Biography Resources
Women in World History presents over 10,000 short biographies of women worldwide from the earliest times to the modern period. American National Biography is the standard biographical dictionary for the US including colonial times. The African American National Biography (included in the African American Studies Center) complements it with its much better coverage of African American lives. The Oxford Dictionary of National Biography is the standard biographical dictionary for the UK.
African American Studies Center (Oxford University Press)
Contains a selection of information sources ranging from the authoritative Encyclopedia of African American History to the African American National Biography project. Selected primary sources, maps, images, charts, and tables round out the collection.
American National Biography Online (Oxford University Press)
Presents authoritative biographies of influential people who lived in what is now the United States. Covers only deceased subjects. Includes portraits, if available, and bibliographies with citations to works by and about featured individuals.
Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online (Gale)
Provides full text access to biographical and critical essays on important literary figures from all eras, genres, and geographic areas. Many essays include manuscript pages, portraits, excerpts of criticism, bibliographies, and more. Electronic access extends back to 1978.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press)
Presents authoritative biographies of influential people who lived in Britain. Covers only deceased subjects. Includes portraits, if available, and bibliographies with citations to works by and about featured individuals.
Orlando: Women's Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present (Cambridge University Press)
Provides biographical and critical accounts of the lives and works of women writers from the British Isles together with contextual materials, timelines, and bibliographies relevant to critical and historical readings. Also includes material on selected non-British and international women, and British and international men, whose writings are relevant to the historical context.
Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia
Presents biographies of women worldwide.
African American Studies Center (Oxford University Press)
Contains a selection of information sources ranging from the authoritative Encyclopedia of African American History to the African American National Biography project. Selected primary sources, maps, images, charts, and tables round out the collection.
American National Biography Online (Oxford University Press)
Presents authoritative biographies of influential people who lived in what is now the United States. Covers only deceased subjects. Includes portraits, if available, and bibliographies with citations to works by and about featured individuals.
Dictionary of Literary Biography Complete Online (Gale)
Provides full text access to biographical and critical essays on important literary figures from all eras, genres, and geographic areas. Many essays include manuscript pages, portraits, excerpts of criticism, bibliographies, and more. Electronic access extends back to 1978.
Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (Oxford University Press)
Presents authoritative biographies of influential people who lived in Britain. Covers only deceased subjects. Includes portraits, if available, and bibliographies with citations to works by and about featured individuals.
Orlando: Women's Writing in the British Isles from the Beginnings to the Present (Cambridge University Press)
Provides biographical and critical accounts of the lives and works of women writers from the British Isles together with contextual materials, timelines, and bibliographies relevant to critical and historical readings. Also includes material on selected non-British and international women, and British and international men, whose writings are relevant to the historical context.
Women in World History: A Biographical Encyclopedia
Presents biographies of women worldwide.
Use the search box below to find biographical information about persons not covered in the reference sources listed above.
For book-length biographies select Subject from the Books & more search menu and type the names of individuals into the search box. You may use the same approach to identify biographies of specific classes of people.
Example: Women AND Biography AND Dictionaries
Example: Women AND Scientists AND Biography AND Dictionaries
Try the same search in WorldCat if the local catalog does not have the desired information.
Falvey Library Catalog
The Library's catalog enables patrons to search & browse Falvey Library’s collection of books, journals, audio/video materials, electronic resources and more.
WorldCat (FirstSearch)
Presents a combined catalog of the catalogs of more than 10,000 libraries worldwide. WorldCat highlights publications available at Villanova University. Other items can be requested via an inter-library loan request form.
The Library's catalog enables patrons to search & browse Falvey Library’s collection of books, journals, audio/video materials, electronic resources and more.
WorldCat (FirstSearch)
Presents a combined catalog of the catalogs of more than 10,000 libraries worldwide. WorldCat highlights publications available at Villanova University. Other items can be requested via an inter-library loan request form.