Biographical dictionary
Encyclopedia
Biographical dictionaries – a type of encyclopedic dictionary
limited to biographical information – have been written in many languages. Many attempt to cover the major personalities of a country (with limitations, such as living persons only, in Who's Who
, or deceased people only, in the Dictionary of National Biography
). Others are specialized, in that they cover important names in a subject field, such as architecture or engineering.
The quality of biographical dictionaries varies. Most are long-established and authoritative, but some are simply schemes for flattering biographees into paying for commemorative copies of the publication. Anyone who receives an invitation to be included in a biographical dictionary should check the publication carefully. Warning signs include the offers of high-priced special commemorative editions, and requests for names and addresses of additional possible candidates for inclusion. Appearance in this article is not a guarantee of quality.
from the 9th century onwards. They contain more social data for a large segment of the population than that found in any other pre-industrial society. The earliest biographical dictionaries initially focused on the lives of the prophets of Islam
and the their companions
, with one of the earliest examples being The Book of The Major Classes by Ibn Sa'd al-Baghdadi, and then began documenting the lives of many other historical figures (from rulers to scholars) who lived in the medieval Islamic world.
Encyclopedic dictionary
An encyclopedic dictionary typically includes a large number of short listings, arranged alphabetically, and discussing a wide range of topics. Encyclopedic dictionaries can be general, containing articles on topics in many different fields; or they can specialize in a particular field...
limited to biographical information – have been written in many languages. Many attempt to cover the major personalities of a country (with limitations, such as living persons only, in Who's Who
Marquis Who's Who
Marquis Who's Who, a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc., is the American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies...
, or deceased people only, in the Dictionary of National Biography
Dictionary of National Biography
The Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
). Others are specialized, in that they cover important names in a subject field, such as architecture or engineering.
The quality of biographical dictionaries varies. Most are long-established and authoritative, but some are simply schemes for flattering biographees into paying for commemorative copies of the publication. Anyone who receives an invitation to be included in a biographical dictionary should check the publication carefully. Warning signs include the offers of high-priced special commemorative editions, and requests for names and addresses of additional possible candidates for inclusion. Appearance in this article is not a guarantee of quality.
History
The first biographical dictionaries were written in the Muslim worldMuslim world
The term Muslim world has several meanings. In a religious sense, it refers to those who adhere to the teachings of Islam, referred to as Muslims. In a cultural sense, it refers to Islamic civilization, inclusive of non-Muslims living in that civilization...
from the 9th century onwards. They contain more social data for a large segment of the population than that found in any other pre-industrial society. The earliest biographical dictionaries initially focused on the lives of the prophets of Islam
Prophets of Islam
Muslims identify the Prophets of Islam as those humans chosen by God and given revelation to deliver to mankind. Muslims believe that every prophet was given a belief to worship God and their respective followers believed it as well...
and the their companions
Sahaba
In Islam, the ' were the companions, disciples, scribes and family of the Islamic prophet...
, with one of the earliest examples being The Book of The Major Classes by Ibn Sa'd al-Baghdadi, and then began documenting the lives of many other historical figures (from rulers to scholars) who lived in the medieval Islamic world.
International
- A Biographical Dictionary of Railway EngineersA Biographical Dictionary of Railway EngineersThe book A Biographical Dictionary of Railway Engineers, by John Marshall , summarises the lives of more than 600 engineers from Europe and North America....
- Al-Fihrist al-Nadim
- Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890The Biographical Dictionary of the Extreme Right Since 1890 is a reference book by Philip Rees, on leading people in the various far right movements since 1890....
- Who's Who in the World
- World Biographical Information System OnlineWorld Biographical Information System OnlineThe World Biographical Information System Online is an online subscription database, referencing many different biographical secondary sources....
Australia
- Australian Dictionary of BiographyAustralian Dictionary of BiographyThe Australian Dictionary of Biography is a national, co-operative enterprise, founded and maintained by the Australian National University to produce authoritative biographical articles on eminent people in Australia's history....
- Dictionary of Australian BiographyDictionary of Australian BiographyThe Dictionary of Australian Biography, published in 1949, is a reference work by Percival Serle containing information on notable people associated with Australian history. With approximately a thousand entries, the book took more than twenty years to complete...
- Dictionary of Western AustraliansDictionary of Western AustraliansThe Dictionary of Western Australians and the related Bicentennial Dictionary of Western Australians are two multi-volume biographical dictionaries containing details of European and non-European settlement in Western Australia from the foundation of the Swan River Colony in 1829 until 1888.Writer...
- Dictionary of Australian Artists Online
Canada
- Dictionary of Canadian BiographyDictionary of Canadian BiographyThe Dictionary of Canadian Biography is a dictionary of biographical entries for individuals who have contributed to the history of Canada. The DCB, which was initiated in 1959, is a collaboration between the University of Toronto and Université Laval...
- Canadian Who's Who, published by University of Toronto PressUniversity of Toronto PressUniversity of Toronto Press is Canada's leading scholarly publisher and one of the largest university presses in North America. Founded in 1901, UTP has published over 6,500 books, with well over 3,500 of these still in print....
France
- Nouvelle Biographie GénéraleNouvelle Biographie GénéraleThe Nouvelle Biographie Générale or the New General Biography, was a 46-volume, French-language, biographical reference work, compiled between 1853 and 1866 by Ferdinand Hoefer, French physician and lexicographer....
(1853 to 1866), 42 volumes. - Dictionnaire de biographie des hommes célèbres de l'Alsace (1909–1910).
- Dictionnaire de biographie française (1932).
- Nouveau dictionnaire de biographie alsacienne (1982).
German-speaking Europe
- Allgemeine Deutsche BiographieAllgemeine Deutsche BiographieAllgemeine Deutsche Biographie is one of the most important and most comprehensive biographical reference works in the German language....
(1875) - Neue Deutsche BiographieNeue Deutsche BiographieNeue Deutsche Biographie is a biographical reference work published in German by the Historical Committee at the Bavarian Academy of Sciences and Humanities and printed by Duncker & Humblot in Berlin. It is the successor to the Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie...
(1953) - Biographisch-Bibliographisches KirchenlexikonBiographisch-Bibliographisches KirchenlexikonThe Biographisch-Bibliographisches Kirchenlexikon is a German biographical encyclopedia covering persons related to the history of the Church, founded 1975 by Friedrich Wilhelm Bautz.It features about 20,000 articles, many of them available online....
(1990) - Deutsche Biographische Enzyklopädie (1995)
Great Britain
- A Biographical Dictionary of British coleopterists – online at The Coleopterist
- A Biographical Dictionary of Civil EngineersA Biographical Dictionary of Civil EngineersA Biographical Dictionary of Civil Engineers in Great Britain and Ireland discusses the lives of the people who were concerned with building harbours and lighthouses, undertook fen drainage and improved river navigations, built canals, roads, bridges and early railways, and provided water supply...
- British Biographical IndexBritish Biographical IndexBritish Biographical Index in four vols. Edited by David Bank and Anthony Esposito. London: K.G. Saur. It is the key to the British Biographical Archive. Edited by Laureen Baillie and Paul Sieveking. Munich: K.G. Saur, 1984-. 1236 fiches....
- Chambers Biographical Dictionary
- Concise Dictionary of National Biography
- Dictionary of National BiographyDictionary of National BiographyThe Dictionary of National Biography is a standard work of reference on notable figures from British history, published from 1885...
- Dictionary of Welsh BiographyDictionary of Welsh BiographyThe Dictionary of Welsh Biography is a dictionary of biographies of Welsh men and women who have made a unique contribution to Welsh life over seventeen centuries...
- Oxford Dictionary of National Biography
- Who's WhoWho's Who (UK)Who's Who is an annual British publication of biographies which vary in length of about 30,000 living notable Britons.-History:...
, published by A & C BlackA & C BlackA & C Black is a British book publishing company.The firm was founded in 1807 by Adam and Charles Black in Edinburgh, and moved to the Soho district of London in 1889. In 1851, the firm bought the copyright of Walter Scott's Waverley Novels for £27,000. In 1902 it published P. G... - Who's Who in Catholic Life, published by Gabriel Communications, publishers of The UniverseThe Universe (newspaper)The Universe is a newspaper for Roman Catholics in Britain and Ireland. It was founded on 8th December 1860 and has been in continuous publication since...
and the Catholic Times
Italy
- Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (1925)
- Enciclopedia Biografica Universale
United States
- African American National Biography ProjectAfrican American National Biography ProjectThe African American National Biography Project is a joint project of the W. E. B. Du Bois Institute for African and African American Research and Oxford University Press. Editors are Henry Louis Gates, Jr., and Evelyn Brooks Higginbotham. The object of the project is to publish and maintain a...
- American National BiographyAmerican National BiographyThe American National Biography is a 24 volume biographical encyclopedia set containing approximately 17,400 entries and 20 million words, first published in 1999 by Oxford University Press under the auspices of the American Council of Learned Societies. A 400-entry supplement appeared in 2002...
- Appleton's Cyclopedia of American BiographyAppleton's Cyclopedia of American BiographyAppletons' Cyclopædia of American Biography is a six-volume collection of biographies of famous Americans. It was published between 1887 and 1889 by D. Appleton and Company, New York. The general editors were James Grant Wilson and John Fiske; the managing editor from 1886 to 1888 was Rossiter...
- Biographical Directory of the United States CongressBiographical Directory of the United States CongressThe Biographical Directory of the United States Congress is a biographical dictionary of all present and former members of the United States Congress as well as its predecessor, the Continental Congress...
- Encyclopedia of American BiographyEncyclopedia of American BiographyEncyclopedia of American Biography, a biographical encyclopedia, by John A. Garraty and Jerome L. Sternstein This encyclopedia, published by Harper & Row in 1974, "is more than a storehouse of information....It is also a compendium of informed opinion intended to aid readers who want to know the...
- Who's Who in America, published by Marquis Who's WhoMarquis Who's WhoMarquis Who's Who, a subsidiary of News Communications, Inc., is the American publisher of a number of directories containing short biographies...
- Who’s Who in NebraskaWho’s Who in NebraskaWho's Who in Nebraska, 1940 is a Who's Who book first published by the Nebraska Press Association in Lincoln, Nebraska. According to its "Forward," the publication includes "life sketches of men and women who have achieved distinction in the fields of economic, civic and cultural endeavor" in the...
(1940)