A national museum is a museum maintained by a state. In many countries it denotes a museum run by the central government, and often is restricted to a few museums, mostly in the capital, while other museums are run by regional or local government, or foundations. In other countries a much larger number of museums are run by the central government, some quite small. Some national museums use the term in their name, but others do not; some museums just adopt the term as a matter of branding.
The following is an incomplete and not very reliable list of national museums:
Argentina
- Argentine National Museum of History
Australia
- Australian National Aviation Museum
- Australian National Maritime Museum
- Australian Tennis Museum, Sydney
- Australian War Memorial
- Museum Victoria
- National Alpine Museum
- National Dinosaur Museum
- National Gallery of Australia
- National Gallery of Victoria
- National Motor Museum, Birdwood
- National Motorcycle Museum of Australia
- National Museum of Australia
- National Museum of Australian Pottery
- National Railway Museum, Port Adelaide
- National Vietnam Veterans Museum, Phillip Island
- Questacon - National Science and Technology Centre, Canberra
Azerbaijan
- National Art Museum of Azerbaijan
- National Museum of History of Azerbaijan
Bahrain
- Bahrain National Museum
Bangladesh
- Bangladesh National Museum
Belgium
- Royal Museums of Art and History
Bosnia and Herzegovina
- Bosnian and Herzegovinian Museum of Literature
- Historical Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
- National Museum of Bosnia and Herzegovina
Brazil
- National Historical Museum of Brazil (Museu Histórico Nacional)
- National Museum of Brazil (Museu Nacional)
- National Museum of Fine Arts (Museu Nacional de Belas Artes)
- National Museum of the Republic (Museu Nacional da República)
Bulgaria
- Earth and Man National Museum
- National Archaeological Museum
- National Historical Museum
- National Museum of Military History
- National Museum of Natural History
- National Transport Museum
Burkina Faso
- National Museum of Music
Cambodia
- National Museum of Cambodia
- Angkor National Museum
Canada
- Canada Agriculture Museum
- Canada Aviation Museum
- Canada Science and Technology Museum
- Canadian Children's Museum
- Canadian Museum for Human Rights
- Canadian Museum of Contemporary Photography
- Canadian Museum of History
- Canadian Museum of Nature
- Canadian Postal Museum
- Canadian War Museum
- National Gallery of Canada
- Portrait Gallery of Canada
- Quebec National Museum of Fine Arts (Musée national des beaux-arts du Québec)
- RCMP Heritage Centre
- Virtual Museum of Canada
- Virtual Museum of New France
Chad
- Chad National Museum (Musee National N'Djamena)
Chile
- National Air and Space Museum (Santiago)
- National History Museum (Santiago)
- National Museum of Fine Arts (Santiago)
- National Museum of Natural History (Santiago)
China (P.R.C.)
- National Art Museum of China
- National Central Museum of Natural History (now Beijing Museum of Natural History)
- National Museum of China
Colombia
- Colombian National Museum
Comoros
- National Museum of Comoros
Costa Rica
- National Museum of Costa Rica
Cyprus
- Cyprus Museum
Czech Republic
- Czech National Museum
Denmark
- National Museum of Denmark
Djibouti
- Djibouti Museum
Eritrea
- National Museum of Eritrea
Estonia
- Art Museum of Estonia
- Estonian National Museum
Finland
- National Museum of Finland
France
- Centre Georges Pompidou (Musée National d'Art Moderne)
- Musée de l'Armée
- Musée de Cluny - National Museum of the Middle-Ages (Musée National du Moyen-Age)
- Musée du Louvre
- Musée d'Orsay
- Museum of Air and Space (Musée de l'Air et de l'Espace)
- Museum of Natural History (Muséum national d'histoire naturelle)
- Museum of Science and Industry (Cité des Sciences et de l'Industrie)
- National Navy Museum (Musée national de la Marine)
- National Railway Museum (Musée Français du Chemin de Fer)
Gambia
- National Museum
Germany
- Bavarian National Museum
- German Museum of Technology (Deutsches Technikmuseum Berlin)
- German National Museum (Germanisches Nationalmuseum)
- Glyptothek
- Modern Art Museum (Pinakothek der Moderne)
- Museum Wiesbaden
- National Museum of Germany (Deutsches Museum)
- New Pinakothek (Neue Pinakothek)
- Old Pinakothek (Alte Pinakothek)
Ghana
- National Museum of Ghana
Greece
- Athens War Museum
- National Archaeological Museum of Athens
- National Gallery
- National Historical Museum of Greece
- State Museum of Contemporary Arts
Guatemala
- Museo Nacional de Arte Moderno "Carlos Mérida"
Guyana
- National Museum of Guyana
Hungary
- Hungarian National Museum
Iceland
- National Gallery of Iceland
- National Museum of Iceland
Isle of Man
- Manx National Heritage (Manx National Heritage)
India
National-level museums in India come directly under the administrative control of Ministry of Culture, Government of India.
- Allahabad Museum
- Indian Museum
- National Gallery of Modern Art
- National Museum, New Delhi
- Salar Jung Museum
- Victoria Memorial
- 23 science centers under the National Council of Science Museums
- 44 site museums under the Archaeological Survey of India
Indonesia
- Indonesia Museum
- Jakarta History Museum
- National Museum of Indonesia (Museum Nasional or Museum Gajah)
Iran
- National Museum of Iran
Iraq
- National Museum of Iraq
Ireland
- Irish Museum of Modern Art
- National Gallery of Ireland
- National Museum of Ireland
Israel
- Israel Museum
Italy
- Bargello National Museum (Museo Nazionale del Bargello)
- Galleria degli Uffizi
- National Archeological Museum of Naples (Museo Archeologico Nazionale di Napoli)
- National Etruscan Museum (Museo Nazionale Etrusco)
- National Gallery of Ancient Art (Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica)
- National Gallery of Modern Art (Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Moderna)
- National Museum of Capodimonte (Museo Nazionale di Capodimonte)
- National Museum of Magna Grecia (Museo Nazionale della Magna Grecia)
- National Museum of Oriental Art
- National Museum of Rome
- Pinacoteca di Brera
Japan
- Kyoto National Museum
- Kyushu National Museum
- Nara National Museum
- National Museum of Art, Osaka
- National Museum of Ethnology, Japan
- The National Museum of Western Art (Kokuritsu SeiyÅ Bijutsukan)
- Standing Buddha (Tokyo National Museum)
- Tokyo National Museum
Kenya
- National Museums of Kenya
Korea
- National Museum of Korea
- Buyeo National Museum
- Cheongju National Museum
- Chuncheon National Museum
- Daegu National Museum
- Gimhae National Museum
- Gongju National Museum
- Gwangju National Museum
- Gyeongju National Museum
- Jeju National Museum
- Jeonju National Museum
- Jinju National Museum
- National Folk Museum of Korea
- National Palace Museum of Korea
Kuwait
- Al-Hashemi-II Marine Museum in Kuwait City
- Kuwait National Museum
- Kuwait Science and Natural History Museum
Latvia
- Latvian National Museum of Art
Lebanon
- National Museum of Beirut
Libya
- National Museum of Libya
Lithuania
- National Museum of Lithuania
Luxembourg
- National Museum of History and Art, in Luxembourg City
- National Museum of Military History, in Diekirch
- National Museum of Natural History, in Luxembourg City
Malaysia
- Muzium Negara
Maldives
- National Museum
Mali
- National Museum of Mali
Malta
- National Museum of Archaeology
- National Museum of Ethnography
- National Museum of Fine Arts
- National Museum of Natural History
- National War Museum
Mexico
- Museo Nacional de AntropologÃa (National Museum of Anthropology)
- Museo Nacional de Historia (National Museum of History)
Myanmar
- National Museum Nay Pyi Taw
- National Museum of Myanmar
Namibia
- National Museum of Namibia
Nepal
- National Museum of Nepal
Netherlands
- Dordrechts Museum
- EYE Film Institute Netherlands
- Huis Doorn
- Kröller-Müller Museum
- Loevestein
- Mauritshuis
- Muiderslot
- Museum Boerhaave
- Museum Catharijneconvent
- Museum Meermanno
- Museum Mesdag
- National Museum of Ethnology
- Naturalis
- Nederlands Scheepvaartmuseum
- Paleis het Loo
- Rijksmuseum Amsterdam
- Rijksmuseum Twenthe
- Rijksmuseum van Oudheden
- Openluchtmuseum
- Van Gogh Museum
- Zuiderzeemuseum
New Zealand
- Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa - commonly known as Te Papa or Our Place in English translation
Niger
- Musée National Boubou Hama, formerly National Museum of Niger
Norway
- National Museum of Art, Architecture and Design
Pakistan
- National Museum of Pakistan, Karachi
Peru
- Museum of the Nation
- National Museum of the Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of Peru
Philippines
- National Museum of Anthropology
- National Museum of Fine Arts
- National Museum of Natural History
Poland
- Kraków National Museum
- National Museum, GdaÅsk
- National Maritime Museum, GdaÅsk
- National Museum of Poland
- National Museum, PoznaÅ
- National Museum in Szczecin
- Warsaw National Museum
- WrocÅaw National Museum
Portugal
- National Azulejo Museum
- National Museum Machado de Castro (Museu Nacional de Machado de Castro)
- National Museum Soares dos Reis (Museu Nacional Soares dos Reis)
Qatar
- Qatar National Museum
Romania
- ASTRA Museum of Traditional Folk Civilization (Muzeul Civilizaţiei Populare Tradiţionale)
- ASTRA Museum of Transylvanian Civilisation (Muzeul Civilizaţiei Transilvane)
- Brukenthal National Museum
- Emil Sigerus Museum of Saxon Ethnography and Folk Art (Muzeul de Etnografie Åi ArtÄ PopularÄ SÄseascÄ ASTRA)
- Franz Binder Museum of Universal Ethnography (Muzeul de Etnografie UniversalÄ ASTRA)
- National History Museum of Romania
- National Military Museum, Romania (Muzeul Militar Naţional)
- National Museum of Art of Romania
Russia
- State Historical Museum
- Russian Museum
Saudi Arabia
- National Museum of Saudi Arabia
Serbia
- National Museum of Serbia
Sierra Leone
- Sierra Leone National Museum
Singapore
- National Museum of Singapore
Slovakia
- Slovak National Museum
Somalia
- National Museum of Somalia
South Africa
- South African National Museum of Military History
- Iziko South African Museum
South Korea
- Gyeongju National Museum
South Sudan
- South Sudan National Museum
Spain
- Museo Arqueológico Nacional, Madrid
- Museo de América, Madrid
- Museo del Traje, Madrid
- Museo Nacional Centro de Arte Reina SofÃa, Madrid
- Museo Nacional Colegio de San Gregorio, Valladolid
- Museo Nacional de AntropologÃa, Madrid
- Museo Nacional de ArqueologÃa Subacuática, Murcia
- Museo Nacional de Arte Romano, Badajoz
- Museo Nacional de Artes Decorativas, Madrid
- Museo Nacional de Cerámica y de las Artes Suntuarias González MartÃ, Valencia
- Museo Nacional de Reproducciones ArtÃsticas, Madrid
- Museo Nacional de FotografÃa, Soria
- Museo Nacional del Prado, Madrid
- Museo Nacional del Romanticismo, Madrid
- Museo Nacional del Teatro, Ciudad Real
- Museo Nacional y Centro de Investigación de Altamira, Cantabria
- Museo Naval, Madrid
- Museo SefardÃ, Toledo
Sri Lanka
- National Museum of Colombo
- National Museum Galle
- National Museum Kandy
- National Museum Maritime
- National Museum Ratnapura
Sudan
- National Museum of Sudan
Suriname
- Surinaams Museum
Sweden
- Nationalmuseum
Switzerland
- Swiss National Museum (Landesmuseum)
Syria
- National Museum of Damascus
Taiwan (R.O.C.)
- National Museum of History
- National Museum of Marine Biology and Aquarium
- National Museum of Marine Science and Technology
- National Museum of Natural Science
- National Museum of Prehistory
- National Museum of Taiwan History
- National Museum of Taiwan Literature
- National Palace Museum
- National Radio Museum
- National Science and Technology Museum
- National Taiwan Museum
- National Taiwan Museum of Fine Arts
- Republic of China Air Force Museum
- Republic of China Armed Forces Museum
- Southern Branch of the National Palace Museum
Tajikistan
- Tajikistan National Museum
Thailand
- See National museums of Thailand.
Trinidad and Tobago
- National Museum and Art Gallery
Ukraine
- Aivazovsky National Art Gallery
- Lviv National Art Gallery
- Lviv National Museum
- Museum of The History of Ukraine in World War II
- National Art Museum of Ukraine
- National Historical Museum of Ukraine
- National Museum-Preserve "Battle for Kyiv 1943"
- Ukrainian National Chornobyl Museum
United Kingdom
- British Museum
- Design Museum (sponsored)
- HM Customs & Excise National Museum
- Horniman Museum and Gardens (sponsored)
- Imperial War Museum
- National Army Museum
- National Emergency Services Museum
- National Football Museum (sponsored)
- National Gallery
- National Horseracing Museum
- National Maritime Museum
- National Media Museum
- National Motor Museum
- National Museum of Science and Industry
- National Museums Liverpool
- National Portrait Gallery
- National Railway Museum
- National Space Centre
- National Tramway Museum
- National Waterways Museum
- Natural History Museum
- People's History Museum (sponsored)
- Royal Armouries
- Science Museum
- Shildon Locomotion Museum
- Sir John Soane's Museum
- Tate
- Victoria & Albert Museum
- Wallace Collection
England
- Geffrye Museum (sponsored)
- Museum of London
- Museum of Science and Industry in Manchester (sponsored)
- National Coal Mining Museum for England (sponsored)
- National Museums Liverpool
- Tyne and Wear Museums (sponsored)
Northern Ireland
- Armagh County Museum
- Ulster-American Folk Park
- Ulster Folk and Transport Museum
- Ulster Museum
Scotland
- Museum of Scotland
- National Museum of Costume
- National Museum of Flight
- National Museum of Rural Life
- National War Museum of Scotland
- Royal Museum
Wales
- Big Pit National Coal Museum
- National Museum Cardiff
- National Museum Wales
- National Roman Legionary Museum
- National Slate Museum
- National Waterfront Museum
- National Woollen Museum
- St Fagans National History Museum
United States
- Department of Defense:
- Air Force:
- Air Force Armament Museum
- Air Mobility Command Museum
- National Museum of the United States Air Force
- Museum of Aviation
- Strategic Air and Space Museum
- Army:
- National Museum of Health and Medicine
- National Museum of the United States Army
- Navy:
- National Museum of the Marine Corps
- National Museum of the United States Navy
- National Naval Aviation Museum
- National Navy UDT-SEAL Museum
- Naval War College Museum
- Submarine Force Library and Museum
- National Security Agency:
- National Cryptologic Museum
- Air Force:
- Central Intelligence Agency:
- CIA Museum
- Department of Homeland Security
- United States Coast Guard Museum
- National Gallery of Art
- Smithsonian Institution:
- American Art Museum
- Anacostia Community Museum
- Arts and Industries Building
- Cooper Hewitt, Smithsonian Design Museum
- Freer Gallery of Art
- Hirshhorn Museum and Sculpture Garden
- National Air and Space Museum
- Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center
- National Lighthouse Museum
- National Museum of African American History and Culture
- National Museum of African Art
- National Museum of the American Indian
- National Museum of American History
- National Museum of History and Technology
- National Museum of Natural History
- National Portrait Gallery
- National Postal Museum
- National Zoological Park
- Other:
- National Atomic Testing Museum
- National Civil Rights Museum
- National Civil War Museum
- National Electronics Museum
- National Museum of Nuclear Science & History
- National Museum of the Pacific War
- National Railroad Museum
- National World War One Museum
- National World War Two Museum
See also
- List of museums
- List of national archives
- List of national libraries
- National Gallery (disambiguation)