Reference resources are a great place to begin your research. They can help you define terms as well as to find background information about a topic, a chronicle of its history, theories, key people and sometimes a bibliography of additional sources.
There are many different types of reference sources, which include dictionaries, encyclopedias, thesauri, bibliographies, handbooks, style manuals to name a few.
Consult specialized encyclopedias or dictionaries to get a broad overview of a subject, a concise overview of a concept, school of thought or person. To find encyclopedias or dictionaries on your topic, search Omni using the keywords of your topic combined with "encyclopedia" or "dictionaries".
Brill's Encyclopedia of Hinduism: Fully searchable, the online encyclopedia presents the latest research on all the main aspects of the Hindu traditions.
Abingdon Dictionary of Living Religions
BL31.A24
This dictionary is "intended as a guide to the historical development, beliefs, and observances of religions which are being practiced today. Each major religious tradition has an extensive article devoted to it, and there are briefer articles on more specific topics and aspects of each, including entries for regional developments in religions which have spread to various geographical locations. Signed articles; bibliographies; cross-references."
Anchor Bible Dictionary (REF BS440.A54 1992): This dictionary of about 6200 entries covers proper names, major works, each book of the Bible, Apocryphal texts and the Dead Sea scrolls.
Blackwell Dictionary of Judaica
Blackwell Encyclopedia of Modern Christian Thought
Encyclopaedia Islamica: Abridged and edited translation of one of the most comprehensive sources on Islam and the Muslim world. Publication is a work-in-progress. Full-text (encyclopedia)
Encyclopaedia of Islam, Second Edition: Covers the Islamic World from religion and history to politics and culture. Encompasses old Arabo-Islamic empire, Iran, Central Asia, India, Indonesia, the Ottoman Empire and all modern Islamic states. Full-text (encyclopedia)
Encyclopaedia of Islam, Third Edition: Revised and expanded edition of the encyclopedia, aiming to cover all areas of the world with a Muslim presence. Full-text (encyclopedia)
Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion, Second Edition: This reference work provides a definitive and intellectually rigorous collection of psychological interpretations of the stories, rituals, motifs, symbols, doctrines, dogmas, and experiences of the world's religious and mythological traditions.
Encyclopedia of Sciences and Religions: This encyclopedia is a comprehensive reference work for scholars interested in the topic of 'Science and Religion.' It covers the widest spectrum possible of academic disciplines and religious traditions worldwide, with the intent of laying bare similarities and differences that naturally emerge within and across disciplines and religions today.
Encyclopedia of Women and Religion in North America (REF BL458.E52 2006 (3 vols))
Interdisciplinary Encyclopedia of Religion and Science: This online encyclopedia offers scholarly articles relevant to the contemporary dialogue between religion and science, primarily from a Catholic theological perspective.
Oxford Bibliographies Online in Biblical Studies (See "Afterlife and Immortality" by Stephen L. Cook)
Oxford Bibliographies offers peer-reviewed annotated bibliographies which identify the best available scholarship across a wide variety of subjects.
It covers classic and up-to-date monographs, collections, datasets, articles and web-sites. Each article includes an introduction written by a top scholar in the field.
There are essays on the French Revolution, Industrialization, Russian Revolution, Cold War, Nations and Nationalism to name a few. .