Encyclopedias/Dictionaries

Note: you can go directly to Oxford's online Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages.

Electronic Resources

Print Resources

♦ The Cambridge Economic History of Europe. General editors M. M. Postan and H J. Habakkuk. Cambridge: The University Press, 2nd ed., 1966. HC240 .C312 Reference Shelves.

An authoritative survey of an aspect of society not included in the Cambridge medieval and modern histories. Contents organized in chapters which deal with a well-defined topic (e.g., "Markets and Fairs"). Bibliographies for each chapter appear at the end of the volume. v. 1. Covers the agrarian life of the Middle Ages. Chronology of World History / H.E.L. Mellersh. D11 .M39 1999 4 vols. Reference Shelves. Volume 2 is an extensively revised and updated edition of Chronology of the expanding world, 1492-1762.

♦ Classical and Medieval Literature Criticism. Detroit: Gale Research Co. 1988-2006. PA1 .C355 Reference Shelves

"Excerpts from criticism of the works of world authors from classical antiquity through the fourteenth century, from the first appraisals to current evaluations." Very thorough information on authors, works, and cultural settings, with as much as 100 pages devoted to some works. Extensive up-to-date bibliographies.

♦ Crusades : an encyclopedia / Alan V. Murray, editor.Reference Shelves D155 .C78

♦ Dictionary of the Middle Ages. Joseph R. Strayer, editor in chief. New York, Scribner, 1982-1989. 13 vols. D114 .D5 1982 Reference Shelves

An encyclopedia rather than a dictionary, this well-written, up-to-date source includes people, places, and topics pertaining to the Middle Ages. Some entries are only a quarter of a page in length while others are more than ten pages long. Topics discussed are both specific ("Brewing") and quite general ("Bulgaria"). There is a bibliography at the end of each entry.

♦ Diccionario de historia de España; dirigido por Germán Bleiberg. Diccionario Historia de España, dir. Germán Bleiberg, 3 vols. Reference Shelves REF DP56 D5

♦ Early Christian and Byzantine Architecture: an Annotated Bibliography and Historiography, by W. Eugene Kleinbauer. Reference Shelves. Z5943 .C56 K55 1992

♦ Encyclopedia of Medieval Church Art. Edward G. Tasker; edited by John Beaumont. Reference Shelves. N7943 .A1 T37 1993

♦ Encyclopedia of Medieval Literature / edited by Robert Thomas Lambdin and Laura Cooner Lambdin. PN669 .E53 2000 Reference Shelves.

This is a monumental work of scholarship with 523 well-written entries, each supplemented by a well-chosen bibliography as well as a general bibliography. Essential for academic libraries, this should be considered by public libraries as well. Library Journal.

♦ Encyclopedia of the Crusades, ed. Alfred J. Andrea (Greenwood Press, 2003. Reference Shelves D155 A6

♦ Encyclopedia of the Middle Ages, edited by Andre Vauchez Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn, 2000. 2 v. D114 .E53 2000 Reference Shelves.

Arranged alphabetically, this reference work was created by over 600 contributors from a wide range of disciplines. At the end is a table of monarchs, patriarchs, and popes, including Muslim rulers and those from Central Europe.

♦ Encyclopedia of Women in the Middle Ages. Jennifer Lawler. Reference Shelves HQ1143 .L38 2001

♦ Encyclopedia of World Art. N31.E533. 17 volumes. .Reference Shelves.

Published between 1959 and 1987, this massive and comprehensive resource is especially good for in-depth articles, with extensive bibliographies, on broad topics (e.g., Byzantine Art)

♦ Extraordinary Women of the Medieval and Renaissance World : a Biographical Dictionary / Carole Levin ... [et al.]. HQ1143 .E93 2000 Reference Shelves.

This work is "aimed at the "unsung" women who were extraordinary for either their accomplishments or their tragic lives or both. The 70 women covered moved outside what was considered a "woman's sphere" and participated in the religious, political, and social changes that are hallmarks of this period. They lived between the tenth and seventeenth centuries and not all were Western European but also from Eastern Europe, Asia, and Africa."

♦ From Justinian to Charlemagne: European art, 565-787: an Annotated Bibliography by Lawrence Nees. Reference Shelves. Z5933.2 .N44 1985

♦ Historical Art Index, A.D. 400-1650 : People, Places, and Events Depicted. This valuable research tool helps one locate art objects (in museums as well as book reproductions) which represent people, places, or events belonging to the period between 400 and 1650. Reference Shelves. N8210.R6 1989.

♦ Historical Dictionary of the Spanish Empire, 1402-1975, ed. J. S. Olson, et al. (1992) Reference Shelves DP56 H57

♦ Key Figures in Medieval Europe : an Encyclopedia / Richard K. Emmerson, editor ; Sandra Clayton-Emmerson, associate editor. Reference Shelves. D115 .K49 2006

♦ Islamic Art and Architecture 650-1250. Richard Ettinghausen, Oleg Grabar, Marilyn Jenkins-Madina. Reference Shelves. N6260.E79 2001

♦ Medieval Art: a Topical Dictionary. Leslie Ross. Reference Shelves. N7850 .R67 1996

♦Medieval England : an Encyclopedia / editors: Paul E. Szarmach, M. Teresa Tavormina, Joel T. Rosenthal. DA129 .M43 1998 Reference Shelves.

An introduction to the society and culture of England from the coming of the Anglo-Saxons in the 5th century through the accession of the Tudor dynasty (1485) at the turn of the 16th century." Containing more than 700 entries by more than 300 international scholars, the volume encompasses the fields of Old English and Middle English language and literature, music and liturgy, history, and history of art. According to the introduction, it is designed to be accessible to the general reader as well as to the scholar.

♦ Medieval Folklore : an Encyclopedia of Myths, Legends, Tales, Beliefs, and Customs / Carl Lindahl, John McNamara, John Lindow, editors. GR35 .M43 2000 Reference Shelves. 2 vols.

"This two-volume encyclopedia offers an A-to-Z guide to the mundane and supernatural lore of the Middle Ages. Definitive and lively articles focus on the great myths and legends of the age; religious beliefs of pagan, Christian, Muslim, and Jew; key works of oral and written literature; traditional music and art; holidays and feasts; food and drink; and plants and animals (real and mythic). 150 illustrations."

♦ Medieval France: An Encyclopedia, ed. W. W. Kibler, et al. (1995) Reference Shelves DC33.2.M44

♦ Medieval Germany : an Encyclopedia / edited by John M. Jeep. DD157 .M43 2001 Reference Shelves. 2 vols.

Nearly 650 alphabetically arranged entries cover German- and Dutch-speaking Europe from A.D. 500 to 1500. Articles cover "major persons, places, historical occurrences, artistic and technological accomplishments, intellectual developments, and daily life."

♦ Medieval Iberia : an encyclopedia / E. Michael Gerli, editor ; associate editors, Samuel G. Armistead ... [et al.] Reference Shelves DP99 M33

♦ Medieval Iconography: a Research Guide. John B. Friedman and Jessica M. Wegmann. Reference Shelves. Z5933 .F75 1998

♦ Medieval Italy : an Encyclopedia / Christopher Kleinhenz, editor. New York : Routledge, 2004. DG443 .M43 2004 Reference Shelves.

Provides an introduction to the many and diverse facets of Italian civilization from the late Roman empire to the end of the fourteenth century.

♦ Medieval Iberia : an encyclopedia / E. Michael Gerli, editor ; associate editors, Samuel G. Armistead ... [et al.]. Reference Shelves DP99 .M33

♦ Medieval Scandinavia : an encyclopedia / Phillip Pulsiano, editor ; Kirsten Wolf, co-editor ; Paul Acker, associate editor, Donald K. Fry, associate editor ; advisers, Knut Helle ... [et al.]. Reference Shelves DL30 .M43

♦ Mythological and Classical World Art Index : a locator of paintings, sculptures, frescoes, manuscript illuminations, sketches, woodcuts, and engravings executed 1200 B.C. to A.D. 1900, with a directory of the institutions holding them. Reference Shelves. N7760.R63 1991.

By the same author as the Historical Art Index, its focus is on Greek and Roman art works.

♦ New Cambridge Medieval History. Cambridge [England] ; New York, NY, USA : Cambridge University Press, 1995-2005.Vol. 1-7. D117 .N48 1995

♦ Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium.This resource is a comprehensive dictionary of Byzantine civilization. It features over 5,000 entries written by an international group of eminent Byzantinists covering all aspects of life in the Byzantine world.

Reference Shelves. DF521.O93 1991. 3 volumes. Oxford Dictionary of Byzantium.

♦ Oxford dictionary of Popes / J.N.D. Kelly.

♦ The papacy : an encyclopedia / Philippe Levillain, general editor. Reference Shelves BX 955.3 .D5313

♦ Women and Gender in Medieval Europe : an Encyclopedia / Margaret Schaus, editor. Reference Shelves. HQ1147.E85 W64 2006