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International Relations - Research Guide

This guide covers both general resources in International Relations and the major sources for regional information. Those interested in researching the historical context of individual regions and countries may find appropriate bibliographies through the Van Pelt Reference desk or through Van Pelt web sites. In addition, there are special bibliographies for the publications of such organizations as the European Community and the United Nations.

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Table of Contents

1) YEARBOOKS, FACTBOOKS, AND STATISTICS

1a. Factbooks and Yearbooks

1b. Statistical Sources

General

Regional

2)ENCYCLOPEDIAS AND DICTIONARIES

3) FINDING BOOKS AND ARTICLES

3a. FRANKLIN

3b. Indexes and Abstracts

General

Regional

4) GENERAL RETROSPECTIVE BIBLIOGRAPHIES

General

Regional

5) GUIDES TO THE LITERATURE

General

Regional

6) CURRENT NEWS, NEWS INDEXES & SUMMARIES

General

Regional

7) FOREIGN POLICY DOCUMENTS

United States

Foreign

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1. YEARBOOKS, FACTBOOKS, AND STATISTICS

1a. Factbooks and Yearbooks

Internet Sites. There is a wide variety of international information available on the Internet, including the full text publications of think tanks and research centers and the official documents of governments and international agencies. Yet, there are few web sites that gather as much factual information as the printed sources below (some of which, in fact, have electronic equivalents). Very basic information about the countries of the world, however, can be found on various sites, including Country Reports.org and Countries of the World among others. Use the E-Resources link on the library homepage to find Search Engines & Portals listed under International Relations.

The Europa World Year Book. 1959- . London: Europa. Annual.

Summary articles on trends and developments in individual countries. Statistical and directory information. Includes comparable data for all countries of the globe as in the regional volumes listed below. It contains less text than the regional volumes and lacks some directory information. In terms of statistical data, however, it is virtually identical.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk JN 1 E85]

The regional volumes include:

Africa South of the Sahara. 1971- . London: Europa Pubs Ltd. Annual.

See item above.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk DT 1 A219]

Far East and Australasia: A Survey and Directory of Asia and the Pacific. London: Europa Pubs Ltd, 1974- . Biennial.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk DS 502 F37]

Middle East and North Africa. 1964- . London: Europa Pubs. Ltd. Annual.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk DS 49 M5]

South America, Central America and the Caribbean. 1986- . London: Europa. Biennial.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk F 1406.5 S687]

The USA and Canada. 1990- . London : Europa Publications.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk E 31 U873]

Political Handbook of the World. 1927- . NY: McGraw Hill. Annual.

Published for the Council on Foreign Relations. World and regional issue review articles. Country articles, emphasizing government, politics, parties, media. Few statistics. International organizations.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk JF 37 P6]

International Year Book and Statesmen's Who's Who. 1953- . London: Burke's. Annual.

International organizations; country by country survey, includes government and constitution, officials, industry, economy, population, currency, finance, banks, media, and education. Biographies of government leaders.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk JA 51 I57]

The World Factbook. 1981- . Washington: Central Intelligence Agency. Annual.

Country by country data covers geography, economy, government, people, communications and defense. [Latest at VP Ref Desk, Annenberg Reference and Lippincott Ref G 122 U56a]

Britannica Book of the Year. 1938- . Chicago: Encyclopaedia Britannica. Annual.

An excellent source for each year's news events. There are narrative summaries of world affairs by region and nation. In addition, it provides country by country data and comparative statistics.

[Latest 10 years in VP Ref AE 5 E364] The online equivalent is the Year in Review Browse, which is part of the Encyclopaedia Britannica. It goes back to 1993.

Library of Congress Country Studies. Area Handbook Series.

This series of country studies, originally titled according to the pattern: Area Handbook for ......., and now ........, A Country Study, can be found in Franklin, Penn's online catalog, with a title search "t=area handbook series," or, for older editions, "t=area handbook for." The most recent editions are in the VP Reference collection. Each work, by a multidisciplinary team of social scientists, analyzes the economic, security, political, and social systems and institutions of a particular country, including traditional values, attitudes, and beliefs. These far exceed the description of factbooks, but they are among the first places to consult upon starting research into a particular country. They were published by the Federal Research Division of the Library of Congress and sponsored by the Department of the Army. There are over 100 countries included. The most notable exclusions are France, the United Kingdom, Canada, and the United States itself..

Country Reports and Country Profiles. 1988-1999 . London: Economist Intelligence Unit.

For each country there was issued a quarterly Report and an annual Profile, providing current information on the political and economic situation of every country. To identify specific reports or profiles, and Lippincott holdings, search FRANKLIN with a search in the form "tkey greece AND tkey "country profile." The current online version(s) is extensive. There are a number of web resources listed under EIU, but most relevant for basic country data is EIU CountryData

OECD Economic Surveys. Paris: Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development. Annual.

These surveys of individual OECD member countries generally appear annually, and for most countries publication began in the 1960s. Surveys now include some non-member countries as well. Countries surveyed include Australia, Austria, Belgium and Luxembourg, Brazil, Canada, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Mexico, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, the United Kingdom, the United States, and Yugoslavia.

[Individual call numbers in Lippincott] The surveys and other OECD publications and statistics are available in SourceOECD

U.S. Dept. of State. Background Notes.

Official Dept. of State publications on the countries of the world. They include recent history, government, political conditions, foreign relations, economy, principal officials, and are updated periodically. The online version is a continuation of the looseleaf series.

[URL: http://www.state.gov/r/pa/bgn/ ]

Kurian, George Thomas. Encyclopedia of the Third World. 4th ed. New York: Facts on File, 1992. 3 v. (lv, 2363 p.)

[VP Ref HC 59.7 K87 1992]

Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. SIPRI Yearbook: World Armaments and Disarmament. 1969- . New York. Annual.

Describes quantitative and qualitative changes in the world's military arsenals.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk UA 10 I55]

London. Institute for Strategic Studies. Strategic Survey. 1966- . Annual.

Description and analyses of diplomatic and strategic situations. Chronologies, tables, statistics. Complementary to Military Balance.

[Van Pelt U 162 S77]

London. Institute for Strategic Studies. The Military Balance. 1971/72- . Annual.

Description of major current defense agreements and country by country survey of military force, expenditures, and armaments.

[Latest at VP Ref UA 15 L65]

U.S. Arms Control and Disarmament Agency. Bureau of Economic Affairs. World Wide Military Expenditures and Arms Transfers. 1974- . Washington. Annual.

Government expenditures on military and other public functions related to population and production. Classified by country.

[Latest in VP Ref UA 17 W677]

1b. Statistical Sources

Internet Sites. Much data heretofore published by individual countries and international organizations also appears in electronic form via the internet. There are a number of portals that provide access to statistics, as well as to other kinds of information:

[URL: http://www.gksoft.com/govt/en/]

General

IIS: Index to International Statistics. Washington, D.C.: Congressional Information Service, 1983- . Monthly Abstract and Index issues, with quarterly and annual cumulations.

IIS indexes and abstracts all types of statistical publications of international and intergovernmental organizations, including the UN, OAS, OECD, NATO, EC, EFTA, Nordic Council, IBRD, etc. It provides indexing in-depth by subjects, names and geographic areas, by categories such as "by country," "by industry," and by issuing sources, titles, and document or publication number. The Van Pelt holdings of IIS cease with 1999, but the file is included and updated in Statistical Universe [URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/7045] which also includes American Statistics Index

(ASI) and Statistical Reference Index (SRI).

[Storage HA155 .I53]

United Nations. Statistical Office. Statistical Yearbook. 1948- . Annual.

This provides mainly economic data.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk HA 12.5 U63; also at Lippincott]

United Nations. Demographic Yearbook. 1948- . Annual.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk HA 17 D45; also at Lippincott and Biomedical libraries]

United Nations. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. Statistical Yearbook. 1963- . Annual.

Provides country by country data on education, literacy, communications (e.g., number of radios), etc.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk AZ 361 J45]

Yearbook of Labour Statistics. 1936- . Geneva: International Labour Office. Annual.

The best source for national figures on unemployment, percentage of the total population and of women in the work force of individual countries, salaries, strikes, occupational injuries, etc.

[Latest in VP Ref HD 4826 I63]

World Bank. World Tables. 1976- . Baltimore. Annual.

Issued on an annual basis since 1988, this is an excellent current source for economic and financial data.

[Latest at VP Ref Desk HC 59 W669]

The Economist Book of Vital World Statistics. New York: Times Books/Random House, 1990.

An easy-to-use source because of its tables of comparative data on demography, economics, social indicators, the environment, and other topics.

[VP Ref Desk HC 59 W634 1990]

Regional Sources

European Directory of Non-Official Statistical Sources. London : Euromonitor Publications; Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1988- .

[Latest at Reference Desk Lippincott HA 37 E914]

Yearbook of Nordic Statistics. Stockholm: Nordic Council, 1964-. Annual.

Data about the five Nordic countries arranged with a view to facilitate comparisons between the countries. Introduction, table names and subject index are in English.

[Latest in Ref HA 1465 Y327]

Statistical Abstract of Latin America. Los Angeles: UCLA Latin American Center Publications, 1955- . Annual.

[Latest in Ref HA 935 S8]

United Nations. Economic and Social Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean. Statistical Yearbook for Latin America and the Caribbean. 1973- . Santiago. Annual.

Includes statistics from national sources for a wide variety of subjects. Arranged alphabetically by country. A related ECLA publication is Economic Survey of Latin America and the Caribbean at [VP Ref HC 161 U525 and Lippincott].

[Latest in VP Ref HA 755 A68 and Lipp]

United Nations. Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Statistical Yearbook for Asia and the Pacific. 1968- . Bangkok. Annual.

Similar to the ECLA Latin America publication above. There is a separate section of summary tables for each country called "Statistical Indicators." Also, as in the case of the ECLA publication, there is an Economic and Social Survey of Asia and the Pacific, latest in [Lippincott and VP Ref HC 411 U4 A23]

[Latest in VP Ref HA 1665 U55 and Lipp]

Most countries publish annual statistical abstracts which usually include figures on that country's economy, demographics, and social situation. These publications can be found by checking Franklin for a subject entry such as "FRANCE STATISTICS," or by looking at the author entry for the country's statistical office, e.g., "France. Institut National de la Statistique et des etudes economiques." Some statistical abstracts have list of contents, table names and subject index in English. In addition, the European Community's statistical office, Eurostat, publishes a wide variety of publications detailing data about the EC and its member states. For more information, one should consult the Special Bibliography for European Community Publications.

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2. ENCYCLOPEDIAS AND DICTIONARIES

Evans, Graham, and Jeffrey Newnham. The Dictionary of World Politics: A Reference Guide to Concepts, Ideas and Institutions, 1991.

Contains short essays on key concepts and institutions in world politics.

[VP Ref JA 61 E85 1991]

Krieger, Joel, ed., et al. The Oxford Companion to Politics of the World. New York: Oxford University Press, 1993. 1056 p.

An ambitious work that covers not only concepts, issues, and biographies, but also short foreign policy histories of individual countries. Each article is signed.

[VP Ref JA 61 O95 2001]

O'Loughlin, John, ed. Dictionary of Geopolitics. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 1994. 284 p.

[VP Ref JC 319 D495 1994]

Clio Dictionaries in Political Science.

A title search of this series in Franklin will yield 19 entries (as of May 1999). Most are relevant to the study of international relations and some are regional in nature. Here are a few titles in the series:

Elliot, Jeffrey M., and Robert Reginald. The Arms Control, Disarmament, and Military Security Dictionary. 1989.

[VP Ref JX 1974 E55 1989]

Phillips, Claude S. The African Political Dictionary. 1984.

[VP Ref DT 30.5 P47 1983]

Ziring, Lawrence, Jack C. Plano, and Roy Olton. International Relations : A Political Dictionary. 5th ed. Santa Barbara, CA : ABC-CLIO, 1995. 458 p.

[VP Ref JX 1226 P55 1995]

Ali, Sheikh Rustum. The Peace and Nuclear War Dictionary. 1989.

[VP Ref U263 A434 1989]

Day, Alan J., ed. Political Parties of the World. 3rd ed. Chicago: St. James, 1988. 776 p.

Arranged in alphabetical order by name of country. For each country, information about form of government, political status, recent elections. For each functioning party, information about history, structure, leaders, addresses, etc. A special section lists international party groupings. Indexes by names of individuals and by political parties.

[VP Ref JF 2051 D39 1996]

Cook, Chris, and John Stevenson. The Longman Handbook of World History Since 1914. New York. 1991. 539 p.

Covers political and diplomatic events and social and economic history in a chronological format. Statistical, biographical and tabular information included.

[VP Ref D 421 C64 1991]

Mackie, Thomas T. & Richard Rose. The International Almanac of Electoral History. 3rd ed. Washington: Congressional Quarterly, 1991. 511p.

A compilation of election results in Western, industrial nations since the beginning of competitive national elections. For each country information about the country's electoral process and form of government, a list of all parties that have won at least 1% of the vote, and statistical information about number of seats won by each party. Each chapter contains a bibliography of sources for that country's data.

[VP Ref JF 1001 M17 1991]

Arnold, Guy, et al. Revolutionary and Dissident Movements: An International Guide. 3rd ed. Harlow, Essex, U.K.: Longman Group UK; Detroit: Gale, 1988. 401p.

Country by country summary of dissenting political groups from the left to the right of the political spectrum. A select bibliography of monographs. Subject and name indexes.

[Ref JC 328.3 R48 1991]

Donnelly, Jack, and Rhoda E. Howard, eds. International Handbook of Human Rights. New York : Greenwood Press, 1987. 495 p.

[VP Ref JC 571 I587 1987]

Humana, Charles, comp. World Human Rights Guide. 3rd ed. New York : Oxford University Press, 1992, 393 p.

[VP Ref JC 571 H788 1992]

Shafritz, Jay M., Phil Williams, and Ronald S. Calinger. The Dictionary of 20th-century World Politics. New York: H. Holt, 1993. 756 p.

[VP Ref JA 61 S53 1993]

Lawson, Edward, comp. Encyclopedia of Human Rights. New York: Taylor & Francis, 1991. 1907 p.

A compilation of documentation on the standard-setting and monitoring activities of many international human rights organizations including the United Nations.

[VP Ref JC 571 E67 1991]

Welsh, Brian W.W., and Pavel Butorin. Dictionary of Development : Third World Economy, Environment, Society. New York: Garland, 1990. 2 v. (lxv, 1194 p.)

[VP Ref HC 59.7 D513 1990]

Burns, Richard Dean. Encyclopedia of Arms Control and Disarmament. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons; Toronto: Maxwell Macmillan Canada; New York : Maxwell Macmillan. 1993. 3 v.

[VP Ref JX 1974 E57 1993]

Laszlo, Ervin, and Jong Youl Yoo, eds. (Linus Pauling, honorary editor in chief). World Encyclopedia of Peace. Oxford; New York: Pergamon Press, 1986. 4 v.

[Van Pelt and VP Ref JX 1944 W67 1986]

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3. FINDING BOOKS AND ARTICLES

3a. FRANKLIN, Penn's online catalog

Use FRANKLIN to identify and locate in the Penn Library books, periodicals, maps, and bibliographic and numeric data files in electronic format.

An excellent way to use FRANKLIN is to search by Library of Congress subject heading. Some subject headings relevant for international relations used in FRANKLIN are:

european union

german reunification question

international economic relations

mexico foreign relations united states

Keyword searching is very useful for combining different concepts into one search, for restricting searches to geographic areas, and for identifying unfamiliar Library of Congress subject headings, especially from known catch-phrases:

britain and argentina and "economic relations"

(korean OR chinese) AND reunification

china AND taiwan

3b. Indexes and Abstracts

Regularly published, ongoing bibliographies which provide subject and author access to periodical and/or newspaper articles. Some also cover books, book chapters, essays in collections, etc. As a rule, "indexes" provide only bibliographic citations; "abstracts" add a summary of the article or book. Several indexes are available in compact disc (CD) format, which allows for faster searching of many years as well as printing or downloading of the citations. Others may be available through online searching. Only members of the Penn community may use CD or online formats.

General sources

PAIS International in Print, 1915- .

Perhaps the most useful, and certainly the most current index for international affairs. Subject index to journal articles, some books, pamphlets, newspaper articles and government documents in political science, economics, sociology, and public administration; world wide coverage. It is also indexed by author. There is a cumulative subject index for 1915-1974. In 1991 merged with PAIS Foreign Language Index (1968-1990). Previously, PAIS -- which began as the Bulletin of the Public Affairs Information Service and went through a number of name changes -- included only English language material. The paper edition is not available past 1994. [VP Ref JA 1 P357][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/7000]

International Political Science Abstracts, 1951- . Political Science Association. Bimonthly.

Abstracts of articles selected from over 900 scholarly international journals. Subject and author indexes. Indexes cumulate annually.

[VP Ref JA 36 I5][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6958]

International Bibliography of Political Science, 1953- .

An annual index, without abstracts, to articles from over 2000 European language journals, and pamphlets, documents, and books. Broad coverage in political and related social science material. Classified broad subject arrangement with subject and author indexes; detailed "Table of Contents". Over 4000 entries per year. Abstract number is cited when abstracted in International Political Science Abstracts. Time lag of approximately 2 years.

[latest five years in VP Reference JA 71 I435]

Social Sciences Citation Index, 1970- . Philadelphia: ISI. 3 times a year (cd: 4/yr.); annual cumulation.

A massive computer-produced index to over 2500 international journals in the social and behavioral sciences. It provides author and title-word indexing. Its special feature is citation indexing, which makes it possible to find articles which cite a previous publication. The online version begins in 1985.

[VP Ref H 1 S616][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6959]

There are a large number of indexes and abstracts that, though not concerned with international relations per se, sometimes may provide relevant bibliographical information. Among the most likely are:

EBSCO MegaFILE , 1980- .

A wide-ranging database of English-language publications, both scholarly and popular, including major newsweeklies.

[url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/14900]

Historical Abstracts, 1955- .

[VP Ref D 299 H52; current year and vols 1-15 in VP Reference][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6930]

America: History and Life, 1964- .

[Van Pelt E 171 A447; current year in VP Reference][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6812]

Geographical Abstracts: Human Geography, 1989- .

[VP Ref G 1 G3456]

International Bibliography, 1973-1991 . NY: UNIPUB. Quarterly.

Indexed publications of intergovernmental organizations. The listed monographs are all in English (incl. bilingual or multilingual), whereas there is no English language requirements for periodicals. Subject arrangement, with a subject index.

[Van Pelt JX 1995 I457]

International Bibliography of Economics, 1952- .

[Van Pelt HB 1 I644; latest 5 years in VP Reference]

Francis: Bulletin Signaletique 528: Science Administrative. 1971- .

The FRANCIS online version (via RLIN/Eureka), which includes all the FRANCIS databases, the most wide-ranging of French indexes, starts with 1984. The paper version subscription stops with 1993.

[VP JA 11 B855] [url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6915]

Fondation Nationale des Sciences Politiques. Bulletin Analytique de Documentation Politique, Economique et Sociale Contemporaine. 1946- .

[Van Pelt H 3 B855; latest 5 years in Reference]

World Agricultural Economics and Rural Sociology Abstracts. Oxford, Eng.: Commonwealth Bureau of Agricultural Economics, etc., 1959- .

An excellent source for development issues. It is included in the larger online database CAB Abstracts

[Van Pelt HD 1401 W6; latest 5 years in Reference]

International Development Abstracts. Norwich [Norfolk]: Geo Abstracts, 1982-.

Another source for development themes.

[VP Ref HC59.69 .I57]

Regional sources

Bibliography of Asian Studies, 1956- . Ann Arbor: Association for Asian Studies. Annual.

The most comprehensive listing of articles, books, essays in collections, conference and symposia proceedings dealing with Asia. Arranged into chapters by geographic location and subject subdivision. Author index. Time lag is around 5 years. Online coverage starts with 1971.

[Van Pelt & South Asia Ref DS1 B393][url: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6840]

Asian Bibliography. 1974- . Semi-annual.

Published by the United Nations Economic Commission for Asia and the Pacific. Broad subject arrangement with author, title, and country/area indexing. Includes books and selected articles.

[VP South Asia Ref Z 3008 E2 U5]

HAPI: Hispanic American Periodicals Index. 1970- . Annual.

Indexes 250 journals, mainly Spanish, Portuguese and English language, but also French, German, and Italian.

[Van Pelt F1401 H577 -- latest 5 years in Reference][URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6931]

Handbook of Latin American Studies. 1935- . Annual.

Alternate years cover humanities and social sciences. Selected bibliography of books and journal articles. Compiled by scholars for the Library of Congress.

[Van Pelt F 1401 H363]

[online at URL: http://lcweb2.loc.gov/hlas/]

Africa Bibliography. 1984- . Annual.

Subject, country, and author indexing to books, articles on all aspects of African affairs. Three-year delay.

[VP Ref DT 3 B53]

International African Bibliography. 1971- . London. Quarterly.

Indexes books, journal articles, papers. Time lag of 12-24 months.

[VP Ref DT 1 I574]

Current Bibliography on African Affairs. 1962- . Quarterly.

Arranged by broad topic and country or geographic area. Annotated entries for books and journal articles.

[VP Ref DT 1 C877]

Index Islamicus. 1956- . London.

Indexes books, journal articles, papers.

[VP Ref BP166.2 I534]

The Middle East: Abstracts and Index. 1978- . Pittsburgh. Quarterly with annual index.

Indexes around 10,000 citations per year from 300 core journals and 1500 scanned journals, as well as books, dissertations, etc. Includes all subject fields except pure science and medicine. Lengthy abstracts.

[VP Ref DS 41 M44]

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4. GENERAL RETROSPECTIVE BIBLIOGRAPHIES

General sources

Baer, George W., ed. International Organizations, 1918-1945 : A Guide to Research and Research Materials. Rev. ed. Wilmington, Del.: Scholarly Resources Inc., 1991. 212 p.

[VP Ref JX 1995 B33 1991]

Dexter, Byron, ed. Foreign Affairs 50-Year Bibliography: New Evaluations of Significant Books on International Relations, 1920-1970. NY: Bowker, 1972. Sponsored by the Council on Foreign Relations. 936p.

Includes 2,130 evaluative summaries of books selected from the bibliographies published decenially as Foreign Affairs Bibliography. Excludes titles published before 1920 or after 1970 and those thought to be of transient value. Chapters cover subjects, chronological periods, and geographical areas. Author and title index.

[VP Ref Z 6461 F62]

Dimitrov, Theodore Delchev. World Bibliography of International Documentation. Pleasantville: UNIFO Publishers, 1981. 2 vols.

Contains 9,000 references in many languages to literature about intergovernmental organizations, bibliographic control of documents published by intergovernmental organizations, and lists bibliographies about world politics, nuclear weapons and peace, etc.

[VP Ref JX 1977 D55 1981]

Haas, Michael. International Organization: An Interdisciplinary Bibliography. Stanford: Hoover Inst.Pr., 1973. 944p.

Lists more than 7,900 secondary sources about international organizations and some primary sources from international institutions. The emphasis is on books, although articles from about 50 scholarly periodicals are included. Largely restricted to English-language publications. Systematic arrangement, without annotations. Author and subject indexes.

[Ref Z 6464 I6 H3]

Regional sources

Atiyeh, George N., comp. The Contemporary Middle East, 1948-1973. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1975. 664p.

Annotated listing of 6500 books and periodicals on history, politics, social conditions, education, economic conditions in the Middle East. Also includes general and reference works. Classed arrangement with author and subject indexes. Clear introduction. Israel excluded; Arab-Israeli conflict included.

[Van Pelt Z 3001 N79]

Bryson, Thomas A. United States/Middle East Diplomatic Relations, 1784-1978. Metuchen, NJ: Scarecrow Press, 1979. 205p., 1353 entries.

Selected and annotated. English language books, articles, documents, and dissertations. Author index.

[VP Ref DS 63.2 U5 B795]

Clements, Frank, comp. Arab regional organizations. New Brunswick, N.J.: Transaction Publishers, 1992. 198 p.

[VP Ref HC 498 A1 C56 1992]

Drabek, Anne Gordon. The Politics of African and Middle Eastern States: An Annotated Bibliography. Oxford: Pergamon Press, 1976. 192p.

Arranged by geographic area with subdivisions for political history systems, parties, biographical sources on political leaders, and external relations.

[VP Ref JQ 1879 A15 D7]

European Cultural Centre. The European Bibliography. Leyden: Sijthoff, 1965. 472p.

A selective and annotated bibliography of more than 1300 books, mostly published between 1945 and 1963 concerning "Europe as a cultural unity, as a union to be created, or as a field of specific research." Nine sections cover history, politics and law, federalism and economics as well as general topics and reference sources. Annotations are in English and French; when the language of a book is German, Spanish, Italian or Dutch, annotation is also in the original language. Author index.

[VP Ref Z 2000 E8 and Biddle Library]

Grimwood-Jones, Diana, ed. Middle East and Islam: A Bibliographical Introduction. Rev. and enl. ed. Zug, Switzerland: Inter Documentation Co., 1979. 429 p.

Mainly Western language works. Chapters by specialists on reference sources, Islamic studies, subject and regional bibliographies. Author index. A supplement was issued in 1986.

[Van Pelt, VP Middle East Sem. and VP Ref Z 3013 M48 1979]

Nelson, David N. Bibliography of South Asia. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow Press, 1994. 465 p.

[Van Pelt and VP Ref DS 335 N45 1994]

The above list is only partial. There are other regional bibliographies and a vast number of national bibliographies, some focussing on foreign relations. Others attempt to cover all topics. A standard series of that type, the World Bibliographical Series, is published by the Clio Press. Their national bibliographies can be found in Franklin with the title search "t=world bibliographical series." There is one for nearly every country. To find similar bibliographies, use a subject search such as "s=Ghana--bibliography."

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5. GUIDES TO THE LITERATURE

General sources

Holler, Frederick. Information Sources of Political Science. 4th ed. Santa Barbara: Clio, 1986. 417p.

Long annotations of the principal general and specialized reference sources for political science, government, and international relations. Separate chapters on international organizations. Subject, author, title indexes.

[VP Ref Desk JA 71 H65 1986]

Information Sources in Politics and Political Science. Ed. by Dermot Englefield. London: Butterworths, 1984. 509p.

24 bibliographic essays citing major English-language works within areas of politics, such as international politics and international relations, the European Community, Western Europe, international organizations. Subject index.

[VP Ref JA 71 I39 1984]

Regional sources

Nunn, G. Raymond. Asia: A Selected and Annotated Guide to Reference Works. Cambridge: MIT Press, 1980. 365p.

Cites 1500 books and periodicals, mainly English language. Country by country arrangement with section on census and statistics, bibliography, periodicals, newspapers, etc, for each.

[VP Ref Desk Z 3001 N792]

Simon, Reeva S. The Modern Middle East: A Guide to Research Tools in the Social Sciences. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1978. 283p.

A handbook for students, scholars, librarians: 1800 to the present. Includes works in Arabic, Hebrew, Persian, Turkish and Western Languages. Concentrates on history, political science, sociology, and anthropology. Based on collections of Columbia and NYPL. Index.

[VP Ref DS 44 S54]

Covington, Paula, David Block, et al., eds. Latin America and the Caribbean: A Critical Guide to Research Sources. New York: Greenwood, 1992.

The most extensive research guide for Latin America and the Caribbean. Each section offers an introductory critical essay, an extensive bibliography divided by country and, in most cases, a resources guide that lists significant collections in the field.

[VP Ref F 1408 L379 1992]

McNeil, Robert A., and Barbara G. Valk, eds. Latin American Studies: A Basic Guide to Sources. 2nd ed. Metuchen, N.J.: Scarecrow, 1990.

Similar to the Covington work, this provides information on library and archival collections in Britain, Europe, and the United States, as well as descriptions of bibliographies and non-print and specialized sources.

[VP Ref F 1408 L38 1990]

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6. CURRENT NEWS, NEWS INDEXES AND SUMMARIES

Internet Sites. There are hundreds of newspapers from around the world now available in some form (they do not always resemble the print version) on the world wide web. There is a Penn Library Web link at

[URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/8975 ]

Comprehensive Sources

LEXIS NEXIS.

Online database that includes the full text of hundreds of US and many foreign newspapers, as well as the text of radio and TV transcripts, wire services, and magazines. In many cases, current within 24 hours. [URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6973]

The World News Connection (WNC)

The web-based version of and successor to the Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS), produced by the Central Intelligence Agency. They are translations of foreign radio and television broadcasts, news agency transmissions, periodicals and newspapers. It offers the most recent two years on a rotating basis. As records are deleted from the web file, they will appear on compact disc. The earlier FBIS records appeared in print and microfiche. The fiche version, to which the library subscribed, is described below under "Regional sources." A fuller explanation of FBIS is available in the research guide at

[URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/7430 ]

Prior to 1979 -- and the proliferation of machine-readable databases -- only a few newspapers were indexed. They include the following:

New York Times Index. 1851- . Bi-monthly with annual cumulations.

Excellent subject indexing; summaries included. Four month time lag. Now less used for post-1980 period because of full text availability on NEXIS.

[VP Ref AI21.N44]

The Times (London) Index. 1790- . Since 1977, monthly with annual cumulations. Two month time lag. There is a compact disc, Palmer's Index to the Times which covers 1790-1905 [VP Ref Moelis CD Area AI21.T52]. The title changed several times over the years.

[VP Ref AI21.T46]

Washington Post Index. 1969- .

[VP Ref AI21.W33 O54]

Le Monde Index. 1987- . Woodbridge, CT : Research Publications.

Its predecssor, Le Monde. Index Analytique [VP Ref AI21.M65] covers 1944 to 1968 with large gaps. The current title begins indexing with 1985. Le Monde is also available on NEXIS.

[VP Ref AI21.M653]

al-Ahran Index. 1974- .

In Arabic.

[Van Pelt AI21.A4; latest five years in Reference]

News Summaries

Facts on File. NY: Facts on File, 1940- . Weekly.

Weekly looseleaf news service summarizing current events around the world. Indexes cumulate throughout the year. Five-year indexes from 1945-. No sources given.

[VP Ref D410 F3; current year at Desk]

Keesings Record of World Events. London: Keesings, 1931- .

Monthly looseleaf news service entitled Kessings Contemporary Archives from 1931 to 1986. Includes news reports, texts of documents, treaties, and speeches; statistics, obituaries; European perspective. Cites some sources of reports. Indexes cumulate to annual. The cd version begins with 1960 and is updated quarterly.

[VP Ref D410.K4; VP Ref Moelis CD Area D410.K41]

Regional sources

Current Digest of the Post-Soviet Press. 1992- . Columbus, Ohio: The Current Digest of the Soviet Press. Weekly.

Continues Current Digest of the Soviet Press, which began publication in 1949. Articles are translated into English (or summarized and in such case designated as abstracts). Arranged by broad topics, including foreign affairs.

[D 839 C87]

Asian Recorder: A Weekly Digest of Outstanding Asian Events with Index. New Delhi: 1955- .

News summary service. Cites sources. Quarterly and Annual indexes.

[VP South Asia DS 1 A4747]

U.S. Foreign Broadcast Information Service. Daily Report: Washington, DC: GPO, 1947-1996.

Van Pelt received these reports, based on translations of foreign radio and, later, television broadcasts, news agency transmissions, periodicals and newspapers, from 1978 in microfiche. They have been phased out in favor of a web-based publication described above: the World News Connection.

[URL:

Immediately before the collapse of the Soviet Union report titles were:

East Asia EAS, 1978-

South Asia SAS, 1980-

China CHI, 1978-

Soviet Union SOV, 1978-

Eastern Europe EEU, 1978-

Sub-Saharan Africa AFR, 1/78-

Latin America LAT, 1978-

Western Europe WEU, 1978-

Near East and South Asia NES, 1978-

[VP Ref Government Documents/ U.S. Government microfiche PREX 7.10:FBIS-...]

A full guide to FBIS documents is available at:

[URL: http://hdl.library.upenn.edu/1017/6912 ]

U.S. Foreign Broadcast Information Service. Index...Daily Report New Canaan, Ct: Newsbank, 1978- .

The Library received paper indexes to all of the continuing series. These are classified and shelved separately in Van Pelt:

East Asia. Jan 1978-

[DS 1 A47145]

China. Jan 1978-

[DS 701 N483]

East Europe. Jan 1978-

[DJK 1 I533]

Latin America. Jan 1978-

[F 1401 D332]

Near East and South Asia. Jan 1978-

[DS 35.3 I533]

South Asia. Apr 1980-

[DS 331 I473]

Soviet Union. Jan 1978-

[DK 274 A2 N483]

Sub-Saharan Africa.

[DT 348 I533]

West Europe. Jan 1978-

[D 901 I533]

A compact disc index begins coverage in the 1970s. [VP Ref Moelis CD Area D 839 I444]

New African. 1978- . London, IC Magazines, Ltd.

Monthly. Recent issues in Current Periodicals.

[DT 1 N48]

Middle East Magazine. 1982- . London, International Communications.

Monthly. Recent issues in Current Periodicals.

[HC 410.7 A1 M47]

Washington Report on Middle East Affairs. 1982- .

Monthly. Original articles and reprints from other sources. News and chronology. Current Periodicals Desk.

[DS 63.2 U5 W274]

Washington Report on the Hemisphere.

Biweekly. Council on Hemispheric Affairs. News summary. Recent issues in Current Periodicals.

[F 1401 C227]

Latin American Regional Reports: Mexico and Central America.

Weekly. News summary. Current Periodicals Desk. Also available via NEXIS in file LAN.

[HC 131 L382]

In addition to the partial list above, the Van Pelt Library receives a large number of newspapers and newsmagazines from around the world, most in the vernacular. The Current Periodicals Desk usually has a list available of the foreign newspapers that they receive and can help the researcher find magazines as well. Most newspapers are kept for only a short period, but a few become a permanent research tool when they are received on microfilm.

Annual Regional Compilations

Africa Contemporary Record. 1968- . London. Annual.

A summary of the year's news. Extensive coverage; facilitates access to major documents of the year. Time-lag of approximately three years.

[Latest five years at VP Ref DT1 L43]

Latin America and the Caribbean Contemporary Record. 1981- . Annual.

Similar to the African publication above.

[Latest five years at VP Ref F 1401 L3253]

Middle East Contemporary Survey. 1976/77- . Annual. Published for the Moshe Dayan Center for Middle Eastern and African Studies, Tel Aviv University.

Covers political, economic, military and international developments in the Middle East. Topical signed essays and country-by-country review.

[Latest in VP Ref DS 41 M522]

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7. FOREIGN POLICY DOCUMENTS

United States

DOSFAN [WWW site]. 1995-present.

"Department of State Foreign Affairs Network", includes Background Notes, Human Rights

Country Reports, Travel Warnings, press briefings and congressional testimony, and the Dispatch (see below).

[URL: http://dosfan.lib.uic.edu ]

United States. Dept. of State. Foreign Relations of the United States. 1861-present. Irregular. Washington, DC: GPO.

"The official record of the foreign policy of the United States. The volumes in the series includes, subject to necessary security considerations, all documents needed to give a comprehensive record of the major foreign policy decisions of the United States together with appropriate materials concerning the facts which contributed to the formulation of policies." Arranged by region or special topic within chronological sets. Each volume contains an index.

[Van Pelt JX 233 A3; some volumes in microformat at Van Pelt Microfiche 483, Microbook 53, and Reference Documents SuDoc S1.1; online at URL: http://www.state.gov/www/about_state/history/frus.html]

United States. Dept. of State. American Foreign Policy: Current Documents. 1956-1967, 1981-present. Annual. Washington, DC: GPO.

"Presents the principal public foreign policy messages, addresses, statements, interviews, press briefings and conferences, and congressional testimony by the executive branch of the U.S. government during [the year]."

[Van Pelt JX 1417 A33; various volumes available in microformat in Van Pelt at Microbook 53, Microfiche 483 and Reference Government Documents: SuDoc S1.1; and online URL: http://www.state.gov/www/about_state/history/frus.html]

Other, essentially similar, items are:

A Decade of American Foreign Policy: Basic Documents, 1941-1949. 1985. Revised ed.

[VP Ref JX 1416 D29 1985]

American Foreign Policy, 1950-1955: Basic Documents. 1957. 2 vols.

[Van Pelt JX 1417 A55 1971]

American Foreign Policy: Basic Documents, 1977-1980. 1983.

[Van Pelt JX 1417 A732]

American Foreign Policy: Current Documents. Supplement. [microform] 1981-1983. Annual.

Presents documents not included in the print series, American Foreign Policy: Current Documents. Accompanied by a print guide which also appears on the fiche.

[Van Pelt: Microfiche U.S. Doc. S 1.71/2-2]

American Foreign Policy: Foreign Affairs Press Briefings and Treaties. Supplement. 1984-present. Annual.

Continues: American Foreign Policy: Current Documents. Supplement. Most recent covers 1989.

[Van Pelt: Microfiche U.S.Doc. S 1.71/2-2]

United States. Dept of State. U.S. Department of State Dispatch. 1990-present.

The official monthly record of U.S. foreign policy. Latest 2 years in Reference Index Area 10.

[Van Pelt JX 232 A332]

Recent issues are also available via DOSFAN:

[URL: http://dosfan.lib.uic.edu ]

It continues the Department of State bulletin. 1939-1989.

[Van Pelt JX 232 A33]

Foreign

British Documents on Foreign Affairs--Reports and Papers from the Foreign Office Confidential Print. Frederick, Md.: University Publications of America, 1984?- .

An excellent source for historical primary materials, this is very similar to the Foreign Relations of the United States. Because the set is divided into regional series, the call numbers are different, though most are successive.

[Van Pelt JX 632 B74 1983 through JX 632 B769 1994; others at [DK 266 A3 B68 1984; DS 63.2 G7 B75 1985; D 645 B73 1989; D 621 G7 B75 1989]

For contemporary documents the ministries and departments of many foreign governments now post policy statements, speeches, and press releases on the web. Links to international organizations are also included here.

[URL: http://www.gksoft.com/govt/en/ ]

Multilaterals Project [WWW site].

The Multilaterals Project, begun in 1992, is an ongoing project designed to make available the texts of international multilateral conventions and other instruments.

[URL: http://fletcher.tufts.edu/multilaterals.html ]

Rohn, Peter H. World Treaty Index. 2nd ed. Santa Barbara, Calif.: ABC-Clio Information Services, 1983-1984. 5 v.

[VP Ref JX 171 R63 1983]