Back Crema de la Biblioteca Pública de Jaffna Catalan Niederbrennen der Bibliothek von Jaffna German Bruligo de la ĝafna biblioteko Esperanto Incendie de la bibliothèque de Jaffna French השרפה בספריית ג'פנה HE Queima da Biblioteca Pública de Jafanapatão Portuguese Сожжение библиотеки в Джафне Russian යාපනය පුස්තකාලය ගිනි තැබීම Singhalese Burning of Jaffna Public Library SIMPLE யாழ்ப்பாணப் பொது நூலக எரிப்பு Tamil
| Burning of Jaffna library | |
|---|---|
| Part of 1981 anti-Tamil pogrom | |
 Burnt shell of the library | |
| Location | Jaffna, Sri Lanka |
| Date | June 1, 1981[1][2] (+6 GMT) |
| Target | Primarily Sri Lankan Tamil |
Attack type | Rioting, burning, shooting, arson |
| Weapon | T56 Petrol bomb Sword Grenade |
| Deaths | 4+ |
| Injured | Unknown |
| Perpetrators | UNP Sri Lankan government (Jayewardene cabinet) Sri Lanka Police Pro Sinhalese mob gang Government employees |
No. of participants | 1,000+ |
| Motive | Ethnic cleansing |
| Part of a series on |
| Sri Lankan Tamils |
|---|
The burning of the Jaffna Public Library (Tamil: யாழ் பொது நூலகம் எரிப்பு, Yāḻ potu nūlakam erippu; Sinhala: යාපනය මහජන පුස්තකාලය ගිනිබත් කිරීම, Yāpanaya mahajana pustakālaya ginibat kirīma) took place on the night of June 1, 1981, when an organized mob of Sinhalese individuals went on a rampage, burning the library.[1] It was one of the most violent examples of ethnic biblioclasm of the 20th century.[Term][3] At the time of its destruction, the library was one of the biggest in Asia, containing over 97,000 books and manuscripts.[4][5]
Rev. Fr. (Dr.) H. S. David died of shock the next day after seeing flames engulfing Jaffna Library from his room at St. Patrick's College, Jaffna the night before.[6][7]
- ^ a b "Burning Of The Jaffna Public Library: Whodunit?". Colombo Telegraph. June 1, 2014.
- ^ நீலவண்ணன். "மீண்டும் யாழ்ப்பாணம் எரிகிறது". Retrieved May 31, 2016.
- ^ "Destroying a symbol" (PDF). IFLA. Retrieved February 14, 2007.
- ^ "Fire at Kandy public library". BBC. Retrieved March 14, 2006.
- ^ Wilson, A.J. Sri Lankan Tamil Nationalism: Its Origins and Development in the Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries, p.125
- ^ "Appreciations:He died seeing the Jaffna library burn". The Sunday Times (Sri Lanka). June 1, 1997. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
- ^ "37 years on - remembering the burning of the Jaffna Public Library". Tamil Guardian. May 31, 2018. Retrieved May 23, 2024.