Open Access Moment in Pakistan

Abstract

Manuscripts are known as the intellectual and cultural heritage of a nation. Pakistan is enriched with this treasure left by Muslims antecedents of the IndoPak Subcontinent. A number of institutional and personal libraries hold a good number of manuscripts; especially on Islamic subjects and Quran collections. It is important to highlight the hidden and neglected state of these manuscripts for further research. This paper seeks to reveal the previous and current status of the manuscripts in Pakistan. A broad picture of manuscripts in Pakistan will be presented through factual data (i.e., total number, languages, institutional/personal holdings, locations, age, writing styles and materials). Governmental and professional efforts, awareness programs, state of digitization and access issues will be highlighted. Recommendations are given for considerations.