Middle East Studies: Resources at MSU

---

Subject Databases

Index Islamicus
Coverage: 1906-1997; on the Citrix Server
Index Islamicus is the international classified bibliography of publications in European languages on all aspects of Islam and the Muslim world. The publications recorded are journal articles, books and reviews. All essays and papers contained in multi-author volumes are recorded, classified and indexed separately. About 2500 periodicals are surveyed, including general history, social science, history of science and arts titles as well as specialist area- and subject-based ones. Details of articles, and of reviews of relevant books (and occasionally also films and other material) are taken from the periodicals surveyed.
Some relevant articles and reviews published electronically are also recorded. NOTE: This database only covers works published through 1997.

Historical Abstracts
Coverage: 1955-present
Covers books, journal articles and dissertations on history, with decent coverage of political science journals as well. MSU is much more likely to have the journals that are indexed here than in Index Islamicus, but coverage of the Middle East isn't nearly as in depth.

Columbia International Affairs Online
Coverage: 1991-present
Columbia International Affairs Online (CIAO) is a comprehensive source for theory and research in international affairs. It publishes a wide range of scholarship from 1991 on that includes journal article abstracts, books, working papers from university research institutes, occasional papers series from NGOs, foundation-funded research projects, and proceedings from conferences. Much of the available material is full-text. It also contains basic information and maps on each country out of the World Factbook and links to the CIA's Chiefs of State and Cabinet Members of Foreign Governments (which is continuously updated.)

Searching this database is a bit tricky: if using Boolean operators in the simple search, they must appear in caps (e.g. AND, OR).  Limited searching by date is available through the advanced search. Results are always returned by relevance.

International Bibliography of the Social Sciences
Coverage: 1951-present (ERL database)
Compiled by the British Library of Political & Economic Science of the London School of Economics & Political Science, this database contains bibliographic information from an international selection of publications (including over 2600 journals) in the fields of economics, political science, sociology, and anthropology.Records come from more than 100 countries and 70 languages. Most articles and books not in English are provided with an English title translation. This database provides citations of journals, books, book reviews, and chapters when multiple authors have worked on a book.

Citations often have electronic links to journal or publisher websites where the full text of the material may or may not be available.

PAIS International
Coverage: 1972-present (FirstSearch)
Consists of citations and abstracts (beginning in 1985) of articles, books, conference proceedings, government documents, book chapters, and statistical directories about economics, politics, public affairs, etc.  Excellent index to find reports and scholarly research relating to international studies. 

Encyclopedias, Dictionaries and Atlases

Encyclopaedia of Islam
On the Citrix server.
This is the electronic version of the enormous Encyclopaedia of Islam (DS37.E5, Reference, Consulting Reference.) It is very broad in coverage and scope, and is best for the advanced researcher. Entries tend to be on historical personages and language, but articles on key cities and persons in the historical Islamic world, or which were important to Islamic culture and development, can be found here.

For the one-volume, concise version of this encyclopedia, see the Islamic Desk Reference DS35.53 I83, Reference. This is most suitable for looking up names of people and places in the Middle East.

Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East
DS 43. E53 1996 4 volumes. Reference
This Encyclopedia has short entries on a wide variety of topics, signed by authors. Some entries include suggested bibliographies. Includes an enormous index and genealogies of royal families for most of the Middle East. It does not include the former Soviet republics of Central Asia or the Caucasus, but it does include North Africa.

Middle East and North Africa
2002 DS41 .M5 Reference
A Europa regional series volume. Similar to the Europa World Yearbook in scope, but goes into more depth for each country. Excellent general overviews of critical regional topics such as "Oil in the Middle East and North Africa," "Documents on Palestine," and "Arab-Israeli Relations."

The Muslim Almanac
BP40.M83 1996 Reference
Excellent source of general information and background on topics related to the study of Islam--geared toward the non-expert reader. This is a good place to start for someone who is exploring concepts in Islam--for example, what is the difference between Sunni and Shia muslims, what is Sufism, etc. Covers the history of the religion, biographical information on major figures, and discusses Islam and its practice in many areas of the world.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World.
DS35.53O95 1995 Reference
Long articles covering basic through advanced topics suitable for most college students. Entries have good bibliographies and are signed by experts in the field. A very good index concludes volume 4.

New Encyclopedia of Islam
BP40.G42 Reference
Very short entries without much context--good for identifying people, places and events, but not so good for getting a grasp of concepts. Better for more advanced students.

Encyclopedia of the Holy Quran
BP133.E63 Reference
This encyclopedia covers over 300 'themes' and how they are addressed in the Quran. This is a source to use if one wants to see how the Quran looks at women, the law, or even Jesus. It attempts to be interpretive by quoting the Quran extensively, but it is not particularly easy to read or understand. Does point out areas of the Quran that are cause for debate among scholars. A better source for these kinds of questions might be to search MAGIC for "koran and women" or "koran and Jesus," etc.

Link to Online Resources for Central Asian/Middle East Studies.