GLAM is an acronym for "Galleries, Libraries, Archives, and Museums"[1][2], although other versions of the acronym exist, such as "LAM", which incorporates only Libraries, Archives and Museums. More generally, GLAMs are publicly-funded, publicly-accountable institutions collecting cultural and heritage material.
The term GLAM emerged as these institutions began to realise their roles and goals were converging, creating the need for a wider industry sector grouping. This became especially apparent as they placed their collections online—artworks, books, documents, and artifacts all effectively become equal 'information resources' when they are online.
As collecting institutions, GLAMs preserve and make accessible primary sources valuable for researchers.
In November and December 2010, "GLAM-WIKI" conferences about collaboration between GLAM institutions and the free culture sector, specifically Wikimedia projects, were held in London[3] and Paris[4].