The Identity of Library and Information History: An Audit of Library and Information History Teaching and Research in Departments and Schools of Library and Information Studies in Britain and Ireland

Abstract The identity of library and information history (LIH) is a function of how historians working in the field see themselves and how they think they are perceived by others. The views of ‘others’ — as reflected in the incidence of LIH teaching and research in schools, or departments, of library and information studies (LIS) in British and Irish universities — were obtained through the circulation of a questionnaire to institutional members of BAILER (British Association of Information and Library Education and Research). The results of the audit show that LIH remains a relatively isolated component of the LIS curriculum and research environment, although some impressive activity and a small number of centres of excellence are identifiable. This article is part of a wider ranging paper delivered by the authors at the Library History Group's ‘Libraries and Identity’ Conference, held at the Library Association's Under-One- Umbrella Five event at the University of Manchester Institute of Technology (UMIST), 1-3 July 1999·