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Reader Guide 10
FINDING BIOGRAPHICAL INFORMATION
CONTENTS
1
INTRODUCTION
2
STANDARD BIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCE WORKS ON THE OPEN SHELVES
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SEARCHING FOR BIOGRAPHIES ON EXPLORE THE BRITISH LIBRARY
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BIOGRAPHY IN THE PRINTED BRITISH LIBRARY GENERAL CATALOGUE
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BIBLIOGRAPHIES OF BIOGRAPHY
6
INTERNATIONAL INDEXES OF BIOGRAPHY
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INTERNATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY
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NATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY: BRITISH AND IRISH
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NATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY: FOREIGN
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SPECIALISED BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARIES
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FURTHER RESOURCES
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INTRODUCTION This leaflet is a brief guide to some of the sources available for biographical research in the Humanities Reading Room. It covers: methods of searching for biographical works in the British Library’s catalogue; a selection of some of the major printed biographical works; and also microfiche and electronic resources. The electronic resources are available on terminals in Humanities 1 and 2 (and in other reading rooms) and you will find information about them at the Humanities Reference Enquiry Desks and also in the leaflet racks. In many cases it is possible to find a brief biographical entry about a person using the material available in the Humanities Reading Room. You will find full published biographies of an individual in Explore the British Library and can then request them from the bookstacks. Other British Library reading rooms also hold biographical resources appropriate to their subject specialism. For example: the Oriental and India Office Collections Reading Room maintains a biographical index currently containing 300,000 entries for civil and military servants and their families and for non-official Europeans living in India; the Music Reading Area in the Rare Books and Music Reading Room holds a number of biographical dictionaries associated with the world of music, shelved at MUS 780.321 or MUS 780.922; and the Social Sciences Reading Room has biographical dictionaries of Members of Parliament at OPL 328.42092. If you have any questions please ask at the Reference Enquiry Desks: the staff are there to help you.
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STANDARD BIOGRAPHICAL REFERENCE WORKS ON THE OPEN SHELVES Printed biographical works on the open shelves of the Humanities Reading Room are placed at various shelfmarks within the Dewey Decimal Classification. The main sequence of biographical dictionaries (including Who was who and the two editions of the Dictionary of national biography) falls within the range HLR 920.02 to HLR 920.09. You can find the current ‘Who’s who’ for individual countries there, together with the standard retrospective works. Exceptionally, the current International who’s who is at HLQ 920.02 and the current Who’s who for the UK is at HLR Enquiry Desk 920.041. Online versions of both these titles are also available; the Who’s who database also containing the entire Who was who archive from 1897 onwards. Specialised biographical dictionaries are placed at the Dewey number assigned to the particular subject.
SEARCHING FOR BIOGRAPHIES ON EXPLORE THE BRITISH LIBRARY Explore the British Library offers both ‘simple’ and advanced search functions. If you wish to find biographical material using ‘Basic’ search, simply enter the name of the person you are researching. Then choose from the refinements on the left of the results pages. Advanced search enables you to select specific fields; one of these is subject, then type in the person’s name e.g. ‘Plath Sylvia’ or ‘Sylvia Plath’. To further refine your search, you can select from a variety of options including ‘material type’ and ‘author’. Among the refinements listed is ‘Collection’, On open access shelves, this should display any biographical material which you might expect to find on the open shelves (i.e. general and standard reference works rather than individual biographies). For historical reasons subject information differs in the various subsets of Explore the British Library. For most material published before 1975, the records are brief, therefore, you need to search by title keyword or by general keyword to find items on a particular subject. However, you can also search for works about a particular person under the relevant name (e.g. Austen Jane).
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BIOGRAPHY IN THE PRINTED BRITISH LIBRARY GENERAL CATALOGUE The printed British Library General catalogue of printed books to 1975 is a major resource for biography as it has entries for books about people as well as by them. Also, because the Library’s foreign collections are very rich, the catalogue is a valuable international resource. The arrangement and typography of the printed volumes are particularly helpful for finding biographical material easily. Whilst you may have found an entry for someone in a biographical dictionary, until you check in the General catalogue you may be unaware of an individual biography of that person or of a published diary or collection of letters. A person who has been much written about, e.g. Maria Montessori, will have a subheading ‘Appendix’ at the end of the entry where all the biographies are collected together. Biographies of a person about whom less has been published, e.g. Pierre de Fermat, appear at the very beginning of the entry. There are, in addition, printed subject indexes which cover books the Library acquired from 1881 to 1975: British Museum Subject index of the modern works added to the Library 1881-1960 (HLC 017.21BMC) and the British Library Subject index of modern books acquired 1961-1975 (HLC 017.21BMC).
BIBLIOGRAPHIES OF BIOGRAPHY The standard bibliography of biography is R. B. Slocum, Biographical dictionaries and related works: an international bibliography. 2nd ed. 2 vols. Detroit: Gale, 1986 (HLR 920.02). It covers both international and national biography and also biography by vocation. You can find a selective listing of British biographical dictionaries in S. Raymond, Occupational sources for genealogists: a bibliography. 2nd ed. Birmingham: Federation of Family History Societies, 1996 (HLR Enquiry Desk 929.341(P)). Although, as the title implies, this work is aimed at genealogists, it provides many useful leads into biographical research.
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INTERNATIONAL INDEXES OF BIOGRAPHY Biography index (CD-ROM). Three CD-ROMs covering the period 1680-1830. Five are projected, covering all known book subscription lists, all national, town and trade directories through to 1830, and all society membership lists. Geographical coverage: UK and USA. Biography and genealogy master index (online) is a comprehensive index to entries in over 1700 printed biographical reference sources, both current and retrospective. Coverage is worldwide and the database comprises more than 15 million biographical sketches. There is an English-language and American bias in the coverage and the index is especially useful as it indexes the national biographical dictionaries for the UK and the USA, the volumes of the continuing Biography index (HLR 920.02), the ‘Oxford companion’ series, and such standard reference tools as the Dictionary of scientific biography (HLR 509.22). World biographical information system (online) includes a cumulated index to the entries in the biographical archives on microfiche produced by K. G. Saur. Over five million names are included. Digitised versions of several of the archives have been produced; access to some of these is provided. Index bio-bibliographicus notorum hominum. Osnabrück, 1973- (HLR 012) also provides worldwide coverage. However, this work is in progress (by 2011, publication had reached the letter M). The publisher’s aim is to list 3 to 5 million names. Over 4,000 collective biographical works are indexed. Each of these bears a code number under which it is quoted in the main body of the work (Pars C). Pars B and its supplement contain full bibliographical details of these sources. A. M. Hyamson, A dictionary of universal biography of all ages and all peoples. 2nd ed. London: Routledge, 1951 (1966 reprint at HLR 920.02). Despite its title, this book is an index rather than a dictionary. It lists about 110,000 entries for individuals in 23 major biographical dictionaries. These works are listed at the front of the dictionary alongside the single letter code reference which is to be found by each name in the main body of the dictionary. Although published some years ago, this work is still valuable for finding information quickly since many of the works indexed are on the open shelves of the Humanities Reading Room. It is particularly helpful if you are searching for information on someone and are unsure of his or her nationality.
Essay and general literature index. 1900- . New York: H. W. Wilson Co., 1934- (HLR 080.16). This useful work indexes biographical material in collections of essays. 4
INTERNATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY For quick reference there are two standard single-volume international biographical dictionaries at HLR 920.02. New editions are regularly produced so they are valuable in providing up-to-date information:
Chambers biographical dictionary. 9th ed. Edinburgh, 2011 (HLR 920.02) Merriam-Webster’s biographical dictionary. Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1995 (HLR 920.02) Another single-volume work of a similar type is The Cambridge biographical encyclopedia. Edited by David Crystal. 2nd ed. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1998 (HLR Enquiry Desk 920.02). The number of people included is increased by the Ready Reference section at the back which lists world political and religious leaders, prize-winners, etc. There are two multi-volume dictionaries of international biography on the open shelves which require lengthier consultation than the titles mentioned above, but which are still important for their scholarship and bibliographical references. They are:
Biographie universelle ancienne et moderne... Nouvelle éd. Publiée sous la direction de M. Michaud. 45 vols. Paris: A. Thoisnier-Desplaces; Mme Desplaces, 1843-1865 (HLR 920.02) Nouvelle biographie générale depuis les temps les plus reculés jusqu’à nos jours...Publiée…sous la direction de M. Le Dr Hoefer. 46 vols. Paris: FirminDidot, 1853-1866 (HLR 920.02 and in the Rare Books and Music Reading Room at RAR 920.02) International dictionaries of women’s biography are classified at a separate number in the Dewey system, e.g. The Palgrave Macmillan dictionary of women’s biography. Compiler and editor Jennifer S. Uglow. 4th ed. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2005 (HLR 920.72).
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NATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY: BRITISH AND IRISH Dictionary of national biography. Edited by Leslie Stephen. 63 vols. London: Smith, Elder, 1885-1900 (in the Manuscripts Reading Room at MSS 920.041 and in the Rare Books and Music Reading Room at RAR 920.041). Supplements bring the coverage up to 1995. A 1978 reissue in 22 volumes is on the shelf in Humanities 1 at HLR920.041, together with the supplements. The concise dictionary of national biography: from the earliest times to 1985. 3 vols. London: Oxford University Press, 1992 (HLR 920.041 and RAR 920.041) is useful in its own right but can also be seen as an index to the full DNB. Oxford dictionary of national biography. Edited by H. C. G. Matthew and Brian Harrison. 60 vols. plus Contributor index. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004 (HLR 920.041). “A collection of 50,000 specially written biographies of men and women who have shaped all aspects of the British past, from the earliest times to the end of the year 2000.” The online Oxford DNB also includes the entire text of the original DNB and features portraits (where available), themed sections and new entries added since the year 2000. British biographical archive on microfiche. Series I, II and III. Munich: Saur, 1984-2005 (HLM 920.041). This work reproduces on microfiche entries from hundreds of biographical dictionaries, cumulating them into one alphabetical sequence within each series. The first series covers 324 biographical dictionaries originally published 1601-1929; the second extends the coverage to a further 268 reference works published 1601-1978; the third series extends the coverage to a further 164 reference works published up to 2002. It should be used in conjunction with British biographical index below or with the online World biographical information system. The latter also provides access to digitised versions of those biographical archives which have been acquired by the Library. British biographical index. 3rd ed. Edited by Tommaso Nappo. 8 vols. Munich: Saur, 2008 (HLR 920.041). This provides in one sequence brief information about all the individuals included in the first two microfiche series, indicating which series should be consulted, and the precise fiche and frame numbers. The total number of people included is around 420,000. You can use it as a quick reference tool in its own right since brief information including dates and occupations follows individuals’ names. A list of the sources indexed is at the front of each volume. The two important county biographical series, one edited by E. Gaskell and the other by C. Press are included.
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British and Irish biographies 1840-1940. Series editor David Lewis Jones. Cambridge: Chadwyck-Healey, 1985-1991 (HLM 920.041). This work also reproduces on microfiche entries from biographical dictionaries. It is in six parts. Since entries are not in a single alphabetical sequence, the index, which is itself on microfiche at HLM 920.041, must be used. (Chadwyck-Healey have produced an index to parts 1-3 only.) Over 300 sources have been used, all of which have been entered by title in the Integrated Catalogue. Amongst the titles included in British and Irish biographies 1840-1940 but not in British biographical archive above are: Debrett’s peerage from 1864 to 1940 and the War Office list from 1864 to 1940.
NATIONAL DICTIONARIES OF BIOGRAPHY: FOREIGN Major foreign biographical dictionaries have frequently modelled themselves on the Dictionary of national biography. Some of these dictionaries are still in progress, whilst others have embarked on a second edition. Examples include:
American national biography. General editors John A. Garraty, Mark C. Carnes. 24 vols. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1999 (HLR 920.073). Also available online, this work profiles some 18,000 men and women from all eras who have helped to shape American history and culture. Dictionary of American biography. Edited by A. Johnson. 20 vols. London: Oxford University Press, 1928-1936. Ten supplements bring coverage to 1980 (HLR 920.073). Scribner Encyclopedia of American Lives. Edited by Kenneth T. Jackson. 7 vols. New York: Charles Scribner’s Sons, 1998 (HLR 920.073).
Allgemeine deutsche Biographie. 56 vols. Leipzig: Duncker & Humblot, 1875-1912 (HLR 920.043). A successor to this work is still in progress: Neue deutsche Biographie. Berlin: Duncker & Humblot, 1953- (HLR 920.043).
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The national biographical dictionaries for France and Italy are both still in progress: Dictionnaire de biographie française. Sous la direction de J. Balteau. Paris: Letouzey et Ané, 1933- (HLR 920.044); Dizionario biografico degli italiani. Roma: Istituto della Enciclopedia Italiana, 1960- (HLR 920.045). For the later part of the alphabet in such cases, consult the printed indexes (shelved at the same number) to the Saur microfiche archives (see below) or alternatively the country encyclopedias at HLR 032.044 and HLR 032.045. Some national dictionaries of biography have preferred a chronological arrangement with index. Two such works are: Australian dictionary of biography. Melbourne: Melbourne University Press, 1966- (HLR 920.094) and Dictionary of Canadian biography. Toronto: Toronto University Press, 1966- (HLR 920.071). Foreign biographical archives on microfiche. In recent years the Library has acquired a number of these extremely valuable reference tools, together with their corresponding printed index volumes. Some are devoted to one country such as:
American biographical archives. Series I, II and III. Munich: Saur, 1986-2005 (HLM 920.073). American biographical Index. Compiled by Laureen Baillie. 2nd. ed. 10 vols. [Index to Series I and II]. Munich: Saur, 1998 (HLR 920.073). Others are devoted to a continent or region, e.g.
Baltic biographical archive. Munich: Saur, 1995-1998 (HLM 920.0474). Baltischer biographischer Index. Compiled by Axel Frey. 3 vols. Munich: Saur, 1999 (HLR 920.0474). For a listing of other titles in this series, see the separate information sheet: Biographical sources on microfiche. For advice, please ask at the Reference Enquiry Desk.
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SPECIALISED BIOGRAPHICAL DICTIONARIES These are dispersed throughout the Dewey Decimal Classification scheme. There is space here for a small selection only. They are listed in Dewey number order: Butler’s Lives of the saints. New full ed. General consultant editor David Hugh Farmer. 12 vols. Tunbridge Wells: Burns & Oates, 1995-2000 (HLR 270.0922) Dictionary of business biography: a biographical dictionary of business leaders active in Britain in the period 1860-1980. Edited by David J. Jeremy. 5 vols. London: Butterworth, 1984-1986 (HLR 338.6). A supplement includes an index to all people referred to in the work. There is a companion Dictionary of Scottish business biography in two volumes (HLR 338.6). National Maritime Museum, Catalogue of the Library. Vol. 2: Biography. [In 2 parts]. London: H.M.S.O., 1969 (HLR 359). Part one lists both collective and individual biography; part two is a reference index to maritime biography, indexing entries in 21 biographical works. Naval biographical dictionaries are at HLR 359.00922. Dictionary of scientific biography. Charles Coulston Gillispie, editor in chief. 18 vols. New York: Scribner’s, 1970-1990 (HLR 509.22) Wellcome Institute for the History of Medicine, Subject catalogue of the history of medicine and related sciences. Biographical section. 5 vols. München: Kraus, 1980 (HLR 610.9). Many journal articles are indexed in this specialised library catalogue. Medical references to the famous are included, e.g. to Beethoven, Napoleon, etc. Artists of the world online: biographical information on approximately 1 million artists. P. Highfill et al., Biographical dictionary of actors, actresses, musicians, dancers, managers and other stage personnel in London, 1660-1800. 16 vols. Carbondale: Southern Illinois University Press, 1973-1993 (HLR 790.2 and in the Music Reading Area in Rare Books at MUS 792.092). Dictionary of literary biography. Detroit: Gale Research, 1982- (HLR 809) and online within Literature resource center.
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Literature online (online): includes biographies of English and American authors. Literature resource center (online): biographies, bibliographies and critical analysis of authors from every age and literary discipline.
Burke’s peerage & baronetage (HLR Enquiry Desk 929.72) and Burke’s landed gentry of Great Britain (HLR 929.72) are both available in printed form, and online. Credo Reference (online): a reference library of encyclopaedias, dictionaries, thesauri and other reference sources which also includes biographical dictionaries and Debrett’s peerage and baronetage.
FURTHER RESOURCES To trace further biographical references you may wish to consult, amongst others, the following resources: the Times index (HUR 072.1) and the Times Digital Archive ; the registers of university graduates at HLR 378.411 to HLR 378.429 and at RAR 378.42, and the catalogues of portraits at HLR 704.942; the other humanities reader guides in this series; the guide to selected microform research collections in the humanities (HLR Enquiry Desk 011.36); the comprehensive guides to reference sources in the British Library (HLR Enquiry Desk); and the British Library Sound Archive Catalogue, since this contains such material as interviews with poets, politicians, etc., and contributions to the National Life Story Collection. You might also consider conducting a search on the website of the National Register of Archives (www.nra.nationalarchives.gov.uk/nra/). Finally, a selection of UK and overseas newspaper indexes containing biographical references is available in the Newsroom; where electronic versions of these are available, they may also be accessed from the St. Pancras reading rooms. This site is scheduled to close in the next year or two.
April 2012
