How to Say "Library" in Croatian

knjižnica

Croatia, Latin, feminine

In Croatian, the word for library is knjižnica. Wiktionary also lists biblioteka.

Meaning: institution which holds books, etc. (noun)

Ways to say it

“library” in Croatian
Croatian	Note
knjižnica	Croatia, Latin, feminine
biblioteka	Latin, feminine

Both knjižnica and biblioteka mean library, referring to an institution that holds books and other materials.

knjižnica is the standard term used for a public or school library.

knjižnica is specifically noted as a term used in Croatia.

The plural form of knjižnica is knjižnice. When you want to say "to the library" or "in the library", use the form knjižnici.

In Croatia, the national library is called Nacionalna i univerzitetska biblioteka, choosing the Latin-rooted biblioteka for its official title rather than knjižnica.
In some regional dialects or older contexts, biblioteka is perceived as a more 'intellectual' or European term, while knjižnica is the purely Slavic term.
While both words mean library, biblioteka is often used to refer to a personal collection of books at home, whereas knjižnica refers to the public building.

Oprostite, znate li gdje je knjižnica odsjeka za ekonomiju?
Excuse me, do you know where the economics department library is?
This sentence is useful for asking for the location of a specific library using knjižnica.
Tatoeba #4098707 by krofna, translation #4091931 by andymakespasta
Knjižnica je stara osamdeset godina.
The library is eighty years old.
This sentence is useful for stating the age of a library using knjižnica.
Tatoeba #12817776 by andrej, translation #45990 by CK
Molim vas, možete li mi reći gdje se nalazi najbliža knjižnica?
Excuse me, could you tell me where the nearest library is located?
Nova knjižnica je otvorena u centru.
The new library is open in the center.

Mateo and Ana are discussing their study plans.

Sources

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