Research Guides: Encyclopedias &amp; Dictionaries: Home

Online Encyclopedia Collections

In addition to the individual online titles listed on the guide, these two databases allow you to search across hundreds of scholarly encyclopedias and dictionaries simultaneously. These are great places to start your research.

Gale Reference eBooks This link opens in a new window
Provides a database of encyclopedias and reference sources for research. Coverage include the Arts, Business, Education, the Environment, History, Literature, Medicine, Multicultural Studies, Religion, Science and Social Science. 2000 – present.
Oxford Reference This link opens in a new window
Combines reference coverage of the full subject spectrum with the resources of Oxford Companions. Quick and easy retrieval of subject reference entries, bilingual dictionaries, English dictionaries, and quotations & proverbs. 5 users.
Sage Knowledge This link opens in a new window
A comprehensive source for researchers in the social sciences. Content includes reference books (encyclopedias, dictionaries, and handbooks) in areas like business, education, international relations, psychology, and others social science disciplines).

Print Encyclopedias on the Main Floor

While thousands of our encyclopedias are available online, some reference works are only available in print. All titles are included in Muscat Plus. You may also browse by subject using their call numbers.

If you're looking for an encyclopedia or dictionary on a specific topic, stop at the Research Help Desk on the main floor for assistance.

Other Encyclopedias and Dictionaries

These are just a few of our largest online reference sources. If you have questions about online information for a discipline or topic, please reach out to a librarian for assistance.

Language Dictionaries

Dictionary of Old English
The Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus is an online database consisting of at least one copy of every surviving Old English text. In some cases, more than one copy is included, if it is significant because of dialect or date. Best to view in Chrome browser.
Encyclopedia of Arabic Language and Linguistics
Covers all aspects of Arabic languages and linguistics. It is interdisciplinary in scope and represents different schools and approaches.
Oxford English Dictionary
Provides full-text access to the Oxford English Dictionary. The OED is regarded as the most authoritative and comprehensive English language dictionary in the world. It contains over 600,000 entries and 3.5 million illustrative quotations. Use quick or advanced search, or browse words by subject, usage, region, or origin.

Oxford Language Dictionaries Online This link opens in a new window
Provides searchable, comprehensive bilingual dictionaries in Arabic, Chinese, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish based on languages as they're used today. Includes articles, quizzes, and tips to help users understand how languages are used in modern culture. Offers quick-search access to definitions of words, phrases, and idioms, with expert guidance on style, usage, grammar, and spelling.

Issues in the News

Issues and Controversies This link opens in a new window
Provides articles about more than 800 hot topics in business, politics, government, education, and popular culture. Updated weekly, with links to a 12-year back-file, Issues and Controversies offers in-depth articles made to inspire thought-provoking debates.
CQ Researcher This link opens in a new window
Provides research and analysis of political issues, news, the American Congress, social trends, elections, international affairs, and more. Subscribed sub-collections include: CQ Almanac, Congress Collection, CQ Magazine, and Voting and Elections Collection. 1923 – present.

Art and Music

Literature Resource Center This link opens in a new window
Provides access to biographies, bibliographies, and critical analyses on over 130,000 writers in all disciplines, from all time periods and from around the world.
Oxford Art Online (formerly Grove Art Online) This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to Grove Art Online, The Oxford Companion to Western Art, the Encyclopedia of Aesthetics, and the Concise Oxford Dictionary of Art Terms. Contents include encyclopedia-length articles, thumbnail art images and line drawings, extensive image links, and more.
Oxford Music Online (formerly Grove Music Online) This link opens in a new window
Provides full-text access to Grove Music Online, The Oxford Dictionary of Music, and The Oxford Companion to Music.

Religion and Philosophy

Digital Dictionary of Buddhism
A compilation of Chinese ideograph-based terms, texts, temples, schools, and persons found in Buddhist canonical sources. Provides comprehensive coverage—more than 66,000 entries—and serves as a basic reference tool for the field of Buddhist and East Asian studies. Navigation: linear hypertext links and a general keyword search box (no advanced search).
Encyclopedia Islamica
Provides "entries on important themes, subjects and personages in Islam generally [and] ... offers the western reader an opportunity to appreciate the various dimensions of ShiΜi Islam, the Persian contribution to Islamic civilisation, and the spiritual dimensions of the Islamic tradition."
Encyclopedia of Islam, Third Edition
Provides the authoritative source on the religion of Islam, and also on the believers and the countries in which they live. 3 users.
Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy
Provides entries by hundreds of experts from the international philosophy community.

Biographical Information

American National Biography This link opens in a new window
Offers biographies of more than 17,400 men and women from all eras and walks of life whose lives have shaped the United States. Includes only persons who are deceased.
Biography in Context This link opens in a new window
Includes full-text journal articles containing biographical information on people throughout history, around the world, and across all disciplines and subject areas.

Dictionary of Canadian Biography
Provides biographies of Canadians who died between 1000 and 1930.