Overview
This latest addition to the Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia explains why people throughout the world live as they do; it sets out their beliefs; their political and economic systems; and their social and cultural structures, providing a useful handbook to the issues, ideas, and institutions underlying current affairs. Sixty specialists have contributed the 2,200 entries under the guidance of forty expert advisers. The entries are arranged alphabetically and range in length from 60 to 1,000 words. Subjects covered include religions; political systems and theory; economics, commerce, and management; communications and advertising; law and legal systems; philosophy; psychology; international relations and development issues; sociology; sports; education; social services; health and welfare. Biographies of the major figures in their field are given. Entries reflect the variety of information required in today's hybrid society, and special attention is given to different cultural viewpoints. The additional forty-page illustrated section on the countries of the world includes an entry, locator map, and table of statistics for each country, which summarize the country's political and economic structure.
Editorials
This seventh volume in the "Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia" series "explains how and why people throughout the world live as they do" and also covers the major political and economic systems that are influential in today's global village. More than 2,200 brief entries cover the important ideas and institutions active in society, the major problems facing various countries, as well as ethnic, religious, and cultural groups. The focus of the work is contemporary but with a historical perspective showing impacts on current trends The entries in the main portion of the book are in an alphabetic sequence and range in length from a few sentences to more than 500 words. Numerous cross-references are denoted by asterisks. Entries are provided for important concepts from a wide range of subjects. All major world religions are covered, as well as a variety of peoples (e.g., "Cherokee", "Ibo", "Palestinians", etc.). Economic, political, and legal ideas and institutions are discussed in such entries as "Balance of Power", "Co-operative", "Military-Industrial Complex" and "International Court of Justice". International organizations, such as the "Arab League" and the "Council of Europe", are profiled, and entries are included for a vast array of terms from philosophy ("Idealism"), education ("Literacy"), and the social sciences ("Psychosexual Development"). A limited number of biographical entries are included for important historical figures whose ideas continue to be influential, such as "Muhammed", "Plato", and "Marx" As with all volumes in the series, the book is written in nontechnical language and provides concise, informative explanations. Enhancing the work are attractive color and black-and-white photographs, charts, graphs, and diagrams. For example, a full page is devoted to diagrams of the playing fields for various versions of football; small maps depict the countries hosting the most refugees; and an organizational chart of the United Nations is included. Following the main encyclopedic sequence is another A-Z arrangement covering "Countries of the World." Each country profile includes basic economic, political, and demographic facts, as well as a paragraph of narrative description. These are relatively current, with many statistics from the late 1980s; facts in some narratives are as recent as 1992 The "Oxford Illustrated Encyclopedia of Peoples and Cultures" is a necessary purchase for libraries owning other volumes in the set. While the multivolume "Encyclopedia of World Cultures" ["RBB" Jl 91] offers more in-depth coverage, the Oxford title is an effective one-volume resource for high school, public, and small academic libraries that cannot afford the larger work.