Tips
Encyclopedias are great for:
- choosing a topic
- quick self-education
- perspective on a topic
- variant spellings, vocabulary, terminology
- bibliography
Cambridge Histories Online
Excellent resource. Full text. Chapters as pdfs. Extremely high quality essays with rich footnotes and bibliography.
OED
English Language and its history
Oxford English Dictionary (OED) The dictionary that is scholar's preferred source; it goes far beyond definitions.
Oxford Bibliographies and Handbooks
- Oxford Handbooks Online: Scholarly Research Review
Excellent substantial review articles of scholarly research by leading scholars, particularly strong on Archaeology and Classical Civilization
- Oxford Bibliographies Online (OBO): Classics, Archaeology and moreHighly recommended. Critical annotated bibliographies. In progress.
More Encyclopedias
- The Context of Scripture onlinePresents the multi-faceted world of ancient writing that forms the background to the literature of the Hebrew Bible.
The Encyclopedia of Archaeological SciencesPublication Date: 2018Covers emerging trends and foundational theories of archaeological science and comprehensive overview of the scientific concepts and techniques that have shaped the contemporary discipline of archaeology.
Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and ArchaeologyPublication Date: 2013Shifts in archaeological theory and biblical scholarship now present new potential for rapprochement between archaeology and the Bible.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the near EastPublication Date: 1996Analyzes the archaeological and linguistic data that pertain to the broad cultural milieu of the ancient Near East, the crossroads of three of the world's most influential religions--Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Ranging from prehistoric times up to theearly centuries of the rise of Islam, the work covers the civilizations of Syria-Palestine, Mesopotamia, Anatolia, Iran, Arabia, Cyprus, Egypt, and the coastal regions of North and East Africa.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient EgyptPublication Date: 2001Social, political, religious, cultural and artistic legacy of this 5,000 year civilization.
- The Oxford companion to archaeologyVolume aimed to make specialized knowledge available to a wide range of audiences. It offers a vast overview of archaeology in an encyclopedic survey that covers advances in archaeological methods, discoveries, reconstructions of the past, and archaeologists' contributions to society. Entries are cross-referenced and followed by short citations list for further research.
- The concise Oxford dictionary of archaeologyBrief and basic terms for archaeological work, including people, places, monuments and equipment. Online version can be cross-referenced with the entire Oxford Reference Online database.
Science Fiction
- SFE: Encyclopedia of Science FictionThird edition. More than 18,500 entries. Highly recommended.
A Companion to Science FictionPublication Date: 2005Essays by an international range of scholars which discuss the contexts, themes and methods used by science fiction writers.
The Cambridge Companion to Science FictionPublication Date: 2003Essays by scholars and practitioners of science fiction, which look at the genre from these different angles.
- Gale LiteratureA literature database combining biographical, bibliographical, and contextual
information on authors and their works, including science fiction.
