Jaffna Public Library

{{Short description|Public library in Jaffna, Sri Lanka}}

{{Infobox library

| library_name = Jaffna Public Library

| library_logo =

| image = Public Library, Jaffna.JPG

| caption = Jaffna Public Library

| location = Jaffna, Sri Lanka

| coordinates = {{Coord|9|39|43.42|N|80|0|42.61|E|region:LK_type:landmark|display=title,inline}}

| established = {{Start date and age|1933}}

| num_branches = 6{{Cite web |url=http://english.jaffnalibrary.lk/library.php |title=Jaffna Library |access-date=2014-03-19 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140319091509/http://english.jaffnalibrary.lk/library.php |archive-date=2014-03-19 |url-status=dead }}

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| parent_organization = Jaffna Municipal Council

}}

Jaffna Public Library ({{langx|ta|யாழ் பொது நூலகம்}}; {{langx|si|යාපනය මහජන පුස්තකාලය}}) is located in Jaffna, Sri Lanka. It is one of Jaffna's most notable landmarks, and is run by the Jaffna Municipal Council. The library was built in 1933 and is Sri Lanka's second main public Library, only rivalled by Colombo Public Library{{Cite news |title=Up from the Ashes, a Public Library in Sri Lanka Welcomes New Readers |url=https://www.npr.org/sections/parallels/2015/08/19/432779251/up-from-the-ashes-a-public-library-in-sri-lanka-welcomes-new-readers |access-date=2017-01-09 |work=All Things Considered |publisher=NPR}} During the early 1980s, it was one of the biggest libraries in Asia, containing over 97,000 books and manuscripts.{{cite web |url=http://www.bbc.co.uk/sinhala/news/story/2007/02/070202_kandy_library.shtml|title=Fire at Kandy public library|accessdate=2006-03-14 |publisher=BBC News}}Wilson, A. J. Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism: Its Origins and Development in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, p. 125 In 1981, it was burned down in a deliberate mob attack.{{Cite web |last=Haviland |first=Charles |date=1 November 2010 |title=Sri Lanka's historic Jaffna library 'vandalised' |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-south-asia-11668352 |access-date=12 January 2025 |website=BBC News}} Over a million books were burned in the 1981 arson attack, and some ancient Tamil books and manuscripts were never recovered. In 2001, the renovation of the library was completed, with new structures being built and new books received, although its old books and manuscripts were not replaced.

The building's classical lines and beautiful proportions make it stand out architecturally. It contains lush gardens and has been modernized with new facilities added, such as free Wi-Fi in 2016{{Cite news|url=http://www.news.lk/news/business/item/6854-free-wi-fi-from-today-at-26-public-locations-in-sri-lanka|title=Free Wi-Fi from today at 26 public locations in Sri Lanka|last=SureshikaThilakarathna|access-date=2017-01-09}}