Collins Memorial Library: PHIL 210: Ancient Philosophy: Getting Started

Getting Started with Subject Encyclopedias

Subject encyclopedias, handbooks and overviews are scholarly, tertiary works written by experts on a variety of topics. The articles are typically longer and more detailed than those found in general encyclopedias. These resources can help you with:

Understanding the scope of a topic
Suggesting ideas for narrowing a topic
Identifying key concepts, terms, dates and names
Listing subject areas related to a topic
Recommending sources for further exploration

"Hypatia (1900 Play)" By Hulton Archive/Getty Images, Public Domain

In Collins Library, the print reference collection is located on the first floor, and most of the online reference collection is available in one of the database collections listed below. Use Primo to identify subject encyclopedias in either format; or ask a librarian for recommendations.

Gale eBooks
Provides full text access to over 100 subject encyclopedias in the humanities, sciences, business, and social sciences.
Oxford Reference
Provides full text access to hundreds of Oxford reference titles, including dictionaries, encyclopedias, and handbooks.
SAGE Knowledge
Provides full-text access to dozens of Sage reference books, with a strong emphasis on the social sciences.

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

The Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy is a dynamic, online scholarly encyclopedia in which entries are kept up to date by an expert or groups of experts in the field.

Featured Tertiary Sources

A Companion to Women in the Ancient World by Sharon L. James (Editor); Sheila Dillon (Editor)
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access
ISBN: 9781444354805
Publication Date: 2012
Presents an interdisciplinary, methodologically-based collection of newly-commissioned essays from prominent scholars on the study of women in the ancient world.
The Oxford Encyclopedia of Ancient Greece and Rome by Michael Gagarin (Editor)
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access
ISBN: 9780195170726
Publication Date: 2010
This digital version of the multi-volume reference work is a comprehensive overview of the major cultures of the classical Mediterranean world--Greek, Hellenistic, and Roman--from the Bronze Age to the fifth century CE. It also covers the legacy of the classical world and its interpretation and influence in subsequent centuries.
The Encyclopedia of Ancient History by Roger S. Bagnall (Editor)
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access
Publication Date: 2012
The Encyclopedia of Ancient History is the definitive reference work for the study of the ancient world. Spans the late Bronze Age through the seventh century CE Covers the entire ancient Mediterranean world including the Near East and Egypt Is extensively illustrated with hundreds of photographs, figures, and maps
The Oxford Classical Dictionary by Simon Hornblower (Editor); Antony Spawforth (Editor)
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access
ISBN: 019866172X
Publication Date: 2012
For almost half a century, the Oxford Classical Dictionary has been the unrivaled one-volume reference work on the Greco-Roman world. Whether one is interested in literature or art, philosophy or law, mythology or science, intimate details of daily life or broad cultural and historical trends, the OCD is the first place to turn for clear, authoritative information on all aspects of ancient culture.
The Oxford Dictionary of Philosophy by Simon Blackburn
Call Number: Click on the title above for online access
ISBN: 9780198735304
Publication Date: 2016
Ranging from Aristotle to Zen, this encyclopedia contains three thousand plus entries covering the entire span of philosophy, from the Vedas (written over three thousand years ago) to the most recent technical terminology, with ample coverage of important themes from Chinese, Indian, Islamic, and Jewish philosophy. Here are all the terms one would expect to find in a comprehensive dictionary of philosophy--idealism and empiricism, ethics and aesthetics, Epicureanism and Stoicism, existentialism and logical positivism, and much more.

Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy
The largest and most comprehensive resource available for those involved in the study of philosophy. It is a trusted source of quality information, providing access to over 2,700 articles that have been edited for level and consistency by a team of renowned subject experts. It covers: Anglo-American metaphysical, epistemological and logical questions; ethics, political philosophy and the history of philosophy; and the philosophy of other cultures.

Print Sources:

Women Philosophers: a bio-critical source book by Ethel M. Kersey; Calvin O. Schrag (Contribution by)
Call Number: B105.W6 K47 1989 Print Books
ISBN: 9780313257209
Publication Date: 1989
This work developed from Kersey's discovery that there existed no biographical dictionaries of women philosophers, and few references to women in textbooks on the history of philosophy. Intended to fill that void, this source book covers more than 170 women born before 1920 who wrote about or pondered questions of Western intellectual life.
Brill's New Pauly: Encyclopaedia of the Ancient World (Antiquity) by Hubert Cancik (Editor); Helmut Schneider (Editor); Manfred Landfester (Editor); Christine F. Salazar (Editor)
Call Number: DE5 .N4813 Reference vols. 1-15
ISBN: 9789004122598
Publication Date: 2002-2011
The fifteen volumes in this encyclopedia are devoted to Greco-Roman antiquity and covers two thousand years of history, ranging from the second millennium BC to early medieval Europe.
The Cambridge Ancient History by Alan K. Bowman (Editor); Peter Garnsey (Editor); Dominic Rathbone (Editor)
Call Number: D57 .C252 (located on second floor of the library)
ISBN: 9780521263351
Publication Date: 2000
Multi-volume history of the ancient world.

Collins Memorial Library

PHIL 210: Ancient Philosophy

Humanities & Interdisciplinary Studies Librarian

Related Subject Guides

Getting Started with Subject Encyclopedias

Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy

Featured Tertiary Sources