The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions

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The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions

• Arlene Anderson
• Reference Book Analysis
• LIBR 150, Winter 2005
• Week Three 200s

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• Call Number
• R
• 200.3
• OXFORD NUC Wa/S
• 1997
• Bibliographic Citation
• The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions /
  John Bowker, ed. New York Oxford
  University Press, C1997.
• xxiv, 111 p. 24 cm. ISBN
  0192139657

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• Arrangement
• The overall arrangement is brief and extensive
  all contained in a single volume.
• It is an exceptionally wide-ranging A-Z
  reference guide to the history, beliefs, dogmas,
  practices, individuals, customs, and artifacts of
  the worlds religions past and present. The book
  contains nearly 13,000 entries.

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• Arrangement (contd)
• All of the broad terms, for example, death,
  angels and sin are broken down into sections for
  each of the major religions, then the major
  religions themselves are broken down
  historically.
• There is a detailed system of cross-references
  and the majority of the terms have suggestions
  for further reading and research. A Topic Index,
  as well as, an Index of Chinese Headwords can be
  found after the body of the text.

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• Indexing
• A 13,000 item topical index directs readers to
  entry headings on broad subject areas, as well
  as, subjects that might not have their own
  entries, for example, breathing, death, heavens,
  paradise, mandala, mantra and yantra.
• Terms in a language with non-roman alphabets are
  transliterated (spelled in another alphabet.)
  There is a special index of Chinese headwords
  with a Wade-Giles/Pinyin conversion table.

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• Scope
• An authoritative team of consultant editors and
  over 80 contributors from around the world and
  across the religious spectrum present all aspects
  of religion in an impartial and accessible way.

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• Scope (contd)
• The Oxford Dictionary of World Religions is the
  most wide-ranging A-Z reference guide to all
  aspects of the worlds religions past and present
  that exists. Whether the reader seeks quick,
  accessible answers from the short entries or more
  detailed discussion from the longer articles, it
  offers a wealth of unrivalled and unbiased
  authoritative detail. Included is an interesting
  preface, a total of over 8,200 entries, and
  indexes, as well as, an original and in-depth
  introductory essay.

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• Most of the text in this volume is written in
  English.
• This title is housed at the Seattle Public
  Library, Northeast Branch.

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• Currency
• The dictionary explains religious terms in an
  up-to-date, clear and concise way. It provides
  an important guide to religions of both past and
  contemporary times with the exception of the
  extinct religions of ancient Greece and Rome.

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• Intended Purpose
• The intended purpose of this one volume desktop
  resource is to be used as a ready reference tool.
• Learning about the worlds spiritual traditions
  can be a challenge and this title is an excellent
  place to start.
• It is recommended for high school, public and
  academic libraries.
• - Booklist

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• Religion is an integral part of every culture on
  earth. With the rise of the global village, the
  great influx of immigrants into the United States
  from Asia and the Middle East, and the growth of
  the ecumenical spirit in the in the last several
  decades. Americans are becoming more and more
  curious about the various religions of the world,
  including the
• major belief systems of Buddhism, Confucianism,
  Hinduism and Islam.
• - Library Journal

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• Physical Format
• Found in book form only.

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• Special features
• Religions are expressed as much in pictures and
  signs as they are in wordit was out of the
  question to do justice to these areas in a single
  volume.
• - John Bowker
• In 1997 Bowker completed World Religions a
  companion to the dictionary work.

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• Authority of issuing body
• John Bowker, General Editor and contributor,
  Gresham Professor, London and Adjunct Professor
  at the University of Pennsylvania (formerly
  professor of religion at the University of
  Lancaster and Fellow of Trinity college,
  University of Cambridge) is a highly regarded
  authority on religious studies and a well know
  broadcaster of BBC Radio and World Service.

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• He has many books on the subject
• Is god a Virus?
• Genes, Culture and Religion
• Problems of Suffering in the Religions of the
  World
• Voices of Islam
• The Meaning of Death which received the Harper
  Collins Religious Book Award in 1993.

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• Personal impression
• One of the most interesting books that I have
  yet discovered.
• What impressed me was the introductory essay by
  the editor on the Meaning of Religion, along with
  all the contributors and consultant editors and,
  last but not least, is John Bowkers authority
  over the subject.

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• Questions this book would answer
• Provides a quick reference, for a question about
  religion, also might include references at the
  end of the entry, for further inquiry.
• I found a group listed that I used to chant with
  in San Francisco called Soka Gakkai. I know more
  about that group after reading the entry than I
  did when I practiced with them. Had I known all
  this book entry information before I joined them
  I probably would not have joined.

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• Google search produced
• search term used
• Dictionary of world religions
• produced amazon.com Books The Oxford
  Dictionary of World Religions.
• search term used
• religions of the world
• produced Beliefs and history of the worlds
  most know religions.
• Religion BBC World Service.
• Major religions ranked by size.
• I could not do better in book format.