Archaeology and Prehistory

Depending on your topic idea, you'll want to find background information, perhaps from an encyclopedia. Why? Encyclopedias can help you to:

• Understand the scope of your topic--is it too broad or too narrow?
• Understand how your topic is broken down into sub-topics.
• Identify concepts or themes relevant to your topic.
• Identify important terms and vocabulary that can be used in further searching.

Annual Review of Anthropology

Use the Annual Review of Anthropology to find overview essays or literature reviews that will list all of the important articles and books on that topic. These essays are incredibly useful starting points

In addition to the specific encyclopedias and handbooks listed on this page, the library has some databases that you can search for more encyclopedia and handbook information

You may want to get an idea of how much information exists on your topic idea and what kinds of things archaeologists are writing about it. It can be useful to do a quick search in the following databases:

Try Anthropology Plus for journal articles