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Medieval West - Reference Sources: Guides to the Literature

This is a guide to reference sources on the medieval West: guides to the literature, periodical indexes, encyclopedias/dictionaries, atlases/maps, biography, book length bibliographies. Last updated 06-13-2023

Guides to the Literature - General and History

American Historical Association's Guide to Historical Literature, Ref. and Main, D 20 .A55 1995 v. 1, section 20 "Medieval Europe." See the layout of the section on p. 625. Chronological approach with sub-sections on geographic areas. Short annotations. Points to book length material only. Information on reference sources is limited. Emphasis is on good books in the field to read. No references to materials published after 1995.

Paetow, Guide to the Study of Medieval History, Remote Storage Z 6203 .P19 1931 and  Main 1980 edition. Bibliographical works, reference works (dated), modern works (also dated), large collections of original sources, general history and medieval culture (dated).

Boyce, Literature of Medieval History, 1930-1975, a Supplement to Louis John Paetow's Guide to the Study of Medieval History, Main Z 6203 .P25 1980 Supp. V. 1-5. Similar arrangement to Paetow. Now also dated. But, as history resources seldom become completely useless overtime, depending on your project, this and Paetow are still worth knowing about and using.

Crosby, Medieval Studies, a Bibliographical Guide, Remote Storage Z 5579.5 .C76 1983. General bibliography on the period. Both topical chapters and chapters on the period in different countries. Points to other bibliographies, general works, collections of sources, in many disciplines, not only just history.

Powell, Medieval Studies, an Introduction, Remote Storage D116 .M4 1992. Bibliographic essay format, with chapters on a range of medieval topics: Latin paleography, diplomacy, archaeology, art, English literature, law, science and natural philosophy, music, chronology, numismatics, Latin philosophies, computer assisted analysis of statistical documents of medieval life. Each chapter concludes with a bibliography of the works discussed.

Caenegem, Guide to the Sources of Medieval History, Main D 117 .C2213. Points to traditional primary, medieval sources from church records, legal records, charters and administrative records, governmental records, fiscal and socio-economic records. Info on libraries and archives and their holdings, as of the late 1970s. Great collections and repertories of sources. Reference works.

Caenegem, Manuel des Etudes Medievales, Main, D 117 .C23313 1997. Guide to Sources of Medieval History in French, a revision of the above, I think. Unfortunately, no table of contents. Mysteriouse! Useful to those whose French is tres bon!

History Highway a 21st-Century Guide to Internet Resources. Remote Storage and DMC 4 West D 16.117 .H55 2006

European History Highway, a Guide to Internet Resources, Remote Storage and DMC 4 West D 104 .E87 2002. No specific chapter on medieval history. See chapters on British history, French history, etc.

ORB, Online Reference Book for Medieval Studies. Contains 1) ORB Encyclopedia, a chronological and geographical index of essays, bibliographies, images, documents, links and other resources, 2) ORB Textbook Library of full-length texts in medieval studies for classroom use, 3) ORB Reference Shelf of links to excerpts and full texts from primary and secondary sources in ORB or elsewhere on the internet, 4) Resources for Teaching, such as subject bibliographies, 5) external links to other web sites, 6) resources for non-specialists, 7) E-Texts, new transcriptions and/or translations of important medieval texts that have not previously been accessible in print or electronic format. There are also links to several other principal medieval studies web sites: Labyrinth, Internet Medieval Sourcebook, Netserf, Argos, World Wide Web Virtual Library Medieval.

Internet Medieval Sourcebook.   Extensive collection of medieval texts and excerpts for teaching and student research. Saints' lives, law material, secondary sources, medieval maps, texts in Spanish and French, links to other medieval web sites, a guide to medieval-themed films, and a guide to music from ancient times to Baroque, with recommended recordings.

Labyrinth: Resources for Medieval Studies.  From Georgetown University. Links to: databases, full texts of primary sources, images, bibliographies, catalogues, course materials, discussion lists, organizations, secondary books and articles, and video. Use either keyword searches or a combination of subject category and type of material desired.

Netserf: the Internet Connection for Medieval Resources.  A metasite of 1707 medieval-related links developed by Catholic University of America. Glossary of medieval terms. Simple and advanced searches. Topical arrangement. Sample topics: art, architecture, Arthuriana, civilizations, culture, drama, history, law, literature, music, people, philosophy, religions, science and technology, women. Research Center has links to libraries, museums, archives, bibliographies, organizations, journals.

Guides to the Literature - Language and Literature

Harner, Literary Research Guide, a Guide to Reference Sources for the Study of Literatures in English and Related Topics, Main, PR 83. H3 2008. In the 2002 edition within the chapter on English literature there are sections for Old English literature and Middle English literature. These include references to works on history, short reference works, bibliographies, guides to primary works, guides to criticism, works on the two languages, works on manuscripts, and works on the genres poetry, prose, drama and theater. A very detailed book, with many suggestions for updates and alternatives to literary reference works listed in this research guide.

Bracken, Reference Works in British and American Literature, Remote Storage PR 83 .B74 1998. Alphabetical by author, provides annotated citations to bibliographies on the author, dictionaries, handbooks, and encyclopedias on the author, indexes and concordances, and journals and yearbooks, to the extent that these exist.

Reference Guide to English Literature, Main PR 106 f.S7 1991 v. 1-3. Essay on English literature to 1558. Then arrangement is similar to Bracken, above. Alphabetical by author. Entries have biographical sketches, list of works by the author, bibliography of additional readings on the authors, and a 300-1500 word critical essay on the author's work. V. 3 has individual essays on 600 of the most important English literary works, by title.

DeMiller, Linguistics, a Guide to the Reference Literature, Reference 1 East P 121 .D45 2000. See part 3, Languages, Indo-European, English, pp. 250-267, Classical, pp. 268-269, Romance, pp. 269-285, and Celtic, pp. 286-287.

Levi, Guide to French Literature, Beginnings to 1789, Main PQ 41 f.L48 1994. Arranged by author. Entries provide a biography and discussion of the author's works, concluding with a list of publications, and bibliography on the author. Also some entries for topics.

Bassan, Spinelli, Sullivan, French Language and Literature, an Annotated Bibliography, Main PC 2171 .B3 1989. See especially chapters 14 and 15 on medieval and 16th-century literature, pp. 149-209.

Osburn, Research and Reference Guide to French Studies, Main Z 2175 .A2 O8 1981. See section on medieval period, pp. 48-75. Bibliographic guide, regional studies, language, poetry, romance theater, miscellaneous genres, influences and sources, background, individuals and works.

Beugnot, Manuel Bibliographique des Etudes Litteraires, les Bases de l'Histoire Litteraire, les Voies Nouvelles d'Analyse Critique, Remote Storage Z 6511 .B48 1982.

Ijsewign, Companion to Neo-Latin Studies, Remote Storage PA 8020 .I37 1990 pt. 1-2. Survey and bibliography of Latin-language works written 1300-1900. Country by country history of Neo-Latin literature. Chapters conclude with selective list of bibliographies, general works, cultural and literary histories, studies of genres, anthologies, journals. Indexed by person, place, literary subjects, other subjects, manuscripts.

Medieval Latin, an Introduction and Bibliographical Guide, Main, PA 2802 .M43 1996

Guides to the Literature - Philosophy

Bynagle, Philosophy, a Guide to the Reference Literature, Remote Storage B 72 .B97 1986. Annotates leading reference works in the field, general bibliographies, encyclopedias, dictionaries, indexes to periodical literature, specialized bibliographies on schools, periods, branches, countries, and individual philosophers. Also concordances and indexes to works of individual philosophers.

DeGeorge, Guide to Philosophical Bibliography and Research, Remote Storage Z 7125 .D4. Similar to the above work in purpose. Selectively annotated with many entries per page. For the medieval period see especially pages 19-20 and 32-41.

Guides to the Literature - Religion

Gorman and Gorman, Theological and Religious Reference Materials, Systematic Theology and Church History, Main, Z 7770 .G663 1985. Annotated references to a great many bibliographies and dictionaries and handbooks in church history and on religious orders. Many of the works on church history are already described in this guide, but not the ones on religious orders.

Whitford, ed. Reformation and Early Modern Europe, a Guide to Research, Main BR 305.3 .R42 2008 Bibliographic essays by many scholars. Three parts: Confessional trends (Lutheran, Reformed, Catholic, Radical, Jewish), regional trends (Central Europe, France, Italy, England, The Netherlands, Spain, Swiss), and social/cultural trends (popular religion, witchcraft, society and sexes, art history, books and printing).

Guides to the Literature - Science

Kren, Medieval Science and Technology, a Selected, Annotated Bibliography, Remote Storage Z 7405 .H6 K74 1985. Annotated bibliography of books and articles (mostly) covering general works; research aids; physical science and natural philosophy; philosophy, metaphysics, method, and logic; mathematics; human and veterinary medicine; psychology; natural history; technology; education (schools and universities); and quasiscience (astrology, alchemy, magic, divination). Also some articles cited on manuscripts.

Information Sources in the History of Science and Medicine, Main, Z 6658 .I49 1983. Bibliographical essays by various scholars with extensive bibliographies. Chapters in part I cover various branches of science and relation of the sciences to other disciplines. Chapters in part II covers bibliographical sources, periodical literature and societies, and research methods and sources. Chapters in part III contains "Recent trends in the study of medieval and Renaissance science," among others. Chapters in Part IV cover history of science other parts of the world than Europe, for instance, Islamic science.

Jayawardene, Reference Books for the Historian of Science, a Handlist, Remote Storage Z 7405 .H6 J4. This is a guide to general reference sources which might be useful to scholars in the history of science. These are generally not cited in as great numbers in the more specialized guides in this section here. Annotated, covers a mix of books and articles (more books), on such topics as biography of scientists and historians of science, museums, scientific manuscripts and archives, exhibitions, reference sources in the discipline of history, and general reference works, such as early printed books and national bibliographies.

Sarton, Guide to the History of Science, a First Guide for the Study of the History of Science, with Introductory Essays on Science and Tradition, Remote Storage Q 125 .S24 c. 3. A 1952 work, by on of the greats in this field. Selectively annotated. pp. 137-139 on the middle ages. Also chapters on each scientific field, scientific libraries, congresses, journals, catalogs, indexes, reference books.

Rider, History of Science and Technology, a Select Bibliography for Students, Remote Storage Z 7405 .H6 R5. Very select, only 62 pp. Published 1967. See pp, 40-41 for medieval and Renaissance period, also chapter on various branches of science. Covers books and is selectively annotated.

Guides to the Literature - Women

Medieval Women and the Sources of Medieval History, Main, HQ 1143 .M44 1990. Bibliographic essay format, with chapters by specialists on some very specialized and not so specialized topics, such as: sexual equality in canon law, German source collections in Salzburg, men and women in monasticism, sources on towns in northern Italy, the medieval literature of obstetrics and gynecology, English medieval women and legal history, saints' lives, old Norse sources on women, coinage and women, sources about women in Mediterranean archives, women's history from Anglo-Saxon sources, and women's history from hostile sources (Beguines). Bibliographies conclude chapters.