Databases A-Z

The field of Medieval Studies explores European and Mediterranean civilization from the 4th to the 15th centuries. This period, which has a critical importance for the understanding of Western culture, can best be approached through a combination of several disciplines, from history to literature, from art to archaeology, from religion to gender studies.

The study of military history has evolved into a multidisciplinary effort to go beyond the history of military operations to consider broader political, cultural, and social questions. It spans across several disciplines and genres, including sociology and political science, biography, war and battle narratives, the history of technology, foreign affairs and international relations, and various national histories.

The study of music, “musicology,” is a relatively new discipline in academe, beginning in late nineteenth-century Germany. In the second half of the twentieth century, “ethnomusicology” became a viable academic discipline spawning a scholarly literature for the study of all musics not treated by traditional (“historical”) musicology. Oxford Bibliographies in Music takes a pragmatic approach, based on the past and emerging literature about music: if authors have found something they define as music worthy of serious study, it is music. Oxford Bibliographies in Music combines the best features of a high-level encyclopedia and a traditional bibliography in a style tailored to meet the needs of today’s online researchers.

Philosophy is one of the oldest areas of study with a long history of critical literature, and it remains a highly active field for new research and publishing. The number of books and articles published seems to increase every year.

The period of the Renaissance and Reformation, which spans roughly from the 14th through 17th centuries, is rich in history and culture. The field of Renaissance and Reformation studies, which has a critical importance for the understanding of Western culture, can best be approached through a combination of several disciplines including history, the arts, and literature. As such, it is constantly responding to the emergence of new interpretations and ideas for scholars to consider.

The study of Victorian literature has a rich and well established critical literature and remains a highly active field, and is constantly responding to the regular emergence of new interpretations and theoretical ideas. In addition to this extensive body of scholarship, the study of Victorian literature has been quick to move online. Rather than sifting through these ever-expanding mountains of information, students and researchers alike can rely on Oxford Bibliographies in Victorian Literature to offer a reliable, up-to-date, and authoritative guide to the best literature in the field.

The Oxford Classical Dictionary is a central reference work for basic information about the ancient Greco-Roman world. Covering subjects as diverse as literature, art, philosophy, law, mythology, science, daily life, and broader cultural and historical trends, the Oxford Classical Dictionary is the first place to turn for clear, authoritative information on all aspects of ancient culture.

As well as providing factual information, the Dictionary contains many thematic entries on subjects relevant to the 21st century, this established reference work has been thoroughly updated. It is an essential reference for both scholars and non-specialists with an interest in the classical era.

Oxford Constitutions of the World (OCW) contains fully-translated English-language versions of all the world's constitutions (both national and sub-national), accompanied by individual jurisdictional commentaries, and supplementary materials, including foundation documents, historical versions of constitutions, and amendment Acts/Laws.

56,521 biographies of people who shaped the history of the British Isles and beyond, from the earliest times to the year 2004.

Traces the usage of words through 2.5 million quotations from a wide range of international English language sources.

Home page for Oxford Handbooks Online. OHO subscriptions include selected handbooks on Archaeology, Classical Studies, Economics and Finance, History, International Criminal Law, Literature, Music, Philosophy and Political Science collections.

Oxford Handbooks Online in Archaeology seeks to combine works of original scholarship with authoritative overviews of particular subjects. The combination of printed books through the Handbook series and on-line articles on topical subjects and contentious issues provide both a depth of coverage and more immediate commentary. The resource will provide coverage of all the major geographical areas of the world, countering any tendency towards Euro-American bias, as well as specific topic areas of current and lasting interest, combining also theoretical discussion with empirical content.

The Classical Studies area of OHO offers scholarly coverage of all major fields and sub-fields of contemporary research into Classical and ancient Mediterranean culture. While Greco-Roman language, literature, history, religion and philosophy continue to be dominant areas of scholarly interest which are fully represented, every effort is also made to cover dynamic growth-areas of research, especially in material culture, epigraphy and papyrology, art and architecture, the sciences, engineering and technology, reception studies, and gender studies.

Economics, as a field of study, is diverse in the topics it encompasses and the methods or techniques it uses. It explores decisions and choices under constraints of individuals, groups, firms, governments, or societies. Economics is theoretical and empirical, whether statistical, experimental, or historical. Economics examines and explains trends and patterns of individual and aggregate human behavior and their implications. Articles published online are arranged for easier discovery of content.

The potential range of Oxford Handbooks in History is endless: history is concerned with everything that human beings have done. Thus volumes already published range chronologically from medieval times to the Cold War; regionally from the Americas to China; topically through race, religions, and gender to food; methodologically from oral history to environmental. Newly commissioned essays will appear online as soon as they are ready, often in advance of the volumes of which they will form part. Existing essays will be regularly updated.

In the past twenty years, international criminal law has become one of the main areas of international legal scholarship and practice. This book takes a theoretically informed and refreshingly critical look at the most controversial issues in international criminal law, challenging prevailing practices, orthodoxies, and received wisdoms.

Oxford Handbooks Online in Linguistics brings together the world's leading scholars to write review essays that evaluate the current thinking on a field or topic, and make an original argument about the future direction of the debate. Revolutionary changes to the publishing program means that, for the first time, all Oxford Handbooks in Linguistics are available online as well as in print. Monthly updates introduce articles in advance of print publication and beyond the book, online-only content ensures the most current, authoritative coverage anywhere.

The literature section of OHO will include essays on most aspects of poetry, prose, verse, and drama in English, and will also include work on Film Studies. Its chronological range extends from around 1300 to the present day. Its principal focus is on writing produced in the British Isles and North America, but it will include a growing body of work relating to literature from other English-speaking regions of the world. Essays represent a variety of critical approaches (historical, formalist, theoretical), and seek to combine original scholarship with authoritative introductions to their topic.