Dictionaries, Encyclopedias,

Yearbook, Handbook and

Almanac

Reference Sources

It has come to mean a specific kind of

publication which has been planned and

written to be consulted for items of

information, rather than read throughout.

It contains facts that have been brought

together from many sourced and organized

for which and easy use, either in alphabetical

or chronological arrangement or by use of

detailed indexes and numerous cross

references.

1. Contains needed information (e.g. dictionary,

encyclopedia, handbooks, biographical

dictionaries, atlases and gazetteers)

2. Tell the user where the information can be

found (e.g. indexes and bibliographies)

a reference book on any subject, the items of which

are arranged in alphabetical order: a dictionary of

quotations

a book that lists the words of a language in

alphabetical order and gives their meaning, or that

gives the equivalent words in a different language.

(1225)

“dictionarius”

meaning “a

collection of

words”

Universal Etymological

English Dictionary by

Nathan Bailer (1721)

The first general and

comprehensive

dictionary of the English

language

Samuel Johnson’s

Dictionary of the

English Language

(1755)

“good” words in the

language with their

“proper” meanings

Johnson’s Dictionary

was used in England

and America until

1828

Johnson’s

Dictionary was

superseded by

Noah Webster’s

American

Dictionary of the

English Language

1879

Oxford University

Press and James A.

H. Murray

Oxford English

Dictionary now

Collection of words

Organized

Vocabulary

Glossary

In which each word is treated as to

pronunciation, derivation, usage, meaning

and syllabication.

In addition, the dictionary may give synonyms,

antonyms, illustrative quotations, maps and

plates, biographical facts, and geographical

and historical information.

The word “dictionary” has come to any

alphabetical arrangement of words or topics.

Words were partially explained

(e.g. Thesaurus)

a book that lists words in groups of synonyms

and related concepts.

Peter Mark Roget's Thesaurus of English Words

and Phrases was published in 1852 and was

the first modern thesaurus arranged

conceptually.

List of explanations of technical

words and expressions in some

particular subject or in a book; a

brief dictionary (e.g Glossary)

Desk dictionaries

Unabridged dictionaries

Abridged dictionaries, often

called desk dictionaries, list 150,000

to 250,000 words and concentrate

largely on fairly common words and

meanings

Most scholarly and comprehensive of all

dictionaries

They emphasize the history of words and the

variety of their uses.

Useful when studying a word in depth, reading

or writing about the literature of another

century, or looking for a quotation containing

a particular word.

Uses of Dictionaries

o Increases vocabulary

oMakes more fluent in English or in any

languages

o Familiarize with words

o Increases communication skills

oMore confident in speaking and writing

oA treasury of words and its history

Dictionary EncyclopediaCompilation of words and

their meanings

Collection of information

about various topics

Not concerned that

much with general

knowledge

Concerned with general

knowledge

Has everything to do with

grammar

Nothing to do with words

and their usages/grammar

A book or set of books giving

information on many subjects or on

many aspects of one subject and

typically arranged alphabetically.

Aristotle

produced a

large number of

encyclopedia

treaties.

Historia Naturalis

of Pliny the Elder

The oldest

encyclopedia in

existence

(1630)

The Grand

Dictionnaire of

Loius Mor eri by

Johann Heinrich

Alsted

(1771)

Encyclopedia

Britannica was

first published in

Edinburgh in 3

volumes

Repository of information on all branches

of knowledge

General principles and most essential

details of each esp., on the arts and

sciences

Overview of each subject with definition,

description, explanation, history, current

status, statistics and bibliography

Alphabetical arranged

Has indexes

Academic Research

Personal Research

Professional Research

History

Yearbook Almanac

Publish annually Publish annually

Giving current information and listing events

or aspects of the previous year

Containing information of general interest or

on a sport or pastime

Information about events, and people

connected with the profession

Information would be statistics, historical

events, weather, geographical facts, awards,

astronomy, economic facts, etc

Single volumes which summarize large

amounts of facts

Single volumes which summarize large

amounts of facts

Yearly

Statistical

Chronological

Specific Arrangement

Finding statistics, dates, addresses, formulas

and other sorts of factual information

Getting a broad overview and background

information on a topic

Gaining a clear understanding of a topic, or a

definition of an unfamiliar term

Locating additional resources on a

topic

Learning more detailed information

about a specific person, place, or topic

Obtaining a summary of events and

developments surrounding a topic

Discovering how to complete a task,

solve a problem, or answer a question

Contain an abundance of information related to

one subject

Concise explanatory information on a topic

Facts, formulas, technical information; quick

reference about a broad subject area

A single-volume reference book of compact size thatprovides concise factual information on a specificsubject, organized systematically for quick and easyaccess. Statistical information is often published inhandbook form (example: Statistical Handbook onthe American Family). Some handbooks arepublished serially (CRC Handbook of Chemistry andPhysics).

Handbooks

Not publish annually (depends on the desired

revision)

Containing concise information for a certain

organization and being small enough to be

held in the hand

Bits of information in a particular field or

about a particular technique (laws, rules and

regulations)

Single volumes which summarize large

amounts of facts

Contains technical information

Overview/brief

Obtaining a summary of events and

developments surrounding a topic

Discovering how to complete a task,

solve a problem, or answer a question

Contain one or more lists of resources and materials sharing

some common attribute such as location, publishing date,

subject, etc.

List of works

A branch of library science dealing with the history, physical

description, comparison, and classification of books and ot

her works (dictionary.com)

a. What are the author's qualifications

for the fulfillment of his purpose?

b. What were the sources of his

knowledge?

c. The imprint of the publisher may

indicate the relative worth of a book.

Some publishers has excellent reputations

for issuing reference works, others are

noteworthy for bad titles.

d. Writing styles.

a. Purpose

b. Coverage

c. Recency

d. Special aids to the reader

e. Period Covered (optional)

a. Accuracy

b. Objectivity

c. Style

a. Sequence

b. Indexing

Katz, William A. (1992). Introduction to Reference Work: Basic Information Sources. 6th ed.

New York: McGraw Hill.

Bopp, Richard E., Smith, Linda C. (2011). Reference and Information Services: An

Introduction. 4th ed. California: ABC-CLIO, LLC.

http://www.montgomerycollege.edu/~steuben/dictionaryuse.htm

http://oxforddictionaries.com/definition/english/glossary?q=glossary

http://oxforddictionaries.com

http://www.differencebetween.com/difference-between-encyclopedia-and-vs-dictionary/

http://www.ehow.com/info_8239908_uses-encyclopedia.html

http://oxforddictionaries.com

Ma’am/Sir, is the

meaning of

SUPERCALIFRAGILISTICEX

PICALIDOCIOUS?

Do you have any

book about the

Philippines’ events

last 2013?

Hey, can you help me?

I want to know how

many people are killed in

an automobile accidents

each year?

Don’t mind, I just want to

know.

I want to know other

works related to

Library Designs. Can

you help me?

I’m too old to bring

viscid books but I want

to read something

about Politics. Can you

lend me one?

Martin Luther King, Jr was

died on April 4, 1968,

Memphis, Tennessee, United

States. Where could I find

what event happened

before he died?

Another one, where

does football

originated?