As early as the sixth century B.C., China's imperial library served as a depository of national literature and archives, and in 1905 China's first public library was opened. Since the founding of the People's Republic of China, however, library development has been sporadic. Brief examinations of some of China's major libraries reveal the status, prospects, and problems of university and research libraries in China today. The National Library of China (NLC), the nation's largest public library, for example, collects comprehensively on a national scale and acquires foreign materials in 115 languages; however, the library faces an acute shortage of qualified personnel. Comparatively well-staffed and heavily used, academic libraries vary in size and services but face some common problems such as space and budget limitations and book preservation. Finally, special libraries, the best-managed libraries in China, have larger budgets than college and university libraries and are considered key national institutions. Despite the setbacks suffered during the Cultural Revolutions (1966-1976), China's libraries have experienced positive growth in the decade following the upheaval, and it is hoped that even greater emphasis will be placed on the expansion, improvement, and development of library work in the future. Fourteen references are provided. (KM)