Welcome to the Chinese Reference Collection at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign! This virtual shelf provides a convenient snapshot of our physical collection, which is housed in the International and Area Studies Library within the Main Library building.

How to Use the Collection

This digital collection contains scanned samples from the physical Chinese Reference Collection. Each sample typically includes: (1) the cover page, (2) the table of contents, (3) the first page of content, and (4) the copyright page. However, there are a few exceptions:

• Some titles may not contain all four of these sections.
• For tables of contents longer than 20 pages, we scan only the first few pages and the last to keep file sizes manageable.
• The copyright page location varies by book, and we maintain the original page sequence in our scans.

The International and Area Studies Library organizes the physical Chinese Reference Collection using Library of Congress call numbers. On our virtual browsable shelf, we first group titles by subject using the first letter of their LC call numbers, then arrange them by their complete call numbers within each subject. When users click on a title, they can view scanned pages and find the call number and bibliographic record in the library's online catalog under the "Description" section.

Due to Scalar's file size limitations, a small number of samples were initially uploaded to Internet Archive and then linked to Scalar. These titles will not display a file preview. To view these samples, please click the "Source File" button.

All files have undergone OCR processing, and users can access the keyword search function by clicking the magnifying glass icon at the top of the page.

While these scanned samples provide a quick overview of each reference work's content and function, we encourage users to visit and make full use of our physical reference collection to support their learning and research.

Get Research Help

For questions about materials, access, or reference assistance, please contact the International and Area Studies Library at ias@library.illinois.edu. You also are welcome to contact the Chinese Studies Librarian, Dr. Bing Wang, at bingw@illinois.edu or visit our Chinese Studies Collection webpage for more information.

This virtual shelf was initially created by Yung-hui Chou, Graduate Assistant at the International and Area Studies Library, in February 2025.