Reference sources

This section highlights Kent’s digital reference sources that are relevant to literature and creative writing. These are all included in LibrarySearch. You may find it helpful to browse the sources in the list below directly by your subject or the topic you are studying/researching so that you get the specialised discipline focus that you may need.

Using reference sources

These reference resources can be a really useful starting point for your research. They will give a good overview and help to highlight the important aspects of broader topics which can assist with how you focus your search and choose your keywords. You will see that they are all coming from academic publishers too, so they will have gone through a peer review process and you can be sure that the information you are getting has been quality checked and is accurate.

Oxford English Dictionary (OED) online

The Oxford English Dictionary (OED) is the authoritative dictionary of the English language – find out exactly what words mean, and also what they used to mean; includes the Oxford Historical Thesaurus.

Oxford Reference Online

Oxford Reference Online is a large collection of subject dictionaries and guides.

Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus

Dictionary of Old English Web Corpus consists of at least one copy of every surviving Old English text; it covers over 3 million words of Old English and ca 1 million words of Latin.

Oxford Bibliography of Victorian Literature

Oxford Bibliography of Victorian Literature contains the features of annotated bibliography and high-level encyclopedia.

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (ODNB)

Oxford Dictionary of National Biography (ODNB) is an illustrated collection of specially written biographies of people from around the world who shaped all aspects of Britain’s past.

American National Biography

American National Biography contains biographies of over 18,000 men and women from all eras and walks to life, whose lives have shaped America.