Libraries have been a part of human history for thousands of years, serving as a repository of knowledge and a source of learning for communities around the world. From the ancient libraries of Alexandria and Persepolis to modern-day public and academic libraries, libraries have been an essential part of our cultural heritage and have played a critical role in preserving and sharing knowledge.
Library trivia questions are a fun and engaging way to test your knowledge of libraries and their history. Whether you are a librarian, a library patron, or simply someone who loves books and learning, these questions will challenge you and help you to expand your understanding of libraries and their role in society.
Here are some examples of library trivia questions: What is the oldest library in the world? Who is considered the father of modern public libraries? When did the first library card catalog system appear? How many books are in the Library of Congress? What is the most borrowed book in the world? These questions and others like them will help you to develop a deeper understanding of the history of libraries and the important role that they play in promoting literacy, education, and cultural exchange.
93 Library Trivia Questions Ranked From Easiest to Hardest (Updated for 2024)
- The Bryant Park location of the New York Public Library features Patience and Fortitude, two large marble statues of what animal?
Answer: Lion
- Featuring the classic character of Miss Marple, "The Body in the Library" is a detective novel by what British author?
Answer: Agatha Christie
- Inmate Andy Dufresne takes over managing the prison library when his friend Brooks is paroled in what 1994 film starring Tim Robbins and Morgan Freeman?
Answer: The Shawshank Redemption
- Between 1883 and 1929, what Scottish-American titan of the steel industry funded more than 2,500 libraries bearing his name?
Answer: Andrew Carnegie
- What ten-letter word means "library" in at least three Romance languages, including Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish?
Answer: Biblioteca
- Depicting a man on a ladder examining books in a library, the 19th-century Carl Spitzweg painting "Der Bücherwurm" has a title that translates to what in English?
Answer: The Bookworm
- Europe's largest library, the Library of Birmingham has the 1623 First Folio of what playwright and poet with a whole memorial collection in the building?
Answer: William Shakespeare
- Famously burned by Julius Caesar, one of the greatest libraries of the ancient world was founded in the third century BC in what Egyptian city?
Answer: Alexandria
- "At the Library" is the first song from the first full-length album by what "colorful" band who's better known for hits like "Boulevard of Broken Dreams" and "American Idiot?"
Answer: Green Day
- The library of Des Plaines, Illinois's Maine North High School, which had been closed in 1981, was given a second life when it became the principal setting for what popular 1985 film?
Answer: The Breakfast Club
- On the U.S. Library of Congress's list of "Books that Shaped America" is what 1830 religious text that sets out the tenets of a religion founded by Joseph Smith?
Answer: Book of Mormon
- Jerry learns he has a library fine for a book he checked out in 1971 and never returned in a Season 3 episode of what sitcom?
Answer: Seinfeld
- First published in 1876 and named after its inventor, what is the name of the numeric system that many librarians use to shelve and categorize books by type?
Answer: Dewey Decimal System
- A popular interlibrary loan service is known by what name chosen to sound like one of Homer's most famous epic poems?
Answer: ILLiad
- Constructed as a chapter house supported by 16 flying buttresses, the Library of Parliament is a distinctive landmark in what Canadian capital city?
Answer: Ottawa
- A large and beautiful library is often the backdrop for Eliza Doolittle's elocution lessons with Professor Henry Higgins in what 1964 movie musical?
Answer: My Fair Lady
- The original of what 1215 document, a cornerstone of British and American law, is one of the most famous holdings of the British Library?
Answer: Magna Carta
- Notable for its striking rounded arches designed by architect Toyo Ito, the Tama Art University Library can be found in what world capital city?
Answer: Tokyo
- What Washington DC building is the largest library in the United States, holding almost twice as many volumes as the second largest?
Answer: Library of Congress
- What topic of non-fiction books are always found with a Dewey Decimal system starting with a 2?
Answer: Religion
- Located in Copenhagen, the modern extensions of the Royal Library of what European country is nicknamed the “Black Diamond” because it’s made from dark, shiny, polished granite?
Answer: Denmark
- The Imagination Library is a free children's book gifting program started by what famous singer in 1995? The program started by offering a monthly book to each child in Sevier County, Tennessee regardless of family income.
Answer: Dolly Parton
- What “A” term describes a summary of the content of another longer work? You will read a lot of them during library research, some perhaps about obtuse works of art.
Answer: Abstract
- Which president has their presidential library located in Atlanta, Georgia in a facility that features a replica of the oval office?
Answer: Jimmy Carter
- The Bodleian Library is the main research library of which famous university? There is evidence of teaching at this university as early as 1096.
Answer: University of Oxford
- The British Library holds two complete copies of what incredibly valuable 15th-century edition of the Bible, the earliest major book to be mass-produced using movable metal type?
Answer: Gutenberg Bible
- One of the largest public libraries in the world is La Biblioteca Nacional de España, located on the Paseo de Recoletos in what city?
Answer: Madrid
- Protection of what right came within the purview of the Library of Congress in 1870, although it had been created by law in 1790? Prior to 1870, the right had been protected by the Federal District Courts.
Answer: Copyright
- Harold Hill sings, "I love you madly, madly, Madam Librarian, Marian" in the song "Marian the Librarian," in what classic and alliteratively titled Broadway musical?
Answer: The Music Man
- What series of massively popular books took "Top Prize" as the most commonly banned book by the American Library Association from 2000 to 2009?
Answer: Harry Potter
- The legendary Library of Alexandria founded by Ptolemy II in the 3rd century BCE eventually came to house up to 40,000 scrolls made of what type of material?
Answer: Papyrus
- If you want to read (or at least, get a glimpse of) the most beautiful book in the world, head to Trinity College in Dublin to see the Book of Kells. What European country is home to the tome?
Answer: Ireland
- Portugal's Joanina Library is famous for hosting a population of what type of flying wild animal, who are considered beneficial because they eat the insects that might damage books?
Answer: Bats
- With a futuristic design evoking a giant eyeball, the Tianjin Binhai Library is an institution housing more than 1.2 million volumes in what country?
Answer: China
- According to data from the ALA, there are a total of 105,451 libraries in what location that are domains of learning? This includes the public and private varieties.
Answer: School
- You probably won't find books on Keto or Atkins at Japan's national library, even though it's named for what four-letter legislative body?
Answer: Diet
- Across editions of "RuPaul's Drag Race" in multiple countries, drag queens take turns insulting each other in the Library Challenge, which opens by declaring that "reading is" what 11-letter adjective?
Answer: Fundamental
- Considered one of Ireland's greatest cultural treasures, the Book of Kells is a 9th-century illuminated manuscript held in the library of what Dublin institution of higher learning?
Answer: Trinity College
- McAllen, Texas is home to largest single-story public library in the nation, a 123,000-sq. ft. building that used to be what ubiquitous chain?
Answer: Walmart
- Although the Library of Congress has long produced braille versions of popular works, in 1986 a group of Republican senators briefly pressured the Library to cease production of braille editions what specific magazine?
Answer: Playboy
- "The library is open" is how the host officially starts a mini challenge of "reading," or delivering clever insults to other queens, in various countries' editions of what glamorous reality show?
Answer: RuPaul's Drag Race
- With more than three million volumes in its collection, the Broward County Library System is considered one of the 25 largest systems in the U.S. In what state would you find these libraries?
Answer: Florida
- Although the exact number is, unsurprisingly, unknown, there once was a building on the continent of Africa that held 40,000 to 400,000 papyrus scrolls and was part of a larger research institution called the Mouseion that was dedicated to the nine Muses. What is the name of this library?
Answer: Great Library of Alexandria
- A forbidden room in a monastery's library is central to the murder investigations of the monk William of Baskerville in what 1980 novel by Umberto Eco?
Answer: The Name of the Rose
- Which president has the largest presidential library as measured by square footage? It's located in Austin, TX
Answer: Lyndon
- "I have always imagined that Paradise will be a kind of library" is a quote from what Argentine writer of "Ficciones" and "El Aleph?"
Answer: Jorge Luis Borges
- "How to Be a Domestic Goddess" and "At My Table" are among the books by what British food writer, whose private library in London includes a collection of more than 6,000 cookbooks?
Answer: Nigella Lawson
- All the books in your local library (and any other type of media they have to lend out) have their own code of letters and numbers. If you look the code up in the library catalog, you can find out where the book is located. What is the name of this identifier?
Answer: Call Number
- The acronym DQSH refers to a type of event held in public libraries, where children are read to by drag performers. What does the acronym stand for?
Answer: Drag Queen Story Hour
- These guys can be patient with overdue books! The oldest library in the world, the Al-Qarawiyyin library is found in a three-letter city in which African country?
Answer: Morocco
- Fifty subscribers paid forty shillings each to subscribe to one of the United States' first lending libraries, located in Philadelphia and founded by what founding father?
Answer: Benjamin Franklin
- What term is used to describe the desk that functions as a library’s information hub, where staff can provide guidance to patrons who might be researching a particular topic or looking for a certain book?
Answer: Reference
- The Harry Elkins Widener Memorial Library, founded in 1907, is found at which world famous American college?
Answer: Harvard
- In 2009, Todd Bol mounted a wooden container shaped like a one-room schoolhouse to a post on his Wisconsin lawn. This was the beginning of a national non-profit that has built over 150,000 similar neighborhood structures, and which goes by what three-word name?
Answer: Little Free Library
- In a win for plaintiffs such as the Fayetteville Public Library, a federal judge in July 2023 granted an injunction against a law that would have allowed criminal charges against librarians who provide "harmful" books in which U.S. state?
Answer: Alabama
- What mysterious 15th century manuscript, the writing in which has never been successfully interpreted or decoded, has been at Yale University's Beinecke Library since 1969?
Answer: Voynich Manuscript
- The national library of the United States also happens to be the biggest in America—and it’s not just for senators. What D.C. collection has over 167 million items in it, and not just books?
Answer: Library of Congress
- For a librarian, the Dewey Decimal System is like a map of the universe: books about the geography and history of extraterrestrial worlds can be found, appropriately, under what far-flung three-number code?
Answer: 999
- The British Library holds over 29,000 texts of what type, a word that means "cradle," and which refers to works produced during the very first era of European printing presses?
Answer: Incunabula
- Literature lovers who borrow eBooks from their library might use what L-word app provided by OverDrive, Inc. that shares its name with a supporting character from the TV show Lost?
Answer: Libby
- The iconic octagonal reading room of Melbourne, Australia's Victorian Library is prominently featured in the third season of what HBO show, which takes place in Australia after seasons set in New York State and Texas?
Answer: The Leftovers
- What novel by Matt Haig, about a woman who gets to experience alternative versions of her own life, was—quite appropriately—the most checked-out book at the New York Public Library in 2022?
Answer: The Midnight Library
- According to estimates, between 40,000 and 400,000 papyrus scrolls were collected a famous library, which was partially burned by Julius Caesar and vanished by the 3rd century CE, in what ancient city?
Answer: Alexandria
- The "O" is for "Online", and the "C" is for "Catalog", but what do the "P" and "A" stand for in the acronym "OPAC"?
Answer: Public Access
- In the film "The Mummy," Rachel Weisz plays Evy Carnahan, a librarian working in the library of a museum in which national capital?
Answer: Cairo
- "Marian the Librarian" runs the library of the small town of River City, Iowa in what acclaimed and popular 1957 musical and its film adaptation?
Answer: The Music Man
- An Idaho library is one of the settings of "Cloud Cuckoo Land," a 2021 novel by what author who won a Pulitzer for his earlier work "All the Light We Cannot See?"
Answer: Anthony Doerr
- The John Rylands Research Institute and Library, the third largest academic library in the U.K., is part of which university located in Northwest England?
Answer: University of Manchester
- The universe is a vast library of books that are 410 pages long in the imaginative short story "The Library of Babel" by what Argentine author who was also a librarian?
Answer: Jorge Luis Borges
- Rupert Giles, the Librarian of Sunnydale High School (and secret member of the Watchers' Council) appears on what cult classic TV show?
Answer: Buffy the Vampire Slayer
- In 2004, a group of heist-happy thieves tried to make off with the Transylvania University library's copy of what rare and valuable book, a series of color plates put together by John James Audubon?
Answer: Birds of America
- What was the first music video to be inducted into the National Film Registry by the Library of Congress?
Answer: Thriller
- You can visit UC San Diego's Geisel Library via the "Snake Path," artist Alexis Smith's tiled walkway that features a granite sculpture of what John Milton epic with a pretty important snake?
Answer: Paradise Lost
- Turtle Princess is the very strict librarian, and the Pagelings are the guardians of the books, in what Cartoon Network animated series?
Answer: Adventure Time
- Vienna's Austrian National Library is home to a museum dedicated to one of the world's largest collections of what three-dimensional objects, including some created by Gemma Frisius and Gerald Mercator?
Answer: Globes
- Founded in 1819, what public U.S. university famously featured a library as its "head building" rather than a religious building? This was a departure from most schools founded before 1830 in the U.S. and the building today is referred to as the Rotunda.
Answer: University of Virginia
- Released by author Susan Orlean in 2018, "The Library Book" is a nonfiction account of a catastrophic fire that occurred in April 1986 in the public library of what West Coast American city?
Answer: Los Angeles
- Claudia uses a time machine to go to 2020, visit a public library, and research her father's death in one of the many time-travel scenarios of what German-language series that became wildly popular on Netflix in 2020?
Answer: Dark
- Once a peaceable librarian, Kamo Tharnn found a magical artifact that made him go power-mad and become The Possessor, an enemy of what shiny Marvel Comics superhero?
Answer: Silver Surfer
- Named after the former UK Prime Minister who founded it in 1889, what Welsh library allows scholars to study and spend the night, thus billed as the UK's only residential library?
Answer: Gladstone's
- What famed American science fiction author's "Memorial Library" is located in Indianapolis, the city in which he was born in 1922?
Answer: Kurt Vonnegut
- The enormous glass edifice of Seattle's Central Library, which opened in 2004, was designed by what renowned Dutch architect with full first name "Remment?"
Answer: Rem Koolhaas
- What country's national library boasts one of the world's largest collections, including the correspondences of Soren Kierkegaard and Hans Christian Andersen?
Answer: Denmark
- What Beacon Hill institution, one of the oldest independent lending libraries in the United States, was founded in 1807 by members of the Boston Anthology Society?
Answer: Boston Athenaeum
- "The Whitsun Weddings" and "This Be the Verse" are famous works by what English poet who also worked as a librarian after graduating from Oxford?
Answer: Philip Larkin
- According to data from the American Library Association's Office for Intellectual Freedom, what state saw the most attempts to restrict access to books in 2022? Preliminary data from 2023 shows that this state is expected to hold this distinction again.
Answer: Texas
- Link chases after a possibly fake vision of Princess Zelda who appears in the Hyrule Castle library as part of what 2023 video game, the latest in Nintendo's Legend of Zelda franchise?
Answer: Tears of the Kingdom
- Trinity College Dublin's fabled "Long Room" boasts among its collections what type of musical instrument, supposedly owned by Irish king Brian Boru and a symbol of Ireland?
Answer: Harp
- Not all libraries have a code of silence: in 2015, a Finnish library introduced a room for what specific practice, whose name means "empty orchestra" in Japanese?
Answer: Karaoke
- What is the common two-word name for a library which is entitled to receive one free copy of each book published in a region? These libraries are often associated with government agencies involved with intellectual property administration.
Answer: Copyright library
- Inspired by her new Dewey Decimal knowledge, Parker Posey's character rearranges her DJ roommate's vinyl collection in what 1995 coming-of-age library-slash-fiesta movie?
Answer: Party Girl
- What 19th century president joined his cabinet members in fighting a fire in the Library of Congress?
Answer: Millard Fillmore
- What is the second largest library in New York if you ignore libraries associated with colleges?
Answer: Queens Borough Public Library
Play Library Trivia with Water Cooler Trivia
Water Cooler Trivia is well-equipped to provide you with exciting and engaging trivia quizzes.
So, how does it work?
Each week, our team will deliver original trivia quizzes straight to your inbox.
All you have to do is pick the categories.
You can leave the rest of the heavy lifting to us.
Take Water Cooler Trivia for a test run with our four-week free trial.
About the Author
Eli Robinson is the Chief Trivia Officer at Water Cooler Trivia. He was once in a Bruce Springsteen cover band called F Street Band.
.png){kind=logo}
.png)