Religion: Reference Sources

Reference books on Judaism are shelved in the BM section. An important exception to this is the Encyclopaedia Judaica which is good for biographies and is located at Main Ref DS102.8 .E496.

• Encyclopaedia Judaica

• Book of Jewish Knowledge
  Main Ref BM50 .A8 1964
  An encyclopedia of Judaism and the Jewish people, covering all elements of Jewish life from Biblical times to the mid-twentieth century.

• The Jewish Religion : A Companion
  Main Ref BM50 .J28 1995
  The main Jewish personalities, beliefs and practices are presented in encyclopedic format. Articles are generally a page to a few pages.

• Encyclopedia of Judaism
  Main Ref BM50.E63 1999

• Oxford Dictionary of the Jewish Religion

Reference books on Islam are shelved in the BP section:

• Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd ed. (Brill, 1960–2005)

• Encyclopaedia of Islam, 2nd ed., Glossary and Index of Terms (Brill)

• Encyclopaedia of Islam, 3rd ed. (Brill, 2013- in progress)

• Princeton encyclopedia of Islamic political thought

• The Concise Encyclopedia of Islam
  Main Ref BP40 .G42 1989

• Encyclopedia of Islam and the Muslim World
  Main Ref BP40.E525 2004

• Encyclopedia of the Quran
  Main Ref BP133.E53 2001

• Historical Dictionary of Islam
  Main Ref. BP50 .A33 2009

For reference books on religion in general as well as sources on biography, religions of the world, doctrines, religious life & organization, please look at the BL1 - BL632 section. A few of the books you will find there are:

• Encyclopedia of Religion
  The second edition (2005) of the next source in this list. Many new topics and revised entries

• Encyclopedia of Religion (Eliade)
  Main Ref BL31 .E46 1986
  Considered a standard in the field, a sixteen volume set covering topics from wars and warriors to the afterlife. Many entries include an overview, historical background and the meaning of the term in context to different religions.

• HarperCollins Dictionary of Religion
  Main Ref BL31 .H37 1995
  While most entries range from a paragraph to a few pages, there are lengthy articles covering the major religions. The articles address problems, prospects, thought and ethics.

• Historical Atlas of the Religions of the World
  Main Ref BL80.2 .F28
  Religions of the past, ethnic religions of the present and universal religions of the present are the three sections dividing the book. Maps and timelines complement the text.

• Atlas of the World's Religions
  Main Ref Folio BL80.2 .A84 1999
  Rise and spread of the world's religions. Includes timelines.

• Melton's Encyclopedia of American Religions (2009)

• Encyclopedia of Religion and Politics
  Main Ref BL65.P7 1998

• Encyclopedia of Fundamentalism
  Main Ref BL238.E63 2001

• Encyclopedia of Science and Religion
  Main Ref BL240.3.E53 2003

• Encyclopedia of Women and World Religion
  Main Ref BL458.E53 1999

History and principles of religions by region are shelved in the BL660 - BL2680 section:

• Oxford Dictionary of Classical Myth & Religion
  Main Ref BL715.O845 2003

• Encyclopedia of Eastern Philosophy and Religion : Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, Zen
  Main Ref BL1005 .L4813 1989

• Illustrated Encyclopedia of Hinduism
  Main Ref BL1105.L63 2002

• RoutledgeCurzon Encyclopedia of Confucianism
  Main Ref BL1840.R68 2003

• Shambhala Dictionary of Taoism
  Main Ref BL1923 .S48 1996

• Encyclopedia of the American Religious Experience
  Main Ref BL2525 .E53 1988
  This three volume set contains articles addressing diverse topics such as religious music and hymnody, the history of preaching in America and Islam in North America.

Reference books on Buddhism are shelved in the BQ section:

• Historical Dictionary of Buddhism
  Main Ref BQ130 .P74 1993

• Encyclopedia of Buddhism
  Main Ref BQ128.E62 2004

• An Encyclopaedia of Buddhist Deities, Demigods, Godlings, Saints and Demons : With Special Focus on Iconographic Attributes
  Main Ref BQ128 .B86 1994
  This two volume set contains color plates, deity tables and paragraph length entries.

Reference books on Christianity are shelved in the BR section:

• Oxford Companion to Christian Thought
  Main Ref BR95.O94 2000

• Encyclopedia of African American Religions
  Main Ref BR563.N4 E53 1993
  Includes a chronology.

• Encyclopedia of the Early Church
  Main Ref BR66.5 .D5813 1992
  Coverage is through the eleventh century.

• Christian denominations are in the BX section:

• The HarperCollins Encyclopedia of Catholicism
  Main Ref BX841 .H37 1995

• Encyclopedia of Protestantism
  Main Ref BX4811.3 .E53 2004

Texts and works about the Bible, including concordances, dictionaries, and exegetical sources, are found in the BS section:

• The HarperCollins Bible Dictionary
  Main Ref BS440 .H235 1996

• The New Interpreter's Bible
  Main Ref BS491.2 .N484 1994

• The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible
  Main Ref BS425 .S8 1963

• Oxford Reference - Religion