How Do The Chinese Run A Library?
| Updated: 10 Feb 2026
With thousands of characters in their alphabet, How do they organise their libraries. Here's the answer.
Question
How do you find what you’re looking for in a Chinese library when they have thousands of characters? Rob, South Norwood
Answer
Name: Duncan, Bermondsey
Qualification: Has a Chinese fiancée
Answer: They use a system called Pinyin which is an anglicized version of Chinese characters. So they convert the first letter of author’s second name into the Romanised equivalent; instead of having impossible amounts of sections in a Library.