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United Nations: Home

Purpose of this guide

This guide is intended for students/researchers from any discipline studying at the University of Oxford.

Use this guide to find out about print and digital resources available for the United Nations and its subsidiary bodies at the Bodleian Libraries  

United Nations

The Bodleian Library has been a depository library for United Nations material since 1950. The Library has an extensive collection of documents, sales publications and Official Records going back to 1946. The collection is kept on open shelf in the Official Papers reading room located in the Bodleian Law Library

Because of its size and complexity, researching the UN can be a daunting task.  It is important to understand the UN’s organizational structure and publishing policies because these can affect how and where you will be able to find certain documents. 

Documents and official records are not catalogued so do not appear on SOLO. The majority of sales publications are catalogued but if you do not find what you are looking for please contact official.papers@bodleian.ox.ac.uk and staff will be happy to help.

Texts about the United Nations can be found on open shelf at the Bodleian Law Library in the international collection at Internat 687

The United Nations is an international organization founded in 1945 after the Second World War, which superseded the League of Nations  51 countries were committed to maintaining international peace and security, developing friendly relations among nations and promoting social progress, better living standards and human rights. Due to its unique international character, and the powers vested in its founding Charter, the Organization can take action on a wide range of issues, and provide a forum for the Member States to express their views, through the General Assembly, the Security Council, the Economic and Social Council and other bodies and committees.