NUS Libraries has acquired and digitised various primary sources for open access use and some of the special collections include the Syed Sheikh Al-Hadi Collection, Malay Newspapers Collection, and the Malay Studies Collection. Read more about them in the next column. If you have any queries, please reach out to Diyana via clbndak@nus.edu.sg
The ASEAN Corner is the fruit of a project to establish information centres in the libraries of higher education institutions in the ASEAN member states. The objective is to provide accurate, timely, and relevant information about ASEAN developments and the ASEAN member states. The ASEAN Corner is located at the Peggy Wai Chee Leong-Hochstadt Room on the fifth level of the NUS Central Library. Click here to find out more.
The Syed Sheikh Al-Hadi Collection contains 7 series of Al-Imam (1907 – 1908), the first Malay Islamic reformist periodical published in Singapore, Malaya and Malay Archipelago; 18 series of Al-Ikhwan (1927 – 1930); two monographs on religious reformation and education, and 10 novels by Syed Sheikh Ahmad Al-Hadi, a prolific journalist and writer. Learn more about the collection here.
The Malay Newspapers Collection contains Malay newspapers published in jawi (a Malay script derived from Arabic) and rumi (Romanised Malay). The newspapers published mostly local news, highlighted issues regarding the development of the Malay community in Malaya and Singapore and championed Malay rights. This collection comprise Majlis, Utusan Melayu, and Warta Negara.
The Malay Studies Collection comprise materials in Arabic, English, and Malay. Published within the Malay Archipelago and beyond. These materials are either romanised or are in jawi. The Collection hosts academic papers, chronicles, cultural and literary works, and social commentaries.
Over the years, NUS Libraries has acquired a collection of primary sources helpful for the study of Singapore history. Those primary sources are mainly copies of records kept in archives around the world (e.g., National Archives, U.K., U.S. and Australia). The Colonial Office (CO) series here refers to the various types of government documents related to the administration and government of the colonies and territories administered directly by the British over Malaya, Singapore, and the Borneo territories.