Reference Websites

Please see Rooms at the left for subject-specific websites.

Biographies · Country Facts · Dictionaries · Encyclopedias · Maps · Quotations · Statistics

Biographies

Biography.com

This website, developed by the A&E Television Network, includes information about historic figures and modern day celebrities and political figures.

Country Facts

NationMaster

This site calls itself "a massive central data source … the web’s one-stop resource for country statistics on everything from soldiers to wall plug voltages."

Department of State Background Notes

Government, politics, history and foreign relations.

CIA World Fact Book

Basic overview with statistics and a focus on international issues (illegal drug and human trafficking, current international disputes)

Dictionaries

Merriam-Webster’s
Webster’s Online Dictionary
Visual Dictionary

Encyclopedias

Encyclopedia Britannica

Maps

Odden’s Bookmarks

This site contains links to hundreds of maps that serve all different purposes. It is useful if you are looking for a very specific kind of map.

Google Maps Distance Calculator
Columbia Gazetteer of North America

This is not a map, but it lets you look up any place name and will tell you where it is located, its history and population.

Quotations

Eigen’s Political and Historical Quotations
Quotations at Bartleby.com
Little Oxford Dictionary of Quotations

Statistics

U.S. Census

The Census contains all kinds of information on population, professions, incomes, housing, and more.

Statistical Resources on the Web

From the University of Michigan. Look up almost any topic to find a link to a site with statistics. Includes international statistics as well as U.S.

Feedback

Email comments and suggestions to: librarydesk@arcadia.edu