The National Library of Romania – A New Headquarters – A New Beginning Dr. Elena Tîrziman University of Bucharest, Faculty of Letters The National Library of Romania E-mail: elena.tirziman@bibnat.ro Dr. Elena Tîrziman is a reader at the Faculty of Letters, University of Bucharest and General Director of the National Library of Romania. She teaches courses on electronic documents and library automation. Her main research fields are information and documentation systems, library digitization, documentary funds digitization, information and communication sciences, biblioteconomy and biblioteconomic processes, specialized information and documentation. Abstract The National Library of Romania will open a new headquarters at the end of 2011. The need for a suitable place for the library appears in 1957, two years after the reestablishment of the national library. In 1968, the designing requirements for building a national library are drawn up, and in 1971 the first designing theme is made, which will undergo adjustments after the 1977 earthquake. The works begin in 1986 and are abandoned after December 1989. In 2007, the designing is resumed, followed in 2008 by the execution of the works, which are completed in December 2011. Thus, after more than 50 years, the new building of the National Library of Romania is inaugurated, a building that meets the requirements and the specific functionalities of a national library. Keywords: the National Library of Romania, national library, building, Romania The National Library is one of the most important symbols of a country and at the same time an institution of strategic importance because of its mission to establish, preserve and capitalize the written intellectual creation of that nation. 36