Oxford Index Browse

This dictionary features broad-ranging entries on the history and doctrines of the major Buddhist schools, information on the spread of Buddhism in Asia and the West, and coverage of issues of contemporary concern such as human rights, abortion, euthanasia, ‘engaged Buddhism’, and the role of women in Buddhist teachings.

Over 350 entries

This new dictionary provides accessible definitions of the terms that the growing number of students of Sikhism will encounter. It covers beliefs, practices, festivals, sacred sites, and principal languages, as well as the social and religious processes through which Sikhism has evolved. A major focus is the teachings of the founder of Sikhism, Gurū Nānak, and doctrinal developments under subsequent Gurūs. Incorporating the 500-year history of Sikhism, from its birth in northern India to its more recent spread around the world, it covers the interplay between the Sikh tradition and other religious traditions, including Hindu and Sufi. It is an invaluable first reference for students and teachers of Sikhism, religious studies, South Asian studies, philosophy, and the related disciplines of history, sociology, and anthropology, as well as for all practising Sikhs and anyone with an interest in Sikh religion and culture.

The Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture is the most comprehensive reference work in this complex and diverse area of art history. Built on the acclaimed scholarship of the Grove Dictionary of Art, this work offers over 1,600 up-to-date entries on Islamic art and architecture ranging from the Middle East to Central and South Asia, Africa, and Europe and spans over a thousand years of history. Recent changes in Islamic art in areas such as Afghanistan, Iran and Iraq are elucidated here by distinguished scholars. Entries provide in-depth art historical and cultural information about dynasties, art forms, artists, architecture, rulers, monuments, archaeological sites and stylistic developments. In addition, over 500 illustrations of sculpture, mosaic, painting, ceramics, architecture, metalwork and calligraphy illuminate the rich artistic tradition of the Islamic world. With the fundamental understanding that Islamic art is not limited to a particular region, or to a defined period of time, the Grove Encyclopedia of Islamic Art and Architecture offers pathways into Islamic culture through its art.

Covering all the major Hindu practices, festivals, beliefs, gods, sacred sites, languages, and religious texts, this is the most comprehensive Hinduism dictionary of its kind. It contains 2,800 entries on everything from Tantra to temples, from bhakti to Divali , as well as biographical entries for key thinkers, teachers, and scholars. All entries are clear, concise, up to date, and fully cross-referenced.

With its coverage spanning 3,500 years of Hinduism - from the religion's conception to Hinduism in the 21st century - this brand new A-Z also acknowledges the historical interplay between Hindu traditions and others, for example, Buddhist, Jain, Sikh, and Islamic. This dictionary is an invaluable first port of call for students and teachers of Hinduism, theology, Asian studies, or philosophy, as well as the related disciplines of history, sociology, and anthropology. It is also an ideal source of reference for all practicing Hindus and for anyone with an interest in Indian religions and culture.

This highly readable guide to Judaism contains a wealth of information on every aspect of Jewish belief and practice, both ancient and modern. From Maimonides to Methuselah, Kabbalah to Kibbutz, Louis Jacobs provides an invaluable source of information for anyone wanting to learn more about the rich and diverse heritage of the Jewish religion. With all Hebrew terms clearly explained, entries range from personalities in the Bible to present-day Jewish thinkers and writers, and other coverage includes customs, traditions, and Jewish ideas on subjects as diverse as dance, vegetarianism, and eternity. This illuminating and authoritative guide contains a wealth of information on every aspect of Jewish belief and practice, both ancient and modern.

Over 1,900 entries

This dictionary is a fascinating guide to the broad range of terms used in the study of the history of Christian art and architecture, including themes, artists, and movements. The long-awaited new edition includes entries by over a dozen expert contributors, bringing it up to date for the 21st century.

Over 100 entries

This work fills a crucial need in the field of biblical studies by providing detailed, comprehensive treatments of the latest approaches to, and methods for, interpretation of the Bible. Entries are written by expert practitioners and collectively provide a single source for authoritative reference overviews of the scholarship on some of the most important topics in the field of biblical studies. As with all high quality reference works, the Encyclopedia provides a solid foundation that students and scholars can use to orientate themselves before venturing into original research.

The Encyclopedia contains entries ranging in length from 3,000 to 5,000 words. Each entry is signed by the author, contains a bibliography for further reading, and is cross-referenced to other useful points of interest within the Encyclopedia. The Encyclopedia also features a topical outline of contents.

125 scholarly articles

The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther is a collaboration of the leading scholars in the field of Reformation research and the thought, life, and legacy of influence – for good and for ill – of Martin Luther. In 2017 the world marks 500 years since the beginning of the public work of Luther, whose protest against corrupt practices and the way theology was taught captured Europe’s attention from 1517 onward.

Comprising 125 extensive articles, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther examines:

• the contexts that shaped his social and intellectual world, such as previous theological and institutional developments

• the genres in which he worked, including some he essentially created

• the theological and ethical writings that make up the lion’s share of his massive intellectual output

• the complicated and contested history of his reception across the globe and across a span of disciplines

This indispensable work seeks both to answer perennial questions as well as to raise new ones. Intentionally forward-looking in approach, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Martin Luther provides a reliable survey to such issues as, for instance, how did Luther understand God? What did he mean by his notion of “vocation?” How did he make use of, but also transform, medieval thought patterns and traditions? How did Luther and the Reformation re-shape Europe and launch modernity? What were his thoughts about Islam and Judaism, and how did the history of the effects of those writings unfold?

Scholars from a variety of disciplines – economic history, systematic theology, gender and cultural studies, philosophy, and many more – propose an agenda for examining future research questions prompted by the harvest of decades of intense historical scrutiny and theological inquiry.

Over 250 Entries

Based on the highly acclaimed 2009 publication, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World, this work includes complete coverage of Islamic philosophy, sciences, and technologies from the classical through contemporary period. Containing scholarly overviews of the thinkers, movements, instruments, theories, institutions, processes, events, and historical developments related to Islamic classical history and the contemporary quest for knowledge, this encyclopaedia provides scholars and advanced students with in-depth surveys on the most important issues in the study of these topics, serving as the authoritative reference work on this important area of research.

Over 110 scholarly articles

This encyclopedia is a groundbreaking collection of detailed scholarly articles that address a wide range of topics in American religious history and culture, all written by experts in their fields. It is not an amalgam of articles on the traditionally invoked topics that have directed thinking about religion in America. Rather, it is organized in a way that utilizes the most recent categories of scholarly research to identify the crucial themes, events, people, places, and ideas that have constituted the rich history of religion in America. It is arranged in five sections: Space, Religious Ideas, Race and Ethnicity, Public Life, and Empire. In each section, a range of articles address the religious lives of Americans and the institutions, theologies, and social forces that have influenced those lives and given shape to a broad cultural landscape of religion in America.

The articles in each section draw upon scholarship from an assortment of fields. As a result, The Oxford Encyclopedia of Religion in America is fully interdisciplinary in its approach to religion in America. It is informative about cutting-edge debates not only in the fields of religion and history, but in sociology, geography, philosophy, ethnic studies, literature, and a number of other fields as well. The articles are interconnected in various ways. There are common themes as defined by the section headings, such as space, race, and religious ideas. There are also mutually reinforcing articles on specific topics such as a particular denomination, a distinctive intellectual tradition, gender, class, economics, and immigration. The encyclopedia accordingly is best engaged as a tool that can be read both through and across the categories that organize it. It offers multiple insightful takes on a range of topics and represents the history and culture of religion in America in ways that will both resonate with and challenge the perspectives of readers.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Archaeology represents a new way of conceiving of the relationship between archaeology and biblical studies that allows the results of a wide cross-section of excavations and regional studies to contribute to the interpretation of the biblical text through an elucidation of the lifeways of the ancient world.

The connection between archaeology and the Bible was forged by the discoveries of the nineteenth century, and archaeological finds became the primary catalyst for changes in biblical studies throughout the twentieth century. A distinct subfield, "Biblical Archaeology," as conceived by William Albright, arose to cope with the explosion in information recovered from expeditions of importance for biblical studies.

For many years, under Albright's influence, the hybrid field of Biblical Archaeology had a life of its own in the United States and was considered a coherent discipline. But many outside of Albright's sphere were unsure whether this field was a division of biblical studies or part of the broader world of general archaeology and saw these two pursuits in some disciplinary tension. At the same time, biblical scholars grew increasingly skeptical that archaeology could provide context for the specific events of the biblical text. Individual excavations persisted, but work ceased to be framed by research designs derived from the questions of "Biblical Archaeology."

Yet archaeologists of the last twenty years have continued to produce material for biblical studies that is too critical to be ignored: inscriptions such as the Tel Dan stele or Khirbet Qeiyafa ostracon, debates on the chronology and stratigraphy of the 10th century BCE or the stratigraphy of the Shechem temple, and publications such as those of the Jewish Quarter in Jerusalem or Herodian Jericho. Shifts in archaeological theory and biblical scholarship now present new potential for rapprochement between archaeology and the Bible. Recent archaeological work has uncovered the lifeways of the biblical world and begun to suggest how understanding these lifeways transforms the reading of the biblical text.

By going beyond mere architecture and chronology into the social organization of biblical society, the Encyclopedia is an important methodological breakthrough for the study of the Bible and archaeology.

Over 180 entries

This encyclopedia explores the intersection between biblical sources and ethical issues, both historical and modern, through extensive analytical and constructive treatments of a wide range of topics by leading biblical scholars and ethicists. Combining traditional theoretical frameworks, such as comparative religion, with more recent approaches (postmodern, queer and gender theory, etc.), the encyclopedia provides a landmark reference overview of everything from ethics in books of the Bible to modern movements and hot-button issues, such as capital punishment, bioethics, and abortion.

Entries range in length from 1,000 to 7,000 words. With bibliographic references and suggestions for further reading, each entry provides a thorough introduction to the topic that will be of use to scholars and students alike. Given its contemporary resonance and detailed summary of current scholarship, this work offers a comprehensive, interdisciplinary starting point for research.

Over 160 entries

As the first major encyclopedia of its kind, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Gender Studies is the go-to source for scholars and students undertaking original research in the field. Extending the work of nineteenth and twentieth century feminist scholarship and more recent queer studies, the Encyclopedia seeks to advance the scholarly conversation by systematically exploring the ways in which gender is constructed in the diverse texts, cultures, and readers that constitute “the world of the Bible.” With contributions from leading scholars in gender and biblical studies as well as contemporary gender theorists, classicists, archaeologists, and ancient historians, this comprehensive reference work reflects the diverse and interdisciplinary nature of the field and traces both historical and modern conceptions of gender and sexuality in the Bible.

The Encyclopedia contains entries ranging in length from 1,000 to 10,000 words. Each entry includes bibliographic references and suggestions for further reading, and a topical outline of entries aids in research. The Encyclopedia builds upon the pioneering work of biblically focused gender theorists to help guide and encourage further gendered discussions of the Bible.

Over 100 entries

The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Law (OEBL) provides the most up-to-date and extensive treatment of the Bible and law yet attempted, both updating and expanding the scope of previous scholarship in the field. In comprehensive overviews, scholars at the forefront of biblical studies and law address three foci: (1) biblical law itself—its nature, collections, and genres; (2) the ancient contexts of biblical law, throughout the ancient Mediterranean (ancient Near Eastern, Greco-Roman, and Early Jewish); and (3) the afterlife and influence of biblical law in antiquity and in modern jurisprudence around the world. Essays include treatments of the Book of the Covenant, the Ten Commandments, the Sermon on the Mount, Greek Law, and the Laws of Hammurapi, but also testimony and witness, property, ritual, rhetoric, gender, and sexual legislation.

The Encyclopedia contains 130 entries ranging in length from 3,000 to 7,000 words. With bibliographic references and suggestions for further reading, each entry provides a thorough overview of the topic and serves as an entrance point to further original research for both seasoned scholars and beginning students. Given its full-orbed exploration of biblical law and its detailed summary of current scholarship, OEBL is guaranteed to secure a privileged place in the history of biblical and legal scholarship.

Over 160 entries

Exploration of the Bible’s theology is an ever-changing endeavor. While some issues are clearly rooted in the Bible’s historical context like theological perspectives on the creation of the world, covenant, sin, sacrifice and atonement, grace and forgiveness, other issues are rooted in the modern world, where both the secular and religious raise questions biblical authors may not have anticipated. For example, biblical perspectives may critically inform contemporary concerns about market economics, global climate change, wealth and poverty, and gender/race discrimination. The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Bible and Theology situates itself inside this tension, classically defined as the intersection between what the Bible meant and what it means, with the objective of providing a resource for constructive theological reflection in the market place of public discourse.

The field of biblical studies is dynamic, with new discoveries, new methodologies, and new perspectives continually enhancing the interpretation of the Bible. There is thus a need for an up-to-date, comprehensive, authoritative, and balanced series of reference works for biblical scholars and students.

The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Books of the Bible, published as a two-volume print work and made available digitally through Oxford’s Reference Library, is the first in this series of specialized reference works, each addressing a specific subfield within biblical studies. The series aims to produce high-level scholarly reference works that are accessible and in-depth, going beyond the basics to provide more specialized coverage.

Books of the Bible provides a single source for authoritative reference overviews of scholarship on some of the most important topics of study in the field of biblical studies. The Encyclopedia contains almost 120 in-depth entries, ranging in length from 500 to 10,000 words, on each of the canonical books of the Bible, major apocryphal books of the New and Old Testaments, important noncanonical texts, and thematic essays on topics such as canonicity, textual criticism, and translation.

Books of the Bible has extensive cross-references to other useful points of interest within the Encyclopedia, and comprehensive lists of abbreviations. Illustrations of various types supplement the text. Bibliographies for all entries further add to its usefulness.

Publishing in print in February 2009, this encyclopedia presents students, researchers, political analysts, journalists, and common readers with accurate, comprehensive, and balanced scholarship on all aspects of the world's fastest-growing religion and the areas it affects: society, politics, economics, everyday life, culture, and thought. A six-volume print work now conveniently offered digitally, The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Islamic World is a major revision and massive expansion of the 1995 Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World. In addition to covering Islamic societies in the modern world from the eighteenth century to the present, as Modern Islamic World did, it adds a depth of historical background going back to the pre- Islamic era. It also covers the full geographical extent of Islam by focusing not only on the countries in which Islam is dominant, but also on regions in which Muslims live as minorities, such as Europe and the Americas. As with the original Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World, the articles take a broad, comparative, and multidisciplinary approach in dealing with issues that span across a multitude of countries and centuries. And, with nearly 300 images and 40 maps, the Encyclopedia is visually stunning.

Far more than a dry hagiographical account of the lives of saints, this entertaining and authoritative dictionary breathes life into its subjects and is as browsable as it is informative.

First published in 1978, the Oxford Dictionary of Saints offers more than 1,700 fascinating and informative entries covering the lives, cults, and artistic associations of saints from around the world, from the famous to the obscure, the rich to the poor, and the academic to the uneducated. From all walks of life and from all periods of history and from around the world, the wide varieties of personalities and achievements of the canonized are reflected. An updated introduction explains the steps towards becoming a saint, the processes of beatification and canonization.

This revised fifth edition includes appendices containing five maps of pilgrimage sites, a list of saints' patronages and iconographical emblems, and a calendar of principal feasts, as well as a new appendix on pilgrimages.

Abridged from the acclaimed Oxford Dictionary of World Religions, this Concise version is written by an expert team of 80 international and multi-faith contributors. It contains entries on all the major and many minor religions, including Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Jainism, Shinto, Sikhism, and Taoism. Over 500 entries cover movements, sects, and cults, from Cargo Cults and the New Age movement to Rastafarians and Soka Gakkai. Over 1,000 entries explore the sacred writings of religions worldwide, and short biographies of founders, leaders, gurus, philosophers, mystics, and heretics are given. There are details of sacred sites, customs, religious practices, dogmas, beliefs, traditions, festivals and fasts, and artefacts such as altars, rosaries, icons, and torah ornaments. There are also entries on worldwide religious teachings on abortion, animals, birth control, war, homosexuality, and suicide.