ABSTRACT
Indigenous librarianship unites the discipline of librarianship with Indigenous approaches to knowledge, theory, and research methodology. It has a developing bibliography and local, national, and international professional associations devoted to its growth. A focus of Indigenous librarianship is the provision of culturally relevant library and information collections and services by, for, and with Indigenous people. Grounded in the contemporary realities of Indigenous people and Indigenous aspirations for self-governance and sovereignty, it has a critical theoretical base. Its practice may be carried out in spaces from small Indigenous community libraries to specialized collections in large research institutions. As an emergent scholarship the field is in the process of defining itself. This entry serves as an introductory overview to the history, practice, issues, and theoretical approaches associated with Indigenous librarianship.
