Research Guides: Religious Studies: Reference Resources

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Using Reference Resources

Reference sources are a great starting point for starting research on a new topic because they provide general information on a topic. They often include the following types of information to help you get started:

Get an overview of a new or complex topic
Find out the names of key players in a given area
Locate terms that you can use in your research
Help narrow (or expand) your topic
Locate a bibliography of sources to help you start your research

Reference sources include encyclopedias, handbooks, dictionaries, and other sources like them. Some reference sources for religion-related topics are listed below.

Reference Resources

The following titles are available as ebooks.

Concise Oxford Dictionary of World Religions (2003)
Abridged from the Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, this Concise version contains entries on all the major and many minor religions, movements, sects, and cults, sacred writings, short biographies of leaders, sacred sites, customs, religious practices, dogmas, beliefs, traditions, festivals and fasts, and artefacts. There are also entries on worldwide religious teachings on abortion, animals, birth control, war, homosexuality, and suicide.
Encyclopedia of Global Religion (2012)
The Encyclopedia of Global Religion provides an overview of the globalization of religious culture and society around the world in both its historical and contemporary aspects. The encyclopedia includes topics related to the diaspora of cultures and dispersions of peoples; the transitional aspects of religious ideas and practices; the cultural diversity of religious traditions; and the responses of religion—both negative and positive—to multicultural society. It also includes essays on the contemporary religious society of every country in the world.
Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart
Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart 4 Online is the online version of the 4th edition of the definitive encyclopedia of religion worldwide. This resource continues the tradition of deep knowledge and authority relied upon by generations of scholars in religious, theological, and biblical studies. See the next entry for the English translation.
Religion Past and Present
Religion Past and Present (RPP) Online is the online version of the updated English translation of the 4th edition of the definitive encyclopedia of religion worldwide: the peerless Religion in Geschichte und Gegenwart (RGG). This resource continues the tradition of deep knowledge and authority relied upon by generations of scholars in religious, theological, and biblical studies.
Brill Encyclopedia of Early Christianity Online
The Brill Encyclopedia of Early Christianity focuses on the history of early Christian texts, authors, ideas. Its content is intended to bridge the gap between the fields of New Testament studies and patristics, covering the whole period of early Christianity up to 600 CE. This resource provides a critical review of the methods used in Early Christian Studies and updates the historiography.
Christian-Muslim Relations 600 - 1500
Christian-Muslim Relations, a Bibliographical History Online is a general online history of relations between the faiths. It covers the period from 600 to 1500, when encounters took place through the extended Mediterranean basin and are recorded in Syriac, Arabic, Greek, Latin and other languages. This resource comprises introductory essays on the treatment of Christians in the Qur’an, Qur’an commentaries, biographies of the Prophet, Hadith and Sunni law, and of Muslims in canon law, and the main body of more than two hundred detailed entries on all the works recorded, whether surviving or lost.
Christian-Muslim Relations 1500 - 1900
Christian-Muslim Relations, a Bibliographical History Online is a general history of relations between the two faiths as this is represented in works written by Christians and Muslims about the other and against the other. It covers all parts of the world in the period 1500-1914. This resource comprises thousands of comprehensive entries on individual works and their authors, together with introductory essays to the periods and areas covered.
Concise Companion to the Jewish Religion (2003)
Contains information on every aspect of Jewish belief and practice, both ancient and modern.
Concise Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2014)
Provides coverage of theology, patristic scholarship, churches and denominations across the world, canon law, and the church calendar, as well as entries on theologians, philosophers, artists, musicians, and mystics.
Dictionary of Buddhism (2004)
This dictionary features broad-ranging entries on the history and doctrines of the major Buddhist schools, information on the spread of Buddhism in Asia and the West, and coverage of issues of contemporary concern such as human rights, abortion, euthanasia, ‘engaged Buddhism’, and the role of women in Buddhist teachings.
Dictionary of Deities and Demons Online
The Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Online contains academic articles on the named gods, angels, and demons in the books of the Hebrew Bible, Septuagint and Apocrypha, as well as the New Testament and patristic literature.
Dictionary of Popes (2015)
Concise accounts of every officially recognized pope in history, as well as all of their irregularly elected rivals, the so-called antipopes.
Dictionary of the Bible (2010)
Provides information about all of the important places, people, themes, and doctrines of the Bible. Terms range from earthquakes and mice to martyrs and art, Act of God, Old Testament and New Testament theology, Hanukkah, the Koran, mysticism, and many more. It also includes a detailed bibliography, biographies of Bible scholars, a conversion table of measures, weights, and values, a chronology of important dates in Biblical history, and historical maps.
Encyclopaedia of Islam (3rd ed)
This edition sets out the present state of our knowledge of the Islamic World and reflects the great diversity of current scholarship. It includes comprehensive coverage of Islam in the twentieth century and of Muslim minorities all over the world.
Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān (3rd ed)
The Encyclopaedia of the Qur’ān Online is an encyclopaedic dictionary of qur’ānic terms, concepts, personalities, place names, cultural history and exegesis extended with essays on the most important themes and subjects within qur’ānic studies.
Encyclopedia of African Religion (2009)
The Encyclopedia of African Religion explores such topics as deities and divinities, the nature of humanity, the end of life, the conquest of fear, and the quest for attainment of harmony with nature and other humans.
Encyclopedia of Canonical Ḥadīth Online
This encyclopedic work on the earliest development of the religion and cultures of Islam comprises English translations of all canonical ḥadīths (oral traditions of or about the Prophet Muhammad), complete with their respective chains of transmission (isnāds).
Encyclopedia of Politics and Religion (2007)
Addresses the intersection of these politics and religion as they play out in our world. Content includes articles on such subjects as European Islam, Creationism and Evolution, the Christian Right, and more.
Encyclopedia of Religion (2005)
Presents a cross-cultural approach that emphasizes religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture. Available as an ebook and in print.
Encyclopedia of Religion in America (2010)
This reference work examines how religious history and practices are woven into the political, social, cultural, and historical landscape of North America. It explains the origins, development, adaptation, influence, and interrelations of the many faiths practiced, including major world religions, new religious sects, cults, and religious movements that originated or had an influence in the United States.
New Catholic Encyclopedia (2003)
Contains articles on theology, philosophy, history, literary figures, saints, musicians and much more. Available as an ebook and in print.
Oxford Bibliographies Online: Islamic Studies
Offers peer-reviewed annotated bibliographies on the range of lived experiences and textual traditions of Muslims as they are articulated in various countries and regions throughout the world.
Oxford Bibliographies Online: Jewish Studies
The field of Jewish studies is broad and interdisciplinary, encompassing history, religion, philosophy, literature, sociology and political science. Its chronological and geographical range is immense, stretching from the Bible to the present and including communities from the Americas to Western and Eastern Europe, North Africa and the Middle East, South and East Asia, and Africa.
Oxford Dictionary of Islam (2003)
The Dictionary focuses primarily on the 19th and 20th centuries, providing a look at the religious, political, and social spheres of the modern Islamic world.
Oxford Dictionary of Saints (2011)
This work includes entries covering the lives, cults, and artistic associations of saints from around the world, from the famous to the obscure, the rich to the poor, and the academic to the uneducated.
Oxford Guide to People and Places of the Bible (2002)
This guide includes articles that describe the people and places that appear in the New Testament and Old Testament of the Bible. From prophets, apostles, and groups (such as Hebrews and Angels) to kingdoms and countries, cities and mountains where Biblical events took place.

Reference Works in Print

Anatomy of the Sacred: An Introduction to Religion (1998)
Available in print only. Langson Library BL48 .L48 1998.
Anthropology of Religion: A Handbook (1997)
Edited by Stephen D. Glazier. Available in print only.
Langson Library GN470 .A55 1997.
Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions (2001)
Available in print only. Langson Library Reference BL2462 .5 .E53 2001.
Historical Dictionary of New Religious Movements (2001)
Available in print only. Langson Library Reference BP601 .C47 2001.
New Historical Atlas of Religion in America (2001)
Available in print only. Langson Library Reference G1201 .E4 N4 2001.
Reference Works for Theological Research (1992)
Available in print only. Langson Library Z7751 .K46 1992.
Routledge Historical Atlas of Religion in America (2000)
Available in print only. Langson Library Reference G1201 .E4 C3 2000.

Highlighted Resource

Religion: A Very Short Introduction by Thomas A. Tweed
ISBN: 9780190064679
Publication Date: 2020
Religion: A Very Short Introduction offers a concise and fair account of the vast topic of religion, incorporating insights from different scholarly fields while also respectfully representing diverse religions and varying viewpoints.

Additional Web Resources

Altafsir
A free website providing access to the largest and greatest online collection of Qur’anic Commentary (tafsir or tafseer), translation, recitation and essential resources in the world. Maintained by the Royal Aal al-Bayt Institute for Islamic Thought, Jordan.
Glossary of Spiritual and Religious Terms
Glossary of Buddhist Terms
Hitchcock’s Bible Names Dictionary
This dictionary lists the meanings of most of the Hebrew names that appear in the Bible.