Michigan State University

South Asian Studies Resources

General guide for finding library resources on South Asia

Keyword searches

Use the library's catalog to search for books.

You can use the Basic Keyword Search for simple searches with one keyword.  This is helpful when you want to browse through a large amount of results.

You can use the Advanced Keyword Search for more complicated searches with multiple keywords.  Use one box for each keyword and use the filters below to narrow your search further, if you need to.

Subject searches

You can also perform a Subject Search using subject headings as your search terms.

Subjects in the library catalog use a specific set of terms, or a controlled vocabulary.  The easiest way to figure out what subjects to search for is to find a book that seems relevant to your research and look at the subjects in its catalog record, listed under Subject.  Click on these to see all the books listed under that subject.

Examples:
Feminism -- South Asia
Industrialization -- South Asia
Migrant labor -- South Asia

Finding a book in the library

Use the call number (BL1284.84 .H36 2018 in this example) to find the book.  Clicking Map It! will show you a map of where the book is in the library or you can refer to this chart.  If the book has its status listed as Available, you can find the book in the library yourself.  Feel free to ask at the reference desk if you need any help finding it.

If the book is not listed as Available, or if it is listed as being in MSU Remote Storage, click on the Get it! button to view your options for accessing it.

Catalog record for Women, Religion, and the Body

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Books outside the library