Research Guide — Caribbean and Central America (History 63)
Library Materials Course Related Materials

Reference Sources
Books: LC Class Number Guide
Books: LC Subject Headings
Statistical Sources
New Acquisitions

Research by Subject: History
Practicalities
Blackboard
Electronic Materials Contacts & Connections
Databases & Indexes
Selected Websites
Etexts
News and Alerts
Department Liaison
Bibliographic Instruction
Departmental Home Page

 

Library Materials > Reference Sources
Encyclopedias Bibliographies Citation Manuals

Encyclopedias, Handbooks, and Specialized Dictionaries

Encyclopedia articles, written by subject authorities, provide information useful for gaining a basic understanding of a topic and getting started with a research project. Typically, a bibliography of "classic" books and articles for further research follows each article. Students will find also these encyclopedias useful for brushing up on topics related to their central area of investigation.

"Central America, History of." [Online] Encyclopædia Britannica 2003,  Encyclopædia Britannica Online. <http://search.eb.com/eb/article?eu=118692>. See also "United Provinces of Central America." [Online] <http://search.eb.com/eb/article?eu=76266>. 

The Cambridge Encyclopedia of Latin America and the Caribbean. General editors, Simon Collier, Harold Blakemore, Thomas E. Skidmore. Cambridge [England] ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 1992.

A single volume covering the physical environment, economy, peoples, history, politics and society, and culture. Includes very selective bibliographies and numerous maps.

CALL NUMBER: Ref F 1406 .C36 1992

Latin America and Caribbean Contemporary Record.
New York: Holmes & Meier, 1983-

An annual, one-volume source for current, authoritative information on the region. The first part includes essays, with bibliographies, on current issues. Following sections include a country-by-country review, a collection of documents, and a section containing economic, social, and political data. Each volume also includes a section of abstracts for recently published books on Latin America.

CALL NUMBER: Ref F 1401 .L3476 -- v1-5

Encyclopedia of contemporary Latin American  and Caribbean cultures. Daniel Balderston, Mike Gonzalez and Ana M. López. London ; New York : Routledge, 2000.

CALL NUMBER: Ref F1406 .E515 2000 -- v1-3

Encyclopedia of Latin American history. Michael Rheta Martin and Gabriel H. Lovett.  Indianapolis, Bobbs-Merrill, 1968.

CALL NUMBER: Ref F1408 .M36 1968 

Encyclopedia of Latin American history and culture. Barbara A. Tenenbaum, editor in chief; associate editors, Georgette Magassy Dorn et al. New York: C. Scribner's Sons; London: Simon & Schuster: Prentice Hall International, c1996.

The nearly 5,300 articles in this five-volume set attempt to cover the history and culture of Mexico, Central America and the Caribbean, South America, and the Spanish Borderlands that are now part of the United States "as widely as possible to reflect the way Latin Americans of all classes understand their world." 

CALL NUMBER: Ref F 1406 .E53 1996 -- v1-5

Encyclopedia of Mexico: history, society & culture. Editor, Michael S. Werner; cartographer, Tom Willcockson; indexer, AEIOU, Inc.; commissioning editor, Robert M. Salkin. Chicago: Fitzroy Dearborn Publishers, 1997.

CALL NUMBER: Ref F1210 .E63 1997 -- v1-2

The Latino encyclopedia. Editors, Richard Chabr‡n and Rafael Chabr‡n. New York: Marshall Cavendish, c1996.

CALL NUMBER: Ref E 184 .S75 L357 1996 -- v.1-6

Dictionaries

Levine, Robert M.
Race and ethnic relations in Latin America and the Caribbean: an historical dictionary and bibliography. Metuchen, N.J : Scarecrow Press, 1980.
 

CALL NUMBER: Ref F 1414.2 .B48 1988

Meier, Matt S.
Dictionary of Mexican American history. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1981.
 

CALL NUMBER: Ref E 184 .M5 M453

Nuñez, BenjamÃn, 1912-
Dictionary of Afro-Latin American civilization. Benjamin Nuñez, with the assistance of the African Bibliographic Center. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, c1980.
 

CALL NUMBER: Ref F 1408.3 . N86

Stephens, Thomas M.
Dictionary of Latin American racial and ethnic terminology. Gainesville: University of Florida Press, c1989.
 

CALL NUMBER: Ref GN 564 .L29 S84 1989

Oxford Reference Online: History. [Online] Oxford University Press, 2002. <http://www.oxfordreference.com/views/SUBJECT_SEARCH.html?subject=s11> Accessed January 15, 2003

A searchable and browsable collection of history dictionaries from Oxford University Press including: A Dictionary of World History.

Chronologies

Kanellos, Nicolas
Chronology of Hispanic-American history: from pre-Columbian times to the present.New York : Gale Research, c1995.
 

CALL NUMBER: Ref E 184 .S75 C49 1995

Atlases

Hall, Carolyn.
Historical Atlas of Central America. 
Norman, Okla. : University of Oklahoma Press, c2003.

CALL NUMBER: RefAtlas G1551.S1 H2 2003

Bibliographies

Handbook of Latin American studies. Gainesville: University of Florida Press no. 1- 1935-

Also available online: Handbook of Latin American Studies - HLAS Online

CALL NUMBER: Ref Bibliog Z 1605 .H23

McNeil, Robert A.
Latin American studies: a basic guide to sources. 2nd ed. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1990.

CALL NUMBER: Ref Biblliog F1408 .L324 1990

 

Citation Guides and Style Manuals

Style manuals and citations guides illustrate how to cite book, journal, and other research sources, including materials found in online databases and on the Web according to the conventional format of a particular discipline. Subject-specific citation guides are listed below, and a complete listing appears at Reference Sites: Citation Guides and Style Manuals.

Chicago:  Turabian Style Guide. [ Online ] Available: http://www.lib.usm.edu/~instruct/guides/turabian.html

Online! A Reference Guide to Using Internet Sources. [ Online ] Andrew Harnack and Eugene Kleppinger. http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/online/
Library Materials > Books: LC Class Number Guide
Books in Schaffer Library are arranged by Library of Congress Class number. Class numbers are searchable in the Web Catalog and browsable in the Stacks and Reference Collection. Some examples are listed below:
F 1210
Latin America. Spanish America--Mexico--Social life and customs. Civilization. Intellectual life
F1201-F1392 Latin America. Spanish America-- Mexico
F 1401 - 1419Latin America. Spanish America-- Latin America (General)
F 1421 - F 1577.2Latin America. Spanish America-- Central America (includes by regions, districts)
HC 141 - 148
Economic history and conditions--By region or country--America. Western Hemisphere--Latin America--Central America.
Browse the Shelves by LC Class Number
Library Materials > Books: Selected LC Subject Headings for Caribbean and Central America

Central America -- History
Cristero Rebellion, 1926-1929
Cuba -- Foreign relations -- United States
El Salvador -- Politics and government -- 1979-1992
Mexican War, 1846-1848
Latin America -- History

Statistical Sources

Statistical abstract of Latin America. Prepared by Committee on Latin American Studies, University of California at Los Angeles. Los Angeles: The University, 1956-

CALL NUMBER: Ref HA935 .S790
 

Statistical Universe

CIS® Statistical Universe is the world's most comprehensive access to statistical information from Congressional Information Service, Inc.  The service allows users to search summaries of statistical publications, then link to the full-text of selected publications on Statistical Universe and government Web sites. Includes access to Index to International Statistics (IIS)

Library Materials > New Acquisitions
The New Acquisitions List  (residing on the Library Catalogs page) is generated on the 10th of each month and includes items added to the library's collections for the previous calendar month.
New Acquisitions List (History - America)
 
Course Related Materials > Research by Subject

Find electronic and other information by broad subject area. The Research By Subject pages identify more general "Library Materials" for that subject area (including Reference Sources (in print and online), Books by LC Class Number for browsing the shelves, New Acquisitions in that subject area, Periodical Subscriptions, and Senior Thesis / Senior Project information. There is a listing of "Course-Related Materials" (including Course-specific Research Guides and a Blackboard link), as well as a selection of "Electronic Materials" such as Databases & Indexes, Selected Websites, Alerts for keeping current in the subject area. Finally there is a "Contacts & Connections" component which identifies the Department Liaison, tells how to arrange a Bibliographic Instruction session, and concludes with a link to the Departmental Home Page.  Links to news and current events, government documents, statistical data, and a "Researchers Tool Kit" are also located here.

Research by Subject > History
Course Related Materials > Practicalities

Interlibrary Loan/Document Delivery Follow this link to place an Interlibrary Loan request. There is also a fuller description of the Interlibrary Loan service available.

PLEASE NOTE: You are reminded that it is required to check the Online Catalog (for books) or the two lists of Periodicals Titles  (for journals with articles you need) before ordering on Interlibrary Loan. It will save you considerable time for every reference that you find available here on the shelves or in electronic format.

Direct Access (CDLC) Card
Follow this link (through the Schaffer Library home page) to get further details. The card is obtained at the Circulation Desk.
 

Hours, Directions, and Maps to Local Libraries 
From the above site through the Library's home page, one can conveniently learn the way to travel to nearby libraries, if necessary.

Schaffer Library's hours, procedures, and services 
(and anything else about the Library you need to know...)

Off-campus access
Access to the paid-subscription sources listed is limited to workstations with Union College IP addresses. Therefore, a student wishing to use all the links on this page from off-campus will need to apply at Information Technology Services for an account on the Virtual Private Network.  Such an account enables off-campus users to have full access, even to the paid subscriptions.

Course Related Materials > Blackboard
Faculty using Blackboard are encouraged to incorporate links to Library resources (specifically the Research by Subject pages and the appropriate course-related Research Guides) into the Blackboard course pages. Your Departmental Liaison or Bibliographic Instruction Contacts can assist you.
Electronic Materials > Databases & Indexes
Schaffer Library provides to range of general and subject specific electronic databases. These databases offer full-text access to articles or library holdings information.
Databases & Indexes > History
Electronic Materials > Selected Web Sites for Primary Source Materials

The Avalon Project at Yale Law School: Documents in Law, History & Diplomacy
http://www.yale.edu/lawweb/avalon/avalon.htm
A variety of online documents from the Yale Law School site.

Historical Text Archive
http://historicaltextarchive.com/
The Historical Text Archive (HTA) originated in 1990 as an anonymous FTP site in response to the need of historians to have an electronic storage and retrieval site and to demonstrate the advantages of such sites for the study and teaching of history. " Includes Select Topics, Topical History, and Resources. Searchable index.

The History Index
http://vlib.iue.it/history/index.html
Includes inks to countries and regions as sub-sets of the WWW Virtual Library - History: Central Catalogue. Comprehensive coverage, including Chronological Periods, Historical Topics, and Reference Sources.

Latin American Network Information Center (LANIC)
http://lanic.utexas.edu/index.html
Courtesy of University of Texas at Austin; country index; subject index; news; searchable databases, electronic books, etc.

Political resources on the Net: Central America/Caribbean
http://www.politicalresources.net/c_amer.htm
Links to Central America/Caribbean countries, and related sites, including Parliamentary and Presidential elections in the Americas, InformaciÛn Electoral, Latin American Constitutions, and Political Parties.

Virtual Institute of Caribbean Studies (VICS)
http://pw1.netcom.com/~hhenke/index.htm
" Founded in 1997 by a group of young Caribbeanists, the Virtual Institute of Caribbean Studies (VICS) is an independent, New Jersey (USA) based internet forum which aims to stimulate, coordinate, and disseminate research on various topics relevant to the development of Caribbean peoples at home and abroad.

Yahoo-Social Sciences:Area Studies:Caribbean Studies
http://dir.yahoo.com/Social_Science/Area_Studies/Caribbean_Studies/
Links to Caribbean studies institutes, organizations, journals, and historical texts.

Yahoo-Social Sciences:Area Studies:Latin American Studies
http://www.yahoo.com/Social_Science/Latin_American_Studies/
Institutes, organizations, economic data, journals

Yahoo!-Regional:Regions:Latin America
http:// www.yahoo.com/Regional/Regions/Latin_America/
Links to Central, North & South America, Indices, categorized by subject area, searchable index. Also check out Yahoo!-Regional:Countries

Internet Resources for Latin America
http://lib.nmsu.edu/subject/bord/laguia/
Current Evenets Links; Internet Directories & Indexes; Databases & Other Reference Sources, including, Political Database of the Americas, and Handbook of Latin American Studies; Online News & Academic Information; National & International Organizations; General Interest Resources; Newsgroups & Discussion Lists.
Electronic Materials > Selected Electronic Texts & Journals
In addition to the selected list below, you can also browse two major collections of electronic journals that Schaffer Library subscribes to -  Project Muse and JSTOR.  Both collections are searchable by subject, although the full-text is restricted to Union College Community.
Electronic Materials > News and Alerts
Tools for tracking recently published articles.

Central America Daily
http://www.centralamericadaily.com/
Daily news and current events

Central America newspapers
http://newslink.org/nonuscen.html
Includes economic and political information on Central America. Includes links to free news weekly email updates

Newspapers in Latin America
http://lanic.utexas.edu/la/region/news/
News links from The Latin American Network Information Center (LANIC)

The New York Times: College > Area Studies > Latin American Studies [ Online ] The New York Times. Available: <http://college.nytimes.com/guests/directory/Area_Studies/Latin_American_Studies/> (Accessed January16, 2003)
Provides full text access to recent articles of interest to students and teachers of Latin American studies from The New York Times.

Contacts and Connections
Departmental Liaisons: Tom McFadden & Ellen Fladger
For information on resources, services, collections, and book ordering for your department
Bibliographic Instruction Contact
For information on scheduling course related instruction session or faculty training session
Department Home Page
Blackboard
Created by: Gail Golderman, Electronic Media Librarian, Schaffer Library, Union College
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