The Central scientific library of Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan was organized in 1932 with the creation of the first scientific organizing cell – the Kazakhstan base of the Academy of Sciences (AS) of the USSR in Almaty city, which had in its composition 2 sectors - zoological and botanical. Since that year the Library of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR has conducted its own history.
The gifted by the scientists 2, 5 thousand of books were placed easily in the several rooms of the rather small building at Kalinina street (now Kabanbay street). There and existed the library more than quarter of a century.
In 1938 the Kazakhstan base was re-organized into the Kazakh branch of the Academy of Sciences of the USSR. Up to that time the library fund had counted 30 thousand copies, the staff had consisted of 4 persons.
In 1946 the library was renamed into the Central Scientific Library of the Academy of Sciences of the Kazakh SSR. Since that period has begun the new and the main stage of formation and development of CSL.
From 1947 had become coming the obligatory paid copy on the theme of scientific-research institution (SRI), had been selected the books from the duplicated funds of the prominent libraries of Moscow, Leningrad, Riga, Lvov, Tashkent. Due to the initiative of the first president of the AS of the Kaz. SSR K.I.Satpaev were acquired the private libraries of the well-known scientists-academicians V.L.Komarov, A.D.Arkhangelsky, N.S.Kurnakov, D.K.Zelenin. Those valuable in the scientific meaning libraries considerably improved the quality of the books fund of CSL. To 1950 the library books stock had been nearly doubled- about 152 thousand printed units.
In the 1946s-59s appeared the first libraries-branches of the CSL under the scientific-research institutes: zoology, chemical sciences, geology, astrophysics, metallurgy and concentration, botany and others. The creation of the first sectors of the natural profile of the Academy of Sciences determined for a long time a profile of collecting the literature in the Central Scientific library as naturally scientific.
In the 50s of the past century was stimulated the bibliographical activity of CSL. There was issued the first index of the publications of the Academy of Sciences for 5 years (1945-1950).
From 1951 had been established the international books exchange (IBE) with 8 scientific institutions of the countries of people’s democracy, and with England and France as well. The establishment and development of the international books exchange became one of the forms of the international partnership for CSL, the means of propagation of the domestic science, the source of non –currency acquirement of the foreign literature.
Those years were organized the department of foreign literature /1956/ and the department of the Kazakh literature, rare books and manuscripts /1959/.Those years in the library hadn’t almost been the literature on the Kazakh language, especially retrospective reviews, was absent the periodical print of the Kazakhstan. The creation of the departments was caused by the keen necessity to arrange the work on acquiring and propagation among the readers of the foreign scientific literature and national books, and also on providing the preservation of rare publications, presenting the great value for science. In 1958 the library together with the Academy of Sciences moved into the new, now existing building. There appeared an opportunity of making the good conditions for work to the scientists and specialists, opening of 2 reading rooms for 100 places, widening of the loan system, and a room for the catalogues.
In 1979 due to the wings of the basic book repository and one more library pavilion there appeared the conditions for the work of the librarians of the official departments: collecting, literature processing, book storage and others. There were opened the photographic laboratory on microfilming and photocopying, joiners and bookbinding workshops. The staff of the library had already been consisted of 148 librarians.
The period of the 60-80s was marked by more close contacts with the prominent libraries of the country in the plane of coordination NIR and NMR. CSL participated in the international, all-union and republic scientific conferences. The foreign relations with the libraries of USA, Canada, CNR, Japan, France, Germany and other countries had been developed more actively.
From 1983 CSL was one of the first libraries who had begun the adoption of automation of the library-informational processes. In the regime of the automated system IRI by massif of data base VINITI, CSL successfully provided the users with the second information of the scientific research institutions of the Kazakh Academy of Sciences. In the library acted AS “Retrospective search”, AS “Bibliography”, AC “ILLS”.
In the beginning of 90s there arouse the question of the composite automation of CSL. From 1994 there in the library had begun acting the automated library-information system (AILS) “Marc”. The CSL started to create the electron catalogue, the own information products in the form of the subject data base.
In the 90s the new socio-cultural situation conditioned by the state independence of the Republic of Kazakhstan, enlarged as social as functional frames of library activity.
The Central Scientific Library was re-organized into the Republic State Government Institution “The Central Scientific Library” of the Ministry of Education and Science of the Republic of Kazakhstan by the Government Resolution of the Republic of Kazakhstan dated 17th of July, 1999 # 993.
The dynamics of the development of the CSL is expressed in the support of the traditions of the past, with the purpose of searching of the new ways of development coupled with the new forms of managing.
