Webliography for Adrian Weimer's and Benjamin Dunnings's Religion 99 - Study of Relgion Senior Tutorial - Conducting Research at HCL

Webliography for Adrian Weimer’s and Benjamin Dunnings’s
Religion 99
Study of Religion Senior Tutorial

Fall 2004

Please Note: This page was created in a previous semester. It may be useful to those who are interested in seeing the work we have done in the past. Some links may no longer be active, and the Library will not be updating them. If you wish to visit a site with an inactive link, please consider using a search engine or contacting a reference librarian for assistance.

Evaluating Web Sites
Harvard Libraries Site Resources
Other Harvard Web Sites of Interest
Independent Web Sites and Sources
Getting an Overview (Subject Encyclopedias)
Finding Bibliographies
When You Have a Citation to an Article
Locating Books and Journals in the Libraries
Using Electronic Resources Inside and Outside the Libraries
Citing Electronic Sources
For Future Reference

Evaluating Web Sites

The World Wide Web offers a wonderful variety of resources, many of which are not available elsewhere. Searching the web can be a cumbersome process, however, and some sites are more worthy of your trust than others are. Web sites of particular religions or particular denominations may express biases, even without conscious intention.

Evaluating Web Sites will give you simple and straightforward advice on how to determine the quality and legitimacy of information found on the World Wide Web.

Harvard Libraries Site Resources

The Harvard Libraries site, at http://lib.harvard.edu, is where you will find links to almost all of our electronic library resources. The button will bring you to a section of the Harvard Libraries site with links to thousands of journal indexes, journals, dictionaries and more. These resources have been reviewed and selected by librarians, which means that they are stable - you can count on them being available for a while. Be aware that even though the resources are stable, the documents you find in them may have a bias.

Note: There are many resources listed here because the topics of Religion 99 students are multidisciplinary and various. Students should select among these resources depending on their topics.

**Indicates database is provided by EBSCO and can be searched with any or all other EBSCO databases, including ATLA.

**Academic Search Premier: Academic Search Premier (ASP) is a multi-disciplinary database that includes citations and abstracts from over 4,500 scholarly publications (journals, magazines and newspapers). Full text is available for more than 3,500 of the publications and is searchable. Limit to search to scholarly (peer-reviewed) journals to omit popular magazines and newspapers.)

**Alt HealthWatch: Alt HealthWatch is a full text database of periodicals, peer-reviewed journals, academic and professional publications, magazines, consumer newsletters and newspapers, research reports, and association newsletters focused on complementary, alternative and integrated approaches to health care and wellness.

Alt-Press Watch: Alt-Press Watch is a full text database of newspapers, magazines and journals of the alternative and independent press. It serves a broad spectrum of subject areas: the arts, media and popular culture, business and labor studies, education, environmental studies and ecology, global studies, history, journalism, literary and critical studies, political science, government and public policy, social science and more.

America: History and Life: America: History and Life is the primary bibliographic reference to the history of the United States and Canada from prehistory to the present, covering over 2,000 journals published worldwide. Includes cultural history.

Anthropology Plus: Anthropology Plus is a joint interface for searching Anthropological Literature and Anthropological Index, each of which is individually accessible from the Harvard Libraries Portal. Anthropological Literature indexes periodical articles and articles from edited books from the Tozzer Library of Harvard College Library. Anthropological Index is produced by the Royal Anthropological Institute of Great Britain and Ireland, from journals received by the Anthropology Library of the British Museum. Both indexes cover the top several tiers of anthropology journals, so many duplicate records will be retrieved. Each index uses different indexing terms, however, so duplicate records will each provide different links to related articles.

**ATLA Religion Database with ATLA Serials: Indexes journal articles, essays, and book reviews in the field of religion. Citations cover all religions and all theological points of view. There are links from cited articles in more than 50 journals to page images of the articles themselves. Primary electronic index for periodical articles in religion. For most articles prior to 1949, see print indexes.

Bibliography of Asian Studies: Contains over 519,000 records on all subjects (primarily in the humanities and social sciences) pertaining to East, South, and Southeast Asia. Citations are drawn from the 100 most important Western-language journals in Asian studies.

**Catholic Periodical and Literature Index: The database includes indexed citations to articles published in Roman Catholic periodicals, papal documents, church promulgations, and books about the Catholic faith that are authored by Catholics and/or produced by Catholic publishers.

Christian Periodical Index: Provides access to English-language articles and reviews from an evangelical perspective, including more than 120 publications, most from 1979 to the present. Representative of the major doctrinal positions within evangelical Christianity.

Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO): Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) is designed to be a comprehensive source for theory and research in international affairs. It publishes a wide range of scholarship from 1991 on that includes working papers from university research institutes, occasional papers, series from non-governmental organizations, foundation-funded research projects, and proceedings from conferences.

**ERIC: A major resource for research in all areas of education, including references to articles in over 800 journals; conference papers and research reports; and state, federal, and local education documents. ERIC contains approximately 1,000,000 references and abstracts; it annually indexes articles from over 800 journals as well as 13,000 documents (conference papers, research reports, state, federal, and local education documents, selected books, etc.) ERIC includes educational ethnographies.

JSTOR (Journal Storage): JSTOR is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to the development of a digital library supporting arts and sciences. JSTOR is comprised of the full text of more than 500 academic journals in a wide range of disciplines. JSTOR allows browsing by issue and full-text searching of individual titles, by discipline(s) or the entire collection. Each title is included from its inception. For titles that are currently published, the last 1-7 years (varies) are not available. In JSTOR, see Tips and More Tips for examples of sophisticated full-text searching techniques.

Index Islamicus: A bibliography of publications in European languages on all aspects of Islam and the Muslim world, from 1906 to the present. Index Islamicus provides access to over 2,000 journals and series. It also covers conference proceedings, monographs, multi-authored works, and book reviews

**MLA International Bibliography: Consists of bibliographic records pertaining to literature, language, linguistics, and folklore, and includes coverage from 1963 to the present, providing access to articles in over 3,000 journals and series, as well as monographs, working papers, proceedings, bibliographies, and other formats.

PAIS (Public Affairs Information Service): PAIS International indexes public policy literature, with emphasis on contemporary issues and the making and evaluating of public policy. International in scope, PAIS indexes publications in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese, and Spanish.

Philosopher’s Index: The major indexing source for scholarly research in philosophy, Philosopher’s Index contains over 213,000 bibliographic citations with author abstracts and covers major articles from anthologies and books written in English, Spanish, German, Italian, and French, as well as articles published since 1940 in more than 480 journals from 38 countries. Includes philosophy of religion.

RAMBI: The Index of Articles on Jewish Studies: A selective bibliography of articles in the various fields of Jewish studies, compiled from thousands of periodicals and from collections of articles - in Hebrew, Yiddish, and European languages- mainly from the holdings of the Jewish National and University Library. 1966-present

Sociological Abstracts: Sociological Abstracts is a scholarly resource for researchers, professionals, and students in sociology, social planning/policy, and related disciplines. It includes citations and abstracts from over 1800 journals, plus relevant dissertation listings, abstracts of association papers and selected books, and citations of book reviews and other media. Includes sociology of religion.

World News Connection (FBIS and JPRS): Provides online access to full text English translations of current non-U.S. media sources, beginning in June, 1994.

Other Harvard Web Sites of Interest

Andover-Harvard Library Reference Guides: Useful tutorials, including advice on searching for books and articles on particular Biblical passages.

Finding Periodicals on Religion: Guide compiled by Widener Reference Librarian lists online and print indexes to periodicals in religion.

Guide to Graduate Student Library Resources at Harvard: This guide is not for graduate students only; it provides tips on carrying out advanced research in Harvard Libraries.

Initial Research Contacts: Lists Harvard College Library librarians with expertise in particular areas. You may contact these people to arrange an in-depth consultation that focuses on your subject of interest.

E-Resources for Medieval Studies: Guide compiled by Widener Research Librarian Michael Hemment lists journal indexes, full text databases, and electronic reference tools in medieval studies.

Research in Middle Eastern Studies: Guide compiled by Research Services’ Liaison for Middle Eastern Studies Cheryl LaGuardia, providing a starting point for research in Middle Eastern Studies in Widener Library.

Independent Web Sites and Sources

Asian Studies

Asia Resources on the World Wide Web: from the Association for Asian Studies, compiled by Dr. Ray Lum, Harvard College Library, a meta-site of links to web resources on: China, Japan, Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Tibet, Vietnam, Indonesia, Thailand, Burma, Cambodia, Philippines, Malaysia, Laos, Singapore, India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Nepal, accessing material such as video, journals, newspapers, dictionaries, libraries, and art.

Asian Studies WWW Virtual Library: Another global resource to web sites and research in Asian Studies, with links to resources on regions and countries.

PAIR: Portal to Asian Internet Resources: "A Title VI-funded project, the Portal to Asian Internet Resources (PAIR) offers scholars, students and the interested public more than six thousand professionally selected, cataloged and annotated online resources. Committed to directing users to Asian area content in the humanities and social sciences, the PAIR Project is supported by an impressive complement of area studies scholars, bibliographers and subject selectors based at the libraries of the University of Wisconsin, the University of Minnesota and the Ohio State University. With a primary mission of providing direct access to online Asian information in native languages and scripts, the PAIR Project team also hopes to broaden access by offering users a suite of instructional resources on the use of Asian character sets and search engines” (quoted from the web site).

Evangelical Christianity

Wheaton University Center for the Study of American Evangelicals (ISAE): “Research Helps” provides many links to websites related to evangelical churches and institutions. See, especially, the “Links to Evangelical Denominations,” which provides specific denominational designations

General Interest

Yale University Library General Religion: Provides pointers to print and microform collections, online databases, and Internet resources for conducting research in religion. Though these guides are based on Yale collections, Internet links may be useful.

Graduate Theological Union, Berkeley, Hewlett Library: Research Tutorials Online provides clear information in a simple format, suggesting print resources that provide overviews in particular subject areas. “Links to Other Sites” may also be useful.

Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life: Has goal “ to promote a deeper understanding of issues at the intersection of religion and public affairs by delivering timely, impartial information to national opinion leaders, without taking positions on policy debates.” Functions as “both a clearinghouse, gathering and disseminating information, and as a town hall, providing a neutral venue for discussion.”

Portals to the World: Links to electronic resources from around the world selected by Library of Congress subject experts.

Islam and the Middle East

Alan Godlas' Islamic Studies Web Site: A comprehensive site on Islam, recently nominated for a Webby award in the category of Spirituality.

MENALIB: The Middle East Virtual Library is an information portal for Middle East and Islamic Studies. It provides access to online information and to digital records of printed and other offline media.

MENIC: The Middle East Network Information Center, a service of the Center for Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Texas at Austin, is a treasure trove of resources, with thousands of links to Web-based Middle Eastern materials. One of its most notable features is the ability to browse Web resources by country of interest.

World-Wide Web Virtual Library Middle East Studies Internet Resources: “an on-going compilation of electronic bibliographic resources and research materials on the Middle East and North Africa, created under the purview of the Middle East Studies Department of Columbia University Libraries. Electronic resources from the Middle East are organized by region, country and subject. The scope of the collection is research-oriented, but it also provides access to other web sites with broader missions” (quoted from the site).

Getting an Overview (Using Subject Encyclopedias)

When you're starting to research a new topic, it is important to gain a sense of context: How are some of the terms used in the writings on the topic defined? What are the most important aspects of the topic? What are major works on the topic? Articles in subject encyclopedias can help provide a frame of reference.
A selection of subject encyclopedias in religion -- and a few other reference volumes -- is listed below.

Abingdon dictionary of living religions. The perennial dictionary of world religions
Keith Crim, general editor; Roger A. Bullard, Larry D. Shinn, associate editors.
San Francisco: Harper & Row, 1989, c1981.
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. | BL31 .A24 1989
Widener | WID-LC | BL31 .A24 1989

Dictionary of American religious biography
Henry Warner Bowden.
2nd ed., rev. and enl.
Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1993.
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. | BL72 .B68 1993
Widener | RR 4810.31

Encyclopedia of African American religions
Edited by Larry Murphy, J. Gordon Melton, Gary L. Ward.
New York: Garland Pub., 1993.
lxxvi, 926 p.; 29 cm.
Afro-American Studies | BR563.N4 E53 1993
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. | BR563.N4 E53 1993
Widener | RR4810.27

Encyclopedia of Buddhism
Robert E. Buswell, Jr.,editor in chief.
New York : Macmillan Reference USA/Thomson/Gale, c2004.
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. | BQ128 .E62 2004
Widener | WID-LC | BQ128 .E62 2004

The encyclopedia of Eastern philosophy and religion: Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen
Ingrid Fischer-Schreiber [et al]
Boston : Shambhala, 1989.
Widener | RR 4885.5
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. | BL1005 .L4813 1989
Harvard-Yenching | Ref (W) | BL1005 .L4813 1989

The encyclopaedia of Islam. Volumes 1-11 [electronic resource].
Leaden : Brill, c2003.
CD-ROM ed. Windows version
Widener | Networked Resource | DS37 .E523 2003x
Available from workstations in the Reference Room

Encyclopaedia Judaica.
Jerusalem, Encyclopaedia Judaica; [New York] Macmillan
[c1971-72, v. 1, c1972]
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. folio | DS102.8 .E496 1972a
Lamont | REF.ROOM | DS102.8 .E496
Widener | Jud 20.99 F
Widener | RR4875.23 F

Encyclopaedia Judaica [computer file]
CD-ROM ed., version 1.0.
[Shaker Heights, Ohio] : Judaica Multimedia International, c1997.
Widener | JCDROM 250 Deposited in Reading Room

The Encyclopedia of religion computer file
Mircea Eliade, editor in chief ; editors, Charles J. Adams ...et al.].
[New York] : Simon & Schuster ; Macmillan, c1996.
Andover-Harv. Theol | Ref. CD-ROM | BL31 .E46 1996
Consult Reference for training and use.

Finding Bibliographies

Sometimes someone has already written a bibliography on your subject, which can be quite helpful.

You can search for bibliographies in the HOLLIS Catalog by carrying out a “Subject Keyword” search incorporating your subject terms plus the standard term "bibliography." For example, searching in the subject keyword field for <Zoroastrianism bibliography> leads to the work:

Ancient Iran and Zoroastrianism in Festschriften: an index (1973)

When You Have a Citation to an Article

When you have a citation to a journal article, either from a bibliography or from a Harvard Libraries e-resource such as EconLit, look for the full text of the article by following these instructions:

If you're in a Harvard Libraries e-resource and see a button, click on it. A new screen will open that provides a link to an electronic version of your article, if available. If there is no link to an electronic version of your article then follow the link to the HOLLIS Catalog, which will show you which Harvard libraries own a paper copy (see Locating Journals for instructions on how to locate the paper copy in a library).
If you're not in a Harvard Libraries e-resource (if, for example, you found your citation in the bibliography of a work you consulted), or if you're in a Harvard Libraries e-resource but don't see a button, you'll have to take a few extra steps to get the article you need:
1. Open a new browser window and go to the "Find it @ Harvard" Citation Linker in the section of the Harvard Libraries site.
2. Enter the article's citation information (e.g. journal title, date, volume number, etc.), then click on .
3. A new screen will open that provides a link to an electronic version of your article, if available. If there is no link to an electronic version of your article then follow the link to the HOLLIS Catalog, which will show you which Harvard libraries own a paper copy (see Locating Journals for instructions on how to locate the paper copy in a library).

If the "Find it @ Harvard" Citation Linker does not bring you to either an electronic version of your article or a HOLLIS Catalog record, then:

1. Go to the Harvard Libraries site and click on in the upper left-hand corner.
2. Once you're in HOLLIS, click on "Journals" in the menu at the top of the screen.
3. Search for the title of the journal in which the article appeared:

a) In the "Browse an Alphabetical List" menu, click on "Journal title beginning with..."
b) Type the title of the journal in the search window, then click on the "Browse" button.
c) Select the matching title in the Browse List.
d) If more than one title is displayed, select the one that is the closest match. The record for that title will show you which Harvard libraries own paper copies of the journal you need.
e) See Locating Journals for instructions on how to locate the paper copy in a library.

Locating Books and Journals in the Libraries

Locating Books

Once you've found a record in HOLLIS for a book that you want to look at, follow these steps:

1. Click on the "Availability" link to make sure the book is "Not checked out." (If the book is checked out, you can recall it by clicking on the "Request" link. The person who has the book will be asked to return in within a week or so.)
2. Back on the Full View of the record, click on the icon to find out where the library is located and what its hours are.
3. Write down (or print out, or email) the call number. The call number follows the icon on the Full View of the record.
4. Once you're in the library, look for a chart that shows you where each call number is shelved. (The Widener Call Number Location Chart is available online.)
5. If you have any questions, ask for help at a reference desk.

Locating Journals

Once you've found a record in HOLLIS for a journal that you want to look at, follow these steps:

1. Click on "Holdings" to find out if the library owns the issue you need.
2. Back on the Full View of the record in HOLLIS, click on the icon to find out where the library is located and what its hours are.
3. Once you're in the library, determine where in the library your journal is shelved. At most libraries, recent issues (published in the past year or so) are shelved separately from older issues.

At Lamont: Recent issues can be found in the Reference Room on the 3rd floor, and older issues are shelved by title on the 2nd floor.
At Widener: Recent issues can be found in the Periodicals Reading Room on the 2nd floor, and older are shelved by call number in the Stacks. So, be sure to note the call number for journals at Widener. The Widener Call Number Location Chart is available online.

4. If you have any questions, ask for help at a reference desk.

Using Electronic Resources Inside and Outside the Libraries

Some of the electronic resources in this guide are available through a subscription paid for by the Harvard libraries. All electronic resources are accessible from computers inside the Harvard libraries. When you enter a subscription resource from outside of a library, however, you will be asked to enter your Harvard ID number and University PIN. Harvard ID holders can get a PIN at the Harvard University PIN Administration Site.

Citing Electronic Sources

Citing Electronic Resources: Provides instructions, with examples, on how to cite electronic sources in various styles.

For Future Reference

Do you have questions about how to proceed with your research? Schedule a follow-up consultation:

Cheryl LaGuardia, Head of Instructional Services for the Harvard College Library, Research Services, Widener Library, 617-496-4226, claguard@fas.harvard.edu
Pam Matz, Reference Librarian, Widener Library, 617-495-8713, pmatz@fas.harvard.edu

This webliography was compiled by Pam Matz, with contributions by Fred Burchsted, Barbara Burg, Cheryl LaGuardia, Carrie Macfarlane, and Elizabeth McKeigue.

This page is http://hcl.harvard.edu/research/guides/classes/2004fall/religion99.html
Last updated: September 14, 2005
Copyright © 2008 President and Fellows of Harvard College
If you have questions or comments, please contact Pam Matz (pmatz@fas.harvard.edu).