Reference 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.
- Contemporary China Series (Gale Virtual Reference Library) This link opens in a new windowContemporary China is the first and also the most authoritative magnum opus that details the history of the People's Republic of China since 1949.
- Digital Dictionary of Buddhism This link opens in a new windowDigital Dictionary of Buddhism is a collaborative Internet site developed by user contributions and maintained by a professor of the University of Tokyo.
Bibliographies
Chinese History: A Manual by Publication Date: 2000Since publication of the first edition in 1998, this book has become an essential guide to researching the history of China.
Chinese History: A New Manual by Publication Date: 2015The entire work has been corrected and updated with both print and online resources.
- Sources in Chinese History: Diverse Perspectives from 1644 to the PresentIncludes a variety of sources relevant to the study and research of modern and contemporary China, such as maps, posters, film scripts, memorials, and political cartoons and advertisements.
- 中国历史研究手册A Chinese translation of Chinese History: A New Manual by Wilkinson.
Twentieth Century China by Publication Date: 2003Covers Chinese, Japanese and Western language sources on modern and contemporary China, and overseas Chinese.
- Classical Historiography for Chinese HistoryDeveloped by Professor Benjamin Elman of Princeton University. Includes extensive lists of print and online sources for the study of Chinese history, especially the Ming and Qing period.
Biographies
- China Biographical Database Project (CBDB) This link opens in a new windowA freely accessible relational database with biographical information (in both English and Chinese) about approximately 370,000 individuals as of April 2017, primarily from the 7th through 19th centuries.
- Modern China Biographical Database (MCBD)"The MCBD aims to collect biographical data on any individual active in China, both Chinese and non-Chinese, through systematic data mining in source books such as directories, biographical dictionaries, Who’s who’s, etc., in newspapers and periodicals, and in the academic literature."
- 人名權威人物傳記資料庫 This link opens in a new windowContains biographical information for personal names in the Grand Secretariat and Grand Council archives held at Academia Sinica and National Palace Museum in Taiwan.
- Buddhist Studies Authority Database Project 佛學規範資料庫 This link opens in a new windowA free online reference to personal names, places, time, and Buddhist Tripitaka catalogues in the Buddhist literature.
- 清季職官表查詢系統Includes biographical information of Qing officials from 1786 (51st year of the Qianlong reign) to 1912 (3rd year of the Xuantong reign).
Selected biographical dictionaries and biographies in English in the library:
- Biographical dictionary of Republican China (A digital revival of the print edition)The print edition is available in the East Asian Reading Room, call no. DS778.A1 B5.
Calendar & Chronology
- Chinese - Western Calendar Conversion Tool 兩千年中西曆轉換 This link opens in a new windowAn online tool for converting between Chinese and Western calendars from A.D. 1 to A.D. 2100.
- Buddhist Studies Authority Database Project 佛學規範資料庫 This link opens in a new windowThe Time Authority Database provides date conversions for the following periods:
• China: 220 BC - today
• Korea: 56 BC - 1910 AD
• Japan: 593 AD - today
Dictionaries
- Chinese-English Dictionary of Modern Usage (Online) This link opens in a new windowA classic Chinese-English dictionary compiled by Lin Yutang. Provides excellent guidance on translating terms.
- 明代職官中英辭典 Chinese-English Dictionary of Ming Government Official TitlesA bilingual dictionary of Ming official titles developed through a crowd-translation project that was funded by CEAL-Mellon.
- Modern Chinese Scientific Terminologies (MCST) 近現代漢語學術用語研究"A Repository of Chinese Scientific, Philosophical and Political Terms Coined in the Nineteenth and Early Twentieth Century"
- ABC Chinese-English Comprehensive Dictionary [Print]A best Chinese-English dictionary for modern Chinese.
- Han yu da ci dian 漢語大詞典 [Print]The most comprehensive dictionary for classical and modern Chinese. Provides definitions and explanations for 370,000 Chinese words. Includes quotations from many historical sources and is good for studying the changing meanings of Chinese words.
- Dai Kan-Wa jiten 大漢和辞典 [Print]Compiled by Morohashi Tetsuji. Includes extensive quotations from classical Chinese. Well indexed. There is a Chinese counterpart, based on the Morohashi but less reliable: Zhong wen da ci dian 中文大辭典.
- Ci hai 辞海 [Print]A comprehensive word dictionary; can also be used as a compact encyclopedia.
Encyclopedias
- Gu jin tu shu ji cheng 數位古今圖書集成 (Online) This link opens in a new windowDeveloped by National Palace Museum and Soochow University in Taipei. The largest encyclopedia in pre-modern China. Compiled in the early 18th century, it was intended to be a comprehensive survey of all branches of knowledge and includes a large number of illustrations.
- The Cambridge Encyclopedia of ChinaProvides an absorbing and authoritative account of China from ancient times through to the momentous events of the 1980s.
- Encyclopedia of Modern ChinaAn online encyclopedia about modern China.
- Zhongguo da bai ke quan shu 中国大百科全书 [CD-ROM]A comprehensive encyclopedia divided into many subject volumes. A number of print volumes are also available in the East Asian Library. You can search them by title in the USC libraries catalog.
- The Encyclopaedia SinicaCompiled by Samuel Couling in 1917. Still a valuable source of information for the study of foreign missionaries in China.
Place Names & Atlases
- CHGIS China Historical Geographic Information System 中国历史地理信息系统 This link opens in a new windowA free database of place names and historical administrative units for the Chinese Dynasties. Provides a base GIS platform for researchers to use in spatial analysis or to visualize the historical divisions of China as digital maps.
- 中國歴史地圖集 The historical atlas of ChinaMost accurate maps of historical changes in China's external boundaries, internal administrative boundaries, and toponyms.
- 中国古代地图集 An Atlas of ancient maps in ChinaContains 650 reproductions of pre-modern maps in China.
- Buddhist Studies Authority Database Project 佛學規範資料庫 This link opens in a new windowThe Place Authority Database provides information on place names from Buddhist sources with latitude and longitude.