of many Panchayath, District, and village histories.
Kamala Surayya collection
KCHR set up Kamala Surayya cubicle in its Contemporary History Archives to house memories, documents, photographs, etc. related to her life and writings.
C P Matthen’s Collection
Diaries, letters, and other private papers of Smt. Eliamma Matthen and Sri. C.P. Matthen, donated to the KCHR library by their grand- daughters, has been digitized and will shortly be made available for reference.
We subscribe to various national and international journals, magazines on History, Archaeology and other Social Science disciplines.
3. Our digital resources
Empire Online
Empire Online is a powerful and interactive collection of primary source documents from leading archives worldwide. It has been developed to encourage undergraduates, postgraduates, academics, and researchers to explore colonial history, politics, culture, and society. Material in the collection spans five centuries, charting the story of the rise and fall of empires; from the explorations of Columbus, Captain Cook, and others, right through to de-colonisation in the second half of the twentieth century and debates over American Imperialism.
Document types in this resource are:-
Catalogue Correspondence Diary Illustration Journal Manuscript Map Missionary Papers Pamphlet Photograph Printed Book ReportEmpire Online provides users with a wide choice of document types and perspectives, within a structure of five thematic sections selected from around the key topics of Empire courses:
Document types in this resource are:-
Empire Online – Thematic Sections
Cultural Contacts
1492–1969
Empire Writing
& the Literature of Empire
The Visible Empire
Religion & Empire
Race, Class, Colonialism, Imperialism
JSTOR
JSTOR stands for Journal Storage and is a digital library of academic information in many formats. The collections include top peer-reviewed scholarly journals as well as respected literary journals, academic monographs, research reports from trusted institutes, and diverse primary sources. It contains the full text of more than 2,300 journals from 1,000 publishers. Journals are available in more than 60 disciplines in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences and mathematics.
Among the JSTOR collection, we subscribed JSTOR Archive Journal and Primary Source collection in our library.
General Rules and Conduct Within the Library
The Code of Conduct is not meant to restrict library use or deny services. It is established to ensure a safe and pleasant environment for all users.
Before using the library, you are requested to contact the librarian’s desk to complete the membership formalities.
A person desirous of using the library shall enter his/her name, full address, membership number, contact number, and time of entry legibly and put their signature in the Visitor’s Register kept at the librarian’s desk for the purpose. Such an entry shall be taken as an acknowledgement that the person agrees to conform to the rules of the library.
Members must carry their library Identity Card or permission letter while using the KCHR library. They must show their Identity Card or permission letter on demand.
The personal belongings like books and other printed materials, photocopies, folders, files, bags, umbrellas, etc., will not be permitted inside the library. Users are advised to collect the key of the property counter and keep their personal belongings at the property counter. The personal belongings cannot be kept in front of the door and other spaces of the library. Before leaving the library, users must return the key of the property counter. Library staff is not responsible for the reader's personal belongings. The users are advised not to leave expensive items at the property counter.
Silence must be observed in and around the library. The library is a place for individual study and research. Combine studies, group discussions, and sleeping is not encouraged in the library. Everyone shall ensure that no reader should feel disturbed in their study by any act of his/her. Members are therefore expected to conduct themselves inside the library in such a manner as is conducive to this purpose. However, it is understood that in the case of differently-abled persons, this cannot be strictly followed.
Cell phone usage is prohibited inside the library. Library users should answer/make all calls outside the library.
The library follows an Open-Access system. Books and other documents once taken from the racks should be left on the table instead of being returned to the racks. Replacing the documents on the shelves by users is not encouraged, as the documents may get misplaced.
Any complaints regarding the library services, staff, and users should first be reported to the Librarian.
A person shall be responsible for any damage done by him/her to the books or other property of the library. They will be required to replace such books or other properties damaged or pay the amount fixed by the Director / designated officer. Improper use of library facilities by a member will lead to the suspension/termination of their membership.
Users are not allowed to take any personal books other than a notebook/plain paper and a laptop into the library stack room.
Photocopying of the reports, thesis, rare books, books of very high cost, oversized and damaged books, etc., will not be allowed under any circumstances.
The newspaper(s) should be folded properly after reading and kept in the designated place.
Members are not permitted to reserve seats and cupboards in the library.
Users are requested to leave the KCHR premises after working hours.
Use of laptops other than for academic purposes is strictly prohibited in the library.
Consumption of eatables in the library is strictly prohibited. Utmost care shall be taken by all to keep the library clean.
No tracing shall be made without the permission of the Librarian.
In case the users find any difficulty in finding documents/information, they can seek the help of library staff.
If any member commits any irregularities in the library, they will be fined as per KCHR rules. If necessary, further disciplinary action may also be taken by the library committee.
The KCHR reserves the right to change or amend any of the rules as and when necessary.