Library Guides: Geography: Information Sources in Geography

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Web of Science This link opens in a new window
Multidisciplinary content covers over 10,000 of the highest impact journals.
Authoritative, multidisciplinary content covers over 10,000 of the highest impact journals worldwide, including Open Access journals and over 110,000 conference proceedings. You'll find current and retrospective coverage in the sciences, social sciences, arts, and humanities, with coverage available to 1900. Includes the Science Citation Expanded, Social Sciences Citation Index, and Arts & Humanities Citation Index. Web of Science is especially useful for its citation linking.
Scopus This link opens in a new window
Major index to serial literature with excellent coverage of geography.
Scopus is an interdisciplinary, bibliographic database that indexes the contents of more than 29,000 journals in the physical sciences, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, life and health sciences, social sciences, psychology, business, and management.

Scopus also features cited references and can be searched for articles that cite a specific article.
FRANCIS: International Humanities and Social Sciences This link opens in a new window
Contains information on a wide range of multilingual, multicultural sources, including books and over 4,000 journals. The range of subjects covered include the humanities, social sciences, and economics. It is strong in religion, the history of art and literature, with particular emphasis on current trends in European and world literature.
JSTOR This link opens in a new window
Full texts of many major geography (and other) journals.
A database of back issues of core journals in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences. All issues of each journal are included in full-text except for the most recent 2-to-5 years.
Oxford Bibliographies Online: Geography This link opens in a new window
Good place to start research.
Regularly updated annotated bibliography addressing themes and topics in Geography

How do I find maps?
by Ask a Librarian Updated Aug 16, 2023 557 views this year

Information Sources

Many important information sources in geography are available in paper only. They are listed below with their University of Chicago call numbers and locations.

General Guides

Research by Subject: Geography
Includes a useful list of core journals and reference works (encyclopedias, handbooks, dictionaries), some of which are only in print form.
Bibliography of Geography: part I, Introduction to General Aids by Chauncy D. Harris
Chicago : University of Chicago, Department of Geography, 1976. (University of Chicago Department of Geography research paper; no. 179) [Z6001.H303 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room]. Classic bibliography.
International list of geographical serials / compiled by Chauncy D. Harris and Jerome D. Fellmann
3rd ed. Chicago : University of Chicago, Department of Geography, 1980 (University of Chicago Department of Geography research paper ; no. 193) [Z6003.H302 1980 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room]. Classic bibliography.

Indexing & Abstracting Tools

Scopus This link opens in a new window
Major indexing and abstracting tool with excellent coverage of geography. Indexes periodical literature in geography and related fields back to ca. 1980. For earlier material, you must consult the complicated Geographical abstracts [Z6003.G3 ... Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room] (see note).
Scopus is an interdisciplinary, bibliographic database that indexes the contents of more than 29,000 journals in the physical sciences, engineering, earth and environmental sciences, life and health sciences, social sciences, psychology, business, and management.

Scopus also features cited references and can be searched for articles that cite a specific article.
FRANCIS: International Humanities and Social Sciences This link opens in a new window
Major French indexing and abstracting service for the humanities and social sciences; indexes material back to 1984. Covers European literature much more thoroughly than GEOBASE. For material from before 1984, consult Bibliographie géographique internationale = International Geographical Bibliography. [Z6001.B53 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room], which goes back to 1891 with various title, publisher, and format changes.
Contains information on a wide range of multilingual, multicultural sources, including books and over 4,000 journals. The range of subjects covered include the humanities, social sciences, and economics. It is strong in religion, the history of art and literature, with particular emphasis on current trends in European and world literature.

For earlier material you must consult the paper Current Geographical Publications : Additions to the Research Catalogue of the American Geographical Society [Z6009.A5 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room]. For still earlier material, back to the 19th century, see Research Catalogue of the American Geographical Society [Z6009.A505 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room, plus various supplements at Z6009.A506]. All the American Geographical Society materials use a somewhat quirky indexing system, which is documented in the paper sources.

Review Journals

Progress in Human Geography
The major review journal in human geography. Paper issues, back to 1977, can be found at GF1.P9 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room. Earlier issues still, Progress in Geography, go back to 1962; call no.: G73.P7.
Progress in Physical Geography
The major review journal in physical geography. Paper issues, back to 1977, can be found at G1.P91. See also the still earlier Progress in Geography, 1962-1976; call no.: G73.P7.

Collection of Bibliographies

Oxford Bibliographies Online: Geography This link opens in a new window
New York : Oxford University Press, 2012- Continuously updated bibliographies.
Regularly updated annotated bibliography addressing themes and topics in Geography

Factual Sources (Highly Selected List)

Dictionary of Human Geography / edited by R.J. Johnston ... [et al.].
Oxford : Blackwell, 2000 [GF4.D52 2000 Regenstein Second/Third-Floor Reading Room]. One of several excellent geography dictionaries.
Geographers : Biobibliographical Studies.
London : Mansell, 1977- [G67.G34 Regenstein stacks]. The major biographical dictionary in geography.

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