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Research Tools for African Studies

Use these research tools to find information related to African Studies from sources such as scholarly articles, books and encyclopedias.

Archival Collections and Primary Sources
Article Databases and Indexes
Atlases, Maps and Gazetteers
Bibliographies and Subject Guides
Biographical Sources
Chronologies
Country Data Sources
Dictionaries, Thesauri and Quotations
Directories
Dissertation and Thesis Sources
Encyclopedias and Almanacs
Government Information Sources
Handbooks, Manuals and Yearbooks
Image and Sound Databases
Library and Book Catalogs
News Databases, Indexes and Web Sites
Organizations
Statistics and Numeric Data
Web Gateways and Search Engines

Archival Collections and Primary Sources

Resources that list, or provide access to, materials typically found in archives and used for primary source research. Examples include manuscripts, diaries, letters, first-hand accounts or documentary sources on a subject, person, event or issue.

  • Online Resources
  • Africa South of the Sahara: Libraries/Archives
  • DISA-Digital Imaging South Africa-Southern African Freedom
    A selection of about forty anti-apartheid periodicals published from 1960 to 1994
  • Print Resources
  • Africana Microform Resources at UC Berkeley (PDF)
  • Guide to African American and African Primary Sources at Harvard University. Barbara A. Burg, Richard Newman, and Elizabeth E. Sandager.
    Phoenix, AZ : Oryx Press, 2000. 217 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 3 .A12 .B87
  • Guide to Non-Federal Archives and Manuscripts in the United States Relating to Africa. Oxford : Hans Zell, 1989. 2 vols.
    Doe Reference CD 3002 .S68
  • The Making of Modern Africa: A Guide to Archives. Chris Cook. New York : Facts on File, 1995. 218 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 20 .A12 .C66 Biographies
  • Guide to Federal Archives Relating to Africa. Researched and compiled by Aloha South. Honolulu, HI: Crossroads Press, 1977. 556 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 1 .A12 .S6 GREF
  • Writings on African Archives. John McIlwaine. London ; New Providence, NJ : Hans Zell Publishers, 1996. 279 pp.
    Doe Reference CD 2301 .A12

Article Databases for African Studies

Listings of articles in journals, magazines, newspapers, etc. Many include abstracts (article summaries). Some include or link to the full text of articles.

Atlases, Maps and Gazetteers

Resources that provide maps or tools you can use to generate maps. Gazetteers are geographical dictionaries, giving information about cities, mountains, rivers, etc.

  • Print Resources
  • Atlas historique de l'Afrique des origines a nos jours. Bernard Lugan. Monaco : Rocher, 2001. 268 pp.
    Doe Reference G 2446 .S1 .L9
  • Cultural Atlas of Africa. Jocelyn Murray. New York : Facts on File, 1981. 240 pp.
    Anthropology Library G 2446 .E1 .C8
    Doe Reference DT 14. M84
  • Historical Atlas of Africa. Edited by J. F. Ade Ajayi and Michael Crowder. Cambridge; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1985. 1 v.
    Doe Reference fG 2446 .S1 .H5 1985 Atlases
    Earth Sciences Library fG 2446 .S1 .H5 1985
    Main Stack Doe Reference fG 2446 .S1 .H5 1985
  • Maps and Mapping of Africa: A Resource Guide. John. London McIlwaine. New Providence, NJ : Hans Zell Publishers, 1997. 391 pp.
    Earth Sciences Library GA 1341 .A12 .M35
  • The New Atlas of African History. G. S. P Freeman-Grenville. New York : Simon & Schuster, c1991. 144 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 17 .F74
    Earth Sciences Library G 2446 .S1 .F73
    Maps from prehistoric times to 1990
  • Place Names of Africa, 1935-1986: A Political Gazetteer. Eugene C. Kirchherr. Metuchen, N.J. : Scarecrow Press, 1987. 136 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 31 .K531 1987

Bibliographies and Subject Guides

Lists of materials in any format (books, articles, videos, web sites, etc.) organized around a common theme or topic. Subcategories as appropriate, i.e., chronological, language, geographic, etc.

  • Print Resources
  • Africa: A Guide to Reference Material. John McIlwaine. London ; New York : Hans Zell Publishers, 1993. 507 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 3 .A12 .M3
  • African Art: A Bibliographic Guide. Janet Stanley. New York : Africana Pub. Co., 1985. 55 pp.
    Doe Reference N 7380 .A12 .S721
  • Africana Reference Works: An Annotated List... Published annually since 1986. In issue no. 2 or 3 of the African Book Publishing Record.
    Doe Reference Z 3503 .A4; Unbound; earlier vols in Main Stacks.
    This title provides yearly updates to the most important bibliographies and other significant Africana reference works, including biographies, directories, encyclopedias, handbooks, etc. It updates the Scheven bibliographies noted below.
  • Bibliographies for African Studies, 1970-1986. Yvette Scheven. London : Hans Zell Publishers, 1988. 615 pp.
    Doe Reference D T3 .A12 .S22
  • Bibliographies for African Studies, 1987-1993. Yvette Scheven. Comp. by Phyllis Bischof, Joseph J. Lauer, Yvette Scheven, and Mette Shayne; edited by Yvette Scheven. London ; New York : Hans Zell Publishers, 1994. 176 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 3 .A12 .S22
  • Female Genital Mutilation : A Guide to Laws and Policies Worldwide. Ed. by Anika Rahman and Nahid Toubia. London ; New York : Zed Books, c2000. 249 pp.
    Doe Reference K 5304 .F46
    Includes bibliographical references (p. 242-244) and index
  • From Conference to Conference : A Bibliography of African Women and Development, 1980-1995. Olufunke A. Oke. Ibadan : Rex Charles Publication, 2001. 395 pp.
    Doe Reference HQ 1240.5 .A35 .A12 .O37
  • A Guide to Original Sources for Precolonial Western Africa Published in European Languages. J. D Fage. Rev. ed. Madison, WI: African Studies Program, University of Wisconsin--Madison, 1994. 200 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 476 .A12 .F34
    Includes bibliographical references and indexes.
  • The Media in Africa and Africa in the Media : An Annotated Bibliography. Gretchen Walsh ; with an introductory essay by Keyan G. Tomaselli. London ; New Providence, NJ : H. Zell Publishers, 1996. 291 pp.
    Doe Reference P 92 .A4 .A12 .W35
  • The Muslim Diaspora : A Comprehensive Reference to the Spread of Islam in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas 1953- . Everett Jenkins Jefferson, N.C. : McFarland, c1999- v.
    Doe Reference BP 50 .J46 1999
    Includes bibliographical references and index.
    Contents: v. 1. 570-1500 -- v. 2. 1500-1799.
  • A New Reader's Guide to African Literature. Hans M. Zell. 2d ed. New York : Africana Pub. Co., 1983. 553 pp.
    Doe Reference PN 849 .A35 .Z44
  • Reference Guide to Africa : A Bibliography of Sources. Alfred Kagan and Yvette Scheven. Lanham, MD : Scarecrow Press, 1999. 262 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 4 .A12 .K24
  • Women and African Development: Bibliographical Essay. Margaret Snyder.
    Choice February 2000: 1037-1051. Emphasizes materials from the 1990s.
    Main Stack Z 1035 .C5; Unbound issues in Periodical Room.
  • World Bibliographical Series: Africa. Santa Barbara, CA ; Oxford : ABC-Clio, 1979-
    An important series that, for many African countries, is a good place to begin research. A standard format includes a historically-based overview essay, followed by topical sections which contain usefully annotated citations. Volumes for more than 45 African countries have been published to date, and are shelved in Doe Reference. To locate a work on a given country, do a Full Feature Search on Pathfinder; e.g., find tp Ghana and se World Bibliographical Series.

Biographical Sources

Information about people, including biographical dictionaries, profiles of people or "Who's Who", personal narratives, and other resources with significant biographical information.

  • Print Resources
  • Africa Confidential Who's Who of Southern Africa. Ed. by Patrick Smith. Oxford ; Malden, MA: Blackwell, 1998. 235 pp.
    Covers Angola, Mozambique, South Africa, Zambia, and Zimbabwe; includes maps.
    Doe Reference DT 1014 .A34 Biographies
  • African Biographical Archive; Archives Biographiques Africaines; Afrikanisches Biographisches Archiv (AfBA). Munich : K.G. Saur Verlag, 1994-
    Doe Reference MICROFICHE 24921
    Biographical information for approximately 75,000 individuals from 231 sources published 1840-1993, in several western languages.
  • African Leaders : Guiding the New Millennium. Alan Rake. Lanham, Md. : Scarecrow Press, 2001. 257 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 18 .R344 Biographies
    Online: http://www.loc.gov./catdir/toc/fy02/2001020210.html
  • An African Biographical Dictionary. Norbert C Brockman. Oxford, Eng. ; Santa Barbara, CA : ABC-Clio, 1994. 440 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 18 .B76 Biographies
  • The Companion to African Literatures. Ed. by Douglas Killam & Ruth Rowe ; consultant editor, Bernth Lindfors ; assoc. eds, Gerald M. Moser, Alain Ricard. Oxford : James Currey ; Bloomington : Indiana University Press, 2000. 322 pp.
    Doe Reference PR 9340 .C65 Biographies
    Main Stack PR 9340 .C65
    A bio-bibiographical dictionary.
  • Dictionary of African Historical Biography. Mark R Lipschutz. 2d ed. Berkeley : University of California Press, 1986. 328 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 352.6 .L561 Biographies
  • Political leaders in Black Africa : A Biographical Dictionary of the Major Politicians since Independence. John A Wiseman. Aldershot, UK : Edward Elgar, 1991. 248 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 352.8. .W57 Biographies
  • Who's Who in Africa : Leaders for the 1990s. Alan Rake. Metuchen, NJ : Scarecrow Press, 1992. 448 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 18 .R35 Biographies

Chronologies

Resources that arrange events in time.

  • Print Resources
  • A Political Chronology of Africa. David Lea. London : Europa, 2001. 499 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 17 .P65
  • Southern African Political History : A Chronology of Key Political Events from Independence to mid-1997. Jacqueline A Kalley. Westport, CT : Greenwood Press, 1999.
    Doe Reference DT 1147 .K35

Country Data Sources

Sources of information about specific countries.

  • Online Resources
  • Library of Congress Country Studies
    A continuing series of books prepared by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress under the Country Studies/Area Handbook Program sponsored by the Department of the Army. This online series contains studies of 100 countries at present. Countries that were previously in multi-country volumes are now available individually. Most volumes are also available in hard copy in Main Stacks.
  • World Factbook
    Fundamental and factual reference material on a country or issue. Includes maps.
  • Print Resources
  • African Statistical Yearbook. Annuaire statistique pour l'Afrique. Addis Ababa. Economic Commission for Africa, United Nations, 1974-
    Doe Reference HA 1995 .U51; Latest year of each region
  • Country Reports on Human Rights Practices : Report Submitted to the Committee on Foreign Affairs, U.S. House of Representatives and Committee on Foreign Relations, U.S. Senate by the Department of State in accordance with sections 116(d) and 502B(b) of the Foreign Assistance 1961, as amended. Washington, D.C., Dept. of State; for sale by the Supt. of Docs., U.S. Govt. Print. Off. 1979- (Annual)
    Doe Reference JC 571 .U48A Govt/Stat; Latest year
  • CountryWatch Forecast Yearbook. Houston, TX : CountryWatch, Inc. 2002- (Annual)
    Doe Reference HC 10 .C668 Govt/Stat; Latest year
  • Demographic Yearbook. Annuaire demographique. Lake Success, N.Y. Dept. of Economic and Social Affairs, Statistical Office, United Nations. 1948-
    Doe Reference JX 1977 .A369 .D4 Gov/Stat; Bound 2001 -
    Main Stack JX 1977 .A369 .D4; Bound 1948 - 2000
    Public Health Library HA 42 .U5; Bound 1948(1) - 1995(47)
  • The Europa world year book. London, England : Europa Publications Limited, 1989-
    Doe Reference AY 754 .E783 Govt/Stat; Latest year
    Online: http://www.europaworld.com/welcome
  • Political Handbook of the World. New York : Published for the Center for Comparative Political Research of the State University of New York at Binghamton and for the Council on Foreign Relations by McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1975- Annual
    Doe Reference JF 37 .P6 ; Latest year
  • Selected Statistics on African Countries = Statistiques choisies sur les pays africains. Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire : African Development Bank, Statistics Division, Strategic Planning and Research Dept., 1998- |Annual)
    Main Stack HA 4671 .S45 Government Reference; Latest year
  • Worldwide Government Directory, with International Organizations. Bethesda, MD. : National Standards Association, 1987-
    Doe Reference JA 1 .L34 ; Latest year
  • Yearbook of the United Nations. Lake Success, N.Y. : Dept. of Public Information, United Nations, 1947-
    Doe Reference JX 1977.A37 U65 Govt/Stat; Latest year

Dictionaries, Thesauri, and Quotations

General and subject specific dictionaries in any language, dual language dictionaries, thesauri, dictionaries of quotations, and acronym lists.

  • Print Resources
  • A Dictionary of African Mythology : The Mythmaker as Storyteller. Harold Scheub. Oxford ; New York : Oxford University Press, 2000. 368 pp.
    Doe Reference BL 2400 .S24
    Includes bibliographical references, pp. 296 -322 and index.
  • Dictionnaire des oeuvres litteraires de langue francaise en Afrique au sud du Sahara . Sous la direction d'Ambroise Kom. Paris : L'Harmattan, 2001.2 v.
    Doe Reference PQ 3980 .A52 .D53
  • Dictionary of Africanisms : Contributions of Sub-Saharan Africa to the English Language. Gerard Dalgish .Westport, CT : Greenwood Press, 1982. 203 pp.
    Doe Reference PE 3401 .D3 Dictionaries
    Main Stack PE 3401 .D3
  • Historical Dictionary of Pre-colonial Africa 1933-. Robert O. Collins. Lanham, MD : Scarecrow Press, c2001. 617 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 17 .C65

Directories

Alphabetical or subject listings containing names, addresses, and identifying data of persons, organizations, publications, web sites, etc.

  • Online Resources
  • Directory of Book Donation Programs
  • Print Resources
  • African Directory : Human Rights Organizations in Sub-Saharan Africa. Ottawa, Canada: Human Rights Internet (HRI); Utrecht, Netherlands: Netherlands Institute of Human Rights (SIM), 1996. 276 pp.
    Doe Reference HN 771 .Z2 .A47 Directories
  • African Publishers Networking Directory. Oxford : 1997 - Serial
    Doe Reference Z 465.5 .A56 Directories; Bound 1997/98
  • The African Publishing Companion : A Resource Guide. Hans M. Zell. Lochcarron : Hans Zell, 2001. 224 pp.
    Doe Reference Z 465 .Z45 Directories
  • Handbook of Regional Organizations in Africa. Fredrik Soderbaum Uppsala : Nordiska Afrikainstitutet, 1996. 161 pp.
    Doe Reference JX 1995 .S631 Directories
  • International directory of African Studies Research = Repertoire international des etudes africaines. Edited by International African Institute; compiled by Philip Baker. London ; New Jersey : H. Zell, 1994. 319 pp. 3rd fully rev. and expanded ed
    Doe Reference DT 19.8 .I58
  • Southern Africa Profiled : Essential Facts on Society, Business, and Politics in Southern Africa. Edited by Barry Turner. New York : St. Martin's Press, 2000. 306 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 1719 .S69 Directories

Dissertation and Thesis Sources

Sources for locating masters theses and doctoral dissertations.

Encyclopedias and Almanacs

General or subject-specific encyclopedias, almanacs, and other collections of factual information.

  • Electronic Resource Finder
  • Print Resources
  • Africana : the Encyclopedia of the African and African American Experience / editors, Kwame Anthony Appiah, Henry Louis Gates, Jr. New York : Basic Civitas Books, 1999. 2095 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 14 .A37435
  • The Arts and Civilization of Black and African Peoples. Edited by Joseph Okpaku, Alfred Opubor, and Benjamin Oloruntimehin. New Rochelle, NY : The Victoria Corp., 1987. 10 vols.
    Doe Reference DT 14 .A781
    History and cultures of Black people throughout the world. Subjects include arts, literature, philosophy, religion, education, science, and technology.
  • The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Africa. Cambridge : Cambridge University Press, 1981. 492 pp.
    Anthropology Reference DT 3 .C35
    Doe Reference DT 3 .C35
    A one-volume guide to history of Africa with contributions by more than one hundred African Studies scholars.
  • Encyclopedia of Africa South of the Sahara. John Middleton, ed. in chief. New York : C. Scribner's Sons, c1997. 4 vols.
    Anthropology Reference DT 351 .E53
    Doe Reference DT 351 .E53
  • The Encyclopedia of African and African-American Religions. Edited by Stephen D. Glazier. New York: Routledge, 2001. 452 pp.
    Doe Reference BL 2462.5 .E53
    145 articles by 72 scholars from 13 nations include bibliographic references. Also includes a more general bibliography, pp. 415-420, maps, illustrations, and index.
  • Encyclopedia of African Literature. Edited by Simon Gikandi. London; New York : Routledge, 2003. 629 pp.
    Doe Reference PL 8010 .E63
    Moffitt Reference PL 8010 .E63
  • Encyclopedia of Precolonial Africa : Archaeology, History, Languages, Cultures, and Environments. Ed. by Joseph O. Vogel. Walnut Creek, Calif. : AltaMira Press, c1997. 605 pp.
    Anthropology Reference DT 2 .E53
    Doe Reference DT 2 .E53
  • Encyclopedia of Twentieth-Century African History. Editor, Paul Tiyambe Zeleza ; deputy editor, Dickson Eyoh. London ; New York : Routledge, 2003. 652 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 29 .E53
    Moffitt Reference DT 29 .E53
  • The World Encyclopedia of Contemporary Theatre. Edited by Don Rubin. London ; New York : Routledge, 1994-1998. v. 3. Africa
    Doe Reference PN 2035 .W67
    Includes bibliographical references and indexes.

Government Information Sources

Listings of publications and other information published by authority of a governmental body, whether federal, state, local, or foreign, and of intergovernmental organizations, such as UNESCO, etc. Many of these sources include the full text of the items.

Handbooks, Manuals and Yearbooks

Collections of information designed to help practitioners in a specific field or profession, or in the case of yearbooks, to provide annually cumulated information in brief descriptive and statistic form.

  • Print Resources
  • African Acronyms and Abbreviations : A Handbook. David E. Hall. London ; New York : Mansell, 1996. 364 p.
    Doe Reference DT 2 .H35 Abbreviations
  • The African Studies Companion : A Guide to Information Sources. Hans M Zell.
    3rd rev.and expanded ed. Lochcarron : H. Zell Publishers, 2003. 545 pp.
    Doe Reference DT 19.8 .Z45
    Online: http://www.africanstudiescompanion.com/
    Covers major reference sources, Africana library collections around the world, core journals and magazines, publishers, dealers, organizations, associations and societies, foundations, awards and prizes. An indispensable resource.
  • Ethnologue: Languages of the World. Dallas, Tex. Summer Institute of Linguistics. 13th ed. 1996.
    Main Stack P 371.E83 : Latest vol. in Doe Reference
    Online: http://www.sil.org/ethnologue/ethnologue.html
    The Ethnologue is a catalogue of more than 6,700 languages spoken in 228 countries. The Ethnologue Name Index lists over 39,000 language names, dialect names, and alternate names. The Ethnologue Language Family Index organizes languages according to language families.
  • The Garland Handbook of African Music. Ed. by Ruth M. Stone. New York : Garland, 2000. 397 pp. + 1 sound disc; digital ; 4 3/4 in..
    Moffitt ML 350 .G54
    Music Library ML 350 .G54
    Includes bibliographical references (p. 365-372), discography (p. 373-376), filmography (p. 377-378), and index. Text was originally published in: The Garland Encyclopedia of World Music, v.1, Africa. 1998.
  • Handbook of Political Science Research on the Middle East and North Africa. Edited by Bernard Reich. Westport, CT : Greenwood Press, 1998. 392 pp.
    Doe Reference JQ 1758 .A58 .H36
  • New African Yearbook. London, England. 1982-
    Doe Reference DT 1 .N48532; Latest vol.; earlier vols. in Main Stack

Image and Sound Databases

Listings of material in audio or video format, photographs, paintings, or other visual materials. Some of these sources include or link to the actual items.

  • Online Resources
  • The African & Asian Visual Artists Archive (AAVAA)
    AAVASA is the most comprehensive slide archive of contemporary visual art by artists of African and Asian descent working in the UK since the post-war period. The archive houses over 6,000 slides of artworks and exhibitions, as well as publications and videos about and by artists. There are over 200 individual artist folders, as well as curators, art historians, cultural critics and arts organization files. It is searchable by keyword, including title, artist, subject, technique, and description and in 1995 AAVAA.relocated to the University of East London where it is based as a Research Center.
  • African Cinema/Theatrical Movies About Africa - Media Resources Center, UC Berkeley
  • African Studies Videos in the Media Resource Center - UC Berkeley
  • National Museum of African Art - Smithsonian
    NMAfA collection embraces the diverse artistic expressions found throughout the African continent from ancient to contemporary times.

Library and Book Catalogs

Listings of books and other items belonging to a particular library or, as with union catalogs, a group of libraries, and usually containing information on the location and subject classification of each item. This category also includes national bibliographies, or lists of all books published in a particular country.

News Databases, Indexes and Web Sites

Listings (may include abstracts or full text) of articles in newspapers, newsmagazines, broadcast news transcripts or wire services. Also includes web sites of these media, or directories of such sites.

  • Electronic Resource Finder
  • Online Resources
  • Africa Forum
    A regular H-Africa column that features essays by, and interviews with, notable Africanists around the world. AFRICA FORUM seeks contributions from veteran and younger Africanist scholars in any field of African studies.
  • AFRINUL
    This union list of African newspapers held by U.S. research libraries (with other regions ot add their titles in the future) is a special project of the Africana Libraries Council and the Cooperative Africana Microform Project.
  • AllAfrica.com
    AllAfrica Global Media is the the largest distributor of African news and information worldwide. Headquartered in Washington, D.C., the company provides access to  over 500 stories daily in English and French, from its own award-winning reporters and from over 90 African news organizations. AllAfrica's web site, allAfrica.com is the leading Africa destination on the Internet, serving a user base, which has this year topped 8 million monthly page views.
  • Breaking News
    Reports of latest news. This site is maintained by Karen Fung, Stanford's Africana curator.
  • Electronic Newspapers of Africa
    This site providing a list of online newspapers is maintained by Columbia University's Africana Librarian Joseph Caruso.

Organizations

Listings of subject-related associations, learned societies, or professional organizations.

Statistics and Numeric Data

Resources that provide tables of numerical information, or listings indicating where such information can be found.

  • Electronic Resource Finder
  • Print Resources
  • Elections in Africa : A Data Handbook. Edited by Dieter Nohlen, Michael Krennerich, and Bernhard Thibaut. Oxford ; New York: Oxford University Press, 1999. 984 pp.
    Doe Reference JQ 1879 .A55 .E44
    Includes bibliographical references; provides detailed statistics for elections in post-independence African countries.
  • International Historical Statistics: Africa, Asia and Oceania, 1750-1993. rev. ed. New York : Stockton Press. 1,113 pp.
    Doe Reference HA 4675 .M55 Govt/Stat

Web Gateways and Search Engines

Broad, subject-related sites and subject-specific search engines available without restriction on the World Wide Web.

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