This research guide is designed to provide an overview of both online and print resources related to Chinese studies available at the USC libraries and on the internet.
Full-text access to all CNKI databases included in the China Research Gateway, with the exception of the China Patents database, is fully restored.
Trial Databases
Most Commonly Used Databases in Chinese Studies
Comprehensive Databases
China Research Gateway (CRG)This link opens in a new windowCRG is a centralized means for discovery and access to a breadth of Chinese resources, including scholarly journals, monographs, statistical publications, government documents, newspapers, dissertations, patents, and more.
Duxiu (Chinese Google Scholar)This link opens in a new windowKnown as Chinese Google Scholar, Duxiu provides access to a huge amount of full-text scholarly resources in all subjects and formats, such as books, theses & dissertations, journal & newspaper articles, conference papers, etc.
Paste this link in the browser https://libraries.usc.edu/sites/default/files/duxiu_instructions.pdf for instructions about how to request full-text content from the database.
China Academic Digital Associative Library (CADAL) 大学数字图书馆国际合作计划This link opens in a new windowIncludes over 2.5 million scanned books, newspapers, journals, video, audio books, etc. from all periods of Chinese history. The titles are not full-text searchable, but they provide tables of contents for easy navigation and virtual loan. Also provides access to some other resources, such as calligraphy, chronicle of Chinese literature, and Chinese medicine. Please note that you need to create an individual account using USC email address with the site in order to use their online reading and virtual borrowing functionalities for each title. Please refer to their FAQ section for more instructions.
Books
Chinamaxx Digital Libraries 中文集献This link opens in a new windowContains a growing collection of Chinese e-books published in mainland China. To access the e-book collection, please click the link “click to enter” on the homepage, and then click the subject areas listed under the “SuperStar Digital Library” section to browse and read titles acquired by USC libraries.
CNKI eBooks (Intl) CNKI 电子图书库(海外版)This link opens in a new windowIncludes a growing collection of e-books published in mainland China acquired by the USC libraries.
iRead eBooks 華藝電子書This link opens in a new windowIncludes a growing collection of e-books published in Taiwan and Hong Kong acquired by the USC libraries.
HathiTrustThis link opens in a new windowScans of public domain books across all subject areas which can be downloaded in their entirety. To enable downloads, please click the “Log In” button and select “University of Southern California” from the dropdown list. You will then be prompted for your USC NetID and password and validated via Shibboleth. You will also find records for works still in copyright, but these can only be searched, not viewed or downloaded.
WorldCat (OCLC FirstSearch)This link opens in a new windowWorldCat is an online union catalog of materials held by OCLC member libraries.
OCLC, Online Computer Library Center, is a nonprofit, membership, library computer service and research organization. WorldCat contains millions of bibliographic records describing items owned by libraries around the world. Item records provide information about individual library holdings. Types of materials include books, journals, musical scores, computer data files, magazines, newspapers, computer programs, sound recordings, films and slides, maps, videotapes, and manuscripts written as early as the 12th century. Updated daily.
Journals
China Academic JournalsThis link opens in a new windowThe key source for searching scholarly journal literature published in mainland China, with many full-text articles dating back as early as 1915.
Wanfang China Online JournalsThis link opens in a new windowIncludes thousands of Chinese journals in the humanities and social sciences from mainland China from 1997 on. Also includes select monographic series titles, such as 元史及民族与边疆研究集刊, 藏外佛教文献, etc.
Airiti Library: Journals & ThesesThis link opens in a new windowProvides full-text access to academic journals, theses and dissertations from Taiwan (mostly), mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia and other countries in all disciplines.
Pishu (China Economy, Public Policy, and Security Database)This link opens in a new window'Pishu' (皮书, which literally means ‘cover-books’) are high-value analytical reports intended to guide policymaking in the People’s Republic of China. They are published by the prestigious Social Sciences Academic Press, a branch of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences. Covered topics include a variety of issues of importance to China's government and research community, including international relations, agricultural policy, and industry competitiveness. They may be considered somewhat analogous to United States Congressional Research Service reports and analysis reports published by the RAND Corporation.
Late Qing/Republican Periodicals DatabaseThis link opens in a new windowDeveloped by the Shanghai Library, Late Qing/Republican Periodicals Database provides full-text access to thousands of periodicals and magazines published in China from 1833 to 1949. Only 1 user is allowed to access the database at one time.
Bibliography of Asian Studies (BAS)This link opens in a new windowThe Bibliography of Asian Studies (BAS) contains over 737,175 records (as of July 9, 2009) on all subjects (especially in the humanities and the social sciences) pertaining to East, Southeast, and South Asia published worldwide from 1971 to the present.
Through the 1991 printed version, the BAS included citations to Western-language periodical articles, monographs, chapters in edited volumes, conference proceedings, anthologies, and Festschriften, etc. Monographs published since 1992 have not been added to the database, and users seeking such monographs are urged to consult other general resources and databases (RLIN, OCLC, etc.). The online BAS offers users various methods for seeking citations. A separate screen allows users to set their preferences for displaying and downloading data in different formats and character encodings. The BAS is updated regularly, with batch posting of thousands of new entries in each upload.
Newspapers
China Core Newspapers Database (CCND)This link opens in a new windowIncludes newspaper articles from nearly 1,000 newspaper titles published in mainland China since 2000.
People's Daily (1946-Present)This link opens in a new windowPeople's Daily is the most influential and authoritative newspaper in China. It has been the official voice of the Chinese government and the Communist Party of China since 1946. 2 users access.
Jiefangjun Bao (PLA Daily)This link opens in a new windowThe PLA Daily, which started its publication on January 1, 1956, is the authoritative media of the Chinese People’s Liberation Army (PLA) to release military news and comprehensive military-related information and is the official newspaper of the Central Military Commission.
Global Times (1993-Present)This link opens in a new windowGlobal Times is a daily newspaper focusing on international relations and foreign affairs. It is an essential indicator of Chinese foreign policies. 2 users access.
Statistics
China Statistical Yearbooks Database (CSYD)This link opens in a new windowProvides access to statistical data published by the mainland Chinese government at all levels from 1949 to the present.
China Yearbooks Full-text Database (CYFD)This link opens in a new windowProvides access to authoritative facts and statistics of national and regional significance in mainland China from 1949 to present.
Diaolong Full-text Database of Chinese & Japanese Ancient BooksThis link opens in a new windowDiaolong Full-text Database of Chinese & Japanese Ancient Books is a project based on collaboration among scholars and experts from China, Japan, and Taiwan. It is one of the most comprehensive collections of Chinese and Japanese ancient books. It contains about 30,000 ancient books covering historical, political, economic, religious, philosophic, literary, ethnic and geographic documents.
Scripta Sinica 漢籍全文資料庫This link opens in a new windowDeveloped by the Academia Sinica in Taiwan, the Scripta Sinica database 漢籍電子文獻資料庫 contains almost all of the important Chinese classics, especially those related to Chinese history. Click on "授權使用" button to access the database.
Wenshi Ziliao (Literary and Historical Materials) Series IThis link opens in a new windowIncludes 20,000+ volumes and 650,000+ articles of Chinese literary and historical materials compiled by the national and local government agencies mostly during the 1980s and 1990s. To access the database, please click the link “click to enter” on the homepage, then click “文史资料专题库 (第一期)" under “SuperStar specialty” section, and then you will then be able to browse and search the wenshi ziliao collection.
Database of Chinese New Local Gazetteers 中国新方志This link opens in a new windowLocal gazetteers are regarded by scholars and historians in the China field as one of the most important primary sources for the study of history of Chinese economy, politics, culture, military, and science and technology. This database includes a large collection of post-1949 local gazetteers covering all regions of mainland China and various subject areas.
Wanfang Dissertations of ChinaThis link opens in a new windowContains full text and abstracts of theses and dissertations in the humanities and social sciences from key research institutions in mainland China.
Airiti Library: Journals & ThesesThis link opens in a new windowProvides full-text access to academic journals, theses and dissertations from Taiwan (mostly), mainland China, Hong Kong, Malaysia and other countries in all disciplines.
ProQuest Dissertations & Theses GlobalThis link opens in a new windowDatabase of dissertations and theses, including more than 1 million available full-text (PDF).