Dynamics of the number of visitors to public libraries in Russia
Public libraries are the sole source of printed and digital information for millions of Russians across various regions. This dataset includes indicators on the number of such institutions operating in Russia and the number of users at the beginning of the 21st century. The table presents data for three key years to illustrate changes in the library network over more than a decade
The chart shows changes in the number of public libraries and the number of registered users over three key years
- Число библиотек, тыс. — Libraries, thou.
- в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа
- в том числе — в сельской местности
- Библиотечный фонд, млн экз. — Library stock, mln. copies
- в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа
- в том числе — в сельской местности
- Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — в городах и поселках городского типа
- Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — в сельской местности
See also
- Divorces in Russia by year long time series by year
- Marriages in Russia by year long time series by year
- Перевозки пассажиров в России по годам: статистика indicator breakdown
Set in numbers
The table holds 9 series, running from 1927 to 2024, 24 reporting periods. 192 values in total.
“Число библиотек, тыс. — Libraries, thou.” multiplied by 2.4 between 1927 and 2024: from 16.9 to 40.7. The highest value in the series is 69.1 in 1960.
All table numbers are series: 9
| Series | 1927 | 1932 | 1940 | 1950 | 1960 | 1970 | 1980 | 1990 | 2000 | 2010 | 2011 | 2012 | 2013 | 2014 | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Число библиотек, тыс. — Libraries, thou. | 16,90 | 18,10 | 56,10 | 59,40 | 69,10 | 61,60 | 62,10 | 62,60 | 51,20 | 46,10 | 43,20 | 40,80 | 39,80 | 40,10 | 39,00 | 38,20 | 37,40 | 37,10 | 37,00 | 41,60 | 41,40 | 41,10 | 41,00 | 40,70 |
| в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа | 5,50 | 4,90 | 10,50 | 11,20 | 18,80 | 20,10 | 20,00 | 20,40 | 12,40 | 10,30 | 10,00 | 9,70 | 9,50 | 9,50 | 9,00 | 8,60 | 8,50 | 8,50 | 8,40 | 8,70 | 8,60 | 8,50 | 8,50 | 8,50 |
| в том числе — в сельской местности | 11,40 | 13,20 | 45,60 | 48,20 | 50,30 | 41,50 | 42,10 | 42,20 | 38,80 | 35,80 | 33,20 | 31,10 | 30,30 | 30,60 | 30,00 | 29,60 | 28,90 | 28,60 | 28,70 | 32,90 | 32,80 | 32,60 | 32,50 | 32,30 |
| Библиотечный фонд, млн экз. — Library stock, mln. copies | 48,00 | 60,00 | 124,00 | 159,00 | 484,00 | 733,00 | 980,00 | 1 155,00 | 1 027,00 | 923,00 | 888,00 | 864,00 | 851,00 | 854,00 | 839,00 | 831,00 | 818,00 | 810,00 | 802,00 | 840,00 | 829,00 | 819,00 | 887,00 | 880,00 |
| в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа | 28,00 | 39,00 | 81,00 | 101,00 | 261,00 | 433,00 | 622,00 | 733,00 | 659,00 | 599,00 | 588,00 | 583,00 | 577,00 | 572,00 | 563,00 | 561,00 | 557,00 | 554,00 | 547,00 | 549,00 | 542,00 | 536,00 | 608,00 | 605,00 |
| в том числе — в сельской местности | 20,00 | 21,00 | 43,00 | 58,00 | 223,00 | 300,00 | 358,00 | 422,00 | 368,00 | 324,00 | 300,00 | 281,00 | 274,00 | 282,00 | 276,00 | 270,00 | 261,00 | 256,00 | 255,00 | 291,00 | 287,00 | 283,00 | 279,00 | 275,00 |
| Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — Total registered readers, mln. persons — всего | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 59,60 | 55,90 | 53,60 | 52,20 | 51,40 | 51,50 | 52,00 | 51,50 | 50,50 | 50,70 | 50,40 | 44,00 | 49,70 | 51,70 | 52,50 | 53,40 |
| Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — в городах и поселках городского типа | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 38,90 | 36,90 | 35,70 | 35,50 | 35,10 | 34,80 | 35,60 | 35,40 | 34,70 | 35,10 | 34,70 | 28,50 | 33,00 | 34,70 | 35,50 | 36,50 |
| Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — в сельской местности | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | 20,70 | 19,00 | 17,90 | 16,70 | 16,30 | 16,70 | 16,40 | 16,10 | 15,80 | 15,60 | 15,70 | 15,50 | 16,70 | 17,00 | 17,00 | 17,00 |
How to read this table
Table rows correspond to different years and show the number of libraries in thousands and the total number of registered users in millions. When comparing, it is important to note that the number of libraries and users depends on network development and the changing role of libraries in society. Library service coverage is lower for the rural population than for the urban population
What is visible in these numbers
The largest value belongs to “Библиотечный фонд, млн экз. — Library stock, mln. copies” — 880; the smallest is “Всего зарегистрировано пользователей, млн человек — в сельской местности” at 17. The gap between them is 51.8-fold.
The table is 89% filled: Rosstat does not publish every cell, and the gaps are left as they are rather than interpolated.
The same indicator for other periods
These series cannot be stitched together Over the common period 1927 values diverge — Rosstat recalculated the indicator using a revised methodology. They cannot be combined into a single chart: a break would appear at the junction, which did not actually occur
| Indicator for 1927 | here | in the adjacent series | divergence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Число библиотек, тыс. — Libraries, thou. | 16,9 | 16,9 | +0,0 |
| в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа | 5,5 | 28,0 | +22,5 |
| в том числе — в сельской местности | 11,4 | 20,0 | +8,6 |
| Библиотечный фонд, млн экз. — Library stock, mln. copies | 48,0 | 48,0 | +0,0 |
| в том числе — including — в городах и поселках городского типа | 28,0 | 28,0 | +0,0 |
| в том числе — в сельской местности | 20,0 | 20,0 | +0,0 |
More in the section Russian Statistical Yearbook»
Period and application
Data for 2000, 2010, and 2011 allow for tracking changes in cultural infrastructure. The dataset is updated periodically and is suitable for long-term trend analysis. This information is useful for sociologists, librarians, and officials involved in cultural development and information accessibility
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