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Humanities: Specialized Encyclopedias

Specialized Encyclopedias

Every discipline and many fields have specialized encyclopedias. Unlike Wikipedia, these encyclopedias are written, reviewed, and edited by academic experts. Consulting an encyclopedia in the early stages of your research can help you define your key terms, situate your topic in its wider scholarly context, find related fields of inquiry, and even locate seminal works of research that may be contained in the bibliographies at the end of each entry. Below is a small selection of what is available in the humanities (including literature, philosophy, religion, and other fields). For more consult the library's other research guides.

Specialized Encyclopedias: History

For a more comprehensive list see the History Research guides.

Specialized Encyclopedias: Philosophy and Religion

For a more comprehensive listing of encyclopedias in these disciplines see the Philosophy Research Guide and the Religious Studies Research Guide.

Specialized Encyclopedias: Literature

For a more comprehensive list see the Literature Research Guide.

Comprehensive Encyclopedias and Collections

Oxford English Dictionary

Cambridge Histories (Selected)

Select any one of these sets to be taken to the Cambridge site where all the History can be browsed.