List of encyclopedias by branch of knowledge

This is a list of notable encyclopedias sorted by branch of knowledge. For the purposes of this list, an encyclopedia is defined as a "compendium that contains information on either all branches of knowledge or a particular branch of knowledge." For other sorting standards, see List of encyclopedias.

Catalan

 * Gran Enciclopèdia Catalana – Catalan-language encyclopedia, started in fascicles, and published in 1968 by Edicions 62

Chinese

 * Encyclopedia of China
 * Complete Classics Collection of Ancient China – Chinese language encyclopedia completed in 1725 (10 million Chinese characters)
 * Yongle Encyclopedia – once contained 11,095 volumes and around 370 million Chinese characters but now contains less than 400 volumes

Czech

 * Riegrův slovník naučný – first Czech encyclopedia published in 1860–1874 with 11 volumes, supplement vol. in 1890, online)
 * Otto's encyclopedia – largest Czech-language encyclopedia published between 1888 and 1908 (28 vols) and 1930–1943 (12 vols, incomplete). Volumes 1–28 online
 * Příruční slovník naučný – first post-war encyclopedia. With strong communist ideology. Four volumes, 1962–1967.
 * Malá československá encklopedie – Small Czechoslovak encyclopedia, it was supposed to be forerunner to Great Czechoslovak encyclopedia that was never published, 6 volumes, 1984–1987.
 * Diderot (8 volumes, 1999–2000)
 * Universum (10 volumes, 1999–2001)
 * Czech Wikipedia (2002–)

Danish

 * Den Store Danske Encyklopædi

Dutch

 * Winkler Prins – published in print between 1870 and 1993 and made available digitally to the present day
 * Oosthoek – published between 1907 and 1981
 * Christelijke Encyclopedie – published between 1926 and 2005
 * Eerste Nederlandse Systematisch Ingerichte Encyclopaedie – published between 1946 and 1952
 * Standaard Encyclopedie – published between 1969 and 1974 by Standaard Uitgeverij Antwerpen
 * Grote Nederlandse Larousse Encyclopedie – published between 1971 and 1979
 * Grote Spectrum Encyclopedie – published between 1974 and 1980

English

 * Academic American Encyclopedia – 21-volume work published in 1980, also issued by Grolier under the names Barnes & Noble New American Encyclopedia, Global International Encyclopedia, Grolier Academic Encyclopedia, Grolier International Encyclopedia, Lexicon Universal Encyclopedia, and Macmillan Family Encyclopedia
 * Chambers's Encyclopaedia – published in 1859 by W. Chambers and R. Chambers
 * The Children's Encyclopedia – by Arthur Mee, published 1908–64 in the UK and in the US starting in 1910 as Grolier's The Book of Knowledge
 * Children's Illustrated Encyclopedia – published by Dorling Kindersley
 * Collier's Encyclopedia
 * Columbia Encyclopedia – one-volume encyclopedia from Columbia University Press last published in 2000
 * The Complete Compendium of Universal Knowledge (1891)
 * Compton's Encyclopedia – 26-volume encyclopedia
 * Compton's Interactive Encyclopedia
 * Cyclopædia, or an Universal Dictionary of Arts and Sciences – 1728 publication by Ephraim Chambers
 * Dobson's Encyclopædia – first encyclopedia printed in the United States, but mostly a reprint of the Encyclopædia Britannica Third Edition
 * Edinburgh Encyclopædia – 18 volumes printed and published by William Blackwood and edited by David Brewster between 1808 and 1830
 * Encyclopædia Britannica – one of the best-known encyclopedias in English, online-only since 2010
 * Encyclopædia Britannica Ultimate Reference Suite – DVD version of Encyclopædia Britannica
 * Encyclopædia Metropolitana – 39 volumes in 59 parts published between 1817 and 1845
 * Encyclopedia Americana – both a print work and currently a part of Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia
 * English Cyclopaedia – 23 volumes, published 1854–1862
 * English Encyclopaedia – 10 volumes, published in 1802
 * Everybody's Enquire Within – illustrated book of miscellaneous knowledge issued in weekly instalments from 1937 to 1938
 * Everyman's Encyclopaedia – published by Joseph Dent from 1913 as part of the Everyman's Library
 * Everything2 – collaborative Web-based database of interlinked user-submitted articles
 * Funk & Wagnalls Standard Encyclopedia – first published in 1912; changed its name to Funk & Wagnalls New Standard Encyclopedia in 1931
 * Grolier Multimedia Encyclopedia – electronic encyclopedia published by Grolier
 * Groliers Encyclopedia
 * Harmsworth's Universal Encyclopaedia – edited by John Alexander Hammerton and published 1921–22
 * Hutchinson Encyclopedia – single-volume work first published in 1948
 * New American Cyclopedia – 16 volumes published between 1857 and 1866
 * Nupedia – peer reviewed, open content online encyclopedia project, currently inactive
 * Open Site – effort inspired by, but not officially affiliated with, the Open Directory Project
 * Oracle Encyclopædia – five-volume encyclopedia published in 1895
 * An Outline of Modern Knowledge – published in 1931 by Victor Gollancz
 * Pears Cyclopaedia – one-volume encyclopaedia published annually in the United Kingdom
 * Probert Encyclopaedia – online topical encyclopedia consisting of almost 100,000 short entries, published by Mathew Probert and based in the United Kingdom
 * World Book Encyclopedia – designed for family use; the world's best selling print encyclopedia

French

 * Découvertes Gallimard – illustrated encyclopaedia in pocket format, 588 volumes plus 150⁺ volumes of spin-offs, published 1986–present
 * Encyclopédie, ou dictionnaire raisonné des sciences, des arts et des métiers – contributed by the Encyclopédistes, edited by Denis Diderot and Jean le Rond d'Alembert, published 1751–1772

German

 * Allgemeine Encyclopädie der Wissenschaften und Künste – very large, unfinished 19th-century encyclopaedia by Ersch and Gruber in 167 volumes
 * Brockhaus Enzyklopädie – best-known encyclopedia in German, online-only since 2014
 * Grosses vollständiges Universal-Lexicon – huge 18th-century encyclopedia by Johann Heinrich Zedler
 * Meyers Konversations-Lexikon
 * Oeconomische Encyclopädie – Started by Johann Georg Krünitz in 1773 and finished 1858 in 242 volumes

Italian

 * Treccani – also known as Enciclopedia Italiana di Scienze, Lettere ed Arti

Latin

 * Lexicon Universale – published in 1698

Persian

 * The Book of Healing – 30-volume Persian-language encyclopedia published by Avicenna in 1027 (کتاب الشفاء Kitāb al-Šifāʾ, Latin: Sufficientia)
 * The Persian Encyclopedia – three-volume encyclopedia edited by Gholamhossein Mosahab, partially based on the early editions of the Columbia Encyclopedia

Polish

 * Nowe Ateny – published in 1745–1746
 * Universal Encyclopedia – 1859, 28 volumes, Orgelbrand
 * Wielka Encyklopedia Powszechna PWN – 1962–1970, 13 volumes, PWN
 * Wielka Encyklopedia PWN – 2001–2005, 31 volumes, PWN

Portuguese

 *  – since 2003
 * Barsa – since 1964
 *  – 1997–2009
 * Enciclopédia Verbo Luso-Brasileira de Cultura – Edição Século XXI (Verbo Luso-Brazilian Encyclopædia of Culture – 21st-Century Edition) – 1998–2009
 * Grande Enciclopédia Portuguesa e Brasileira (Grand Portuguese and Brazilian Encyclopædia) – 1936–1999
 * Grande Enciclopédia Larousse Cultural (Grand Cultural Encyclopædia Larousse) – 1998
 *  (Luso-Brazilian Encyclopædia of Culture) – 1963–1995
 * Lello Universal – Dicionário Enciclopédico Luso-Brasileiro (Lello Universal – Luso-Brazilian Encyclopædic Dictionary)
 * Conhecer (To Know) – 1966–1981, adapted from Knowledge
 *  (International Mirador Encyclopædia) – 1976
 *  ( Verbo Children's Encyclopædia) – 1976
 * Grande Enciclopédia Delta Larousse (Delta Larousse Grand Emcyclopædia) – 1970, adapted from the Grand Larousse encyclopédique
 * Focus – Enciclopédia Internacional (Focus – International Encyclopædia) – 1964
 * Enciclopédia Delta Larousse (Delta Larousse Encyclopædia) – 1960, adapted from the Encyclopédie Larousse méthodique
 * Trópico – Enciclopédia Ilustrada em Cores (Trópico – Colour Illustrated Encyclopædia) – 1957
 *  (Globo Brazilian Encyclopædia) – 1943
 * Tesouro da Juventude (Youth's Thesaurus) – 1920, adapted from The Children's Encyclopædia

Russian

 * Brockhaus and Efron – imperial encyclopedia in 86 volumes
 * Great Soviet Encyclopedia (Большая Советская Энциклопедия) – second largest and most comprehensive encyclopedia in Russian; there were three editions; the third edition of 1969–78 contains 30 volumes
 * Great Russian Encyclopedia – universal Russian encyclopedia, completed in 36 volumes (2004–2017)

Slovak

 * Slovenský náučný slovník. 3 volumes 1932. First general encyclopedia in Slovak language.
 * Pyramída. Published between 1971 and 1990 in journal form (224 issues).
 * Malá slovenská encyklopédia. 1 volume 1993
 * Encyclopaedia Beliana. 20 planned volumes, 1999–, 9 volumes published as of 2021
 * Všeobecný encyklopedický slovník. 2002, four volumes
 * Slovak Wikipedia. 2003–
 * Univerzum – všeobecná obrazová encyklopédia A – Ž. 1 volume, 2011

Slovenian

 * Enciklopedija Slovenije

Spanish

 * Enciclopedia Libre Universal (also known as Enciclopedia Libre) – project to create a Spanish encyclopedia using wiki software, released under the GFDL
 * Enciclopedia universal ilustrada europeo-americana – largest encyclopedia of its time; also known as Enciclopedia Espasa o Enciclopedia Espasa-Calpe

Swedish

 * Nationalencyklopedin – encyclopedia in Swedish
 * Susning.nu – project to create a Swedish-language encyclopedia using wiki software; an anyone-can-edit encyclopedia until 2004; shut down in 2009

Turkish

 * Anabritannica – published in Turkey and based on the Britannica Micropædia

Ukrainian

 * Ukrainian Soviet Encyclopedia (Українська радянська енциклопедія) – encyclopedia in Ukrainian; its first edition was 17 volumes

Multiple languages

 * Microsoft Encarta – computer-based encyclopedia published by Microsoft, now discontinued
 * Wikipedia – world's largest free encyclopedia; a project to create a comprehensive encyclopedia using wiki software

Australia

 * Australian Encyclopaedia (1925, 1958, 1977, 1983, 1988, 1996)

Austria

 * aeiou Encyclopedia (1996ff.)

Bangladesh

 * Banglapedia – 10 volumes published in 2003; bilingual; English and Bengali

Brazil

 *  – 2020
 *  – 2001
 *  – 1960–2010
 *  – 1981
 *  – 1972
 *  – 1969
 *  – 1957

Canada

 * The Canadian Encyclopedia (1985 and 1988)

Croatia

 * Hrvatska opća enciklopedija (started in 1999 – 7th vol. 2005 of 11)

Ethiopia

 * Encyclopaedia Aethiopica – basic reference work for Ethiopian and Eritrean studies

Germany

 * Deutsche Biographie (Biographical dictionary of Germans)

Iceland

 * Icelandic Encyclopedia A–Ö

Iran

 * Encyclopædia Iranica – on Iranian peoples and Persia
 * Encyclopaedia Islamica
 * Encyclopaedia of Imam Ali
 * The Encyclopedia of Iranian Old Music – published in Tehran, 2000
 * Encyclopaedia of Persian Language and Literature – published by the Academy of Persian Language and Literature in Persian in Tehran
 * Encyclopaedia of Shia

Italy

 * Dizionario Biografico degli Italiani (Biographical dictionary of Italians) – Istituto dell'Enciclopedia Italiana

Malaysia

 * The Encyclopedia of Malaysia – published from 1998 to 2007

Morocco

 * Maelimat al-maghrib (معلمة المغرب) – published between 1989 and 2006 totaling 27 volumes.

New Zealand

 * The Cyclopedia of New Zealand (1897–1908) – unofficial; most subjects paid to have their articles appear; online at the New Zealand Electronic Text Centre
 * An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand (1966–) – official
 * Te Ara: The Encyclopedia of New Zealand (2005–) – official, incorporating the full text of An Encyclopaedia of New Zealand

Poland

 * Encyklopedia Polski (Encyclopedia of Poland) – 2005, 10 volumes

Portugal

 *  (Grand Encyclopædic Dictionary of Madeira) – since 2016
 *  (Azorean Encyclopædia) – since 2008
 *  (Madeiran Glossary) – 1921–1940

Slovakia

 * Encyklopédia Slovenska. (Encyclopedia of Slovakia) 6 volumes, 1977–1982.

Slovenia

 * Enciklopedija Slovenije – published in 1987–2002

Sweden

 * Nordisk familjebok – encyclopedia in Swedish

Ukraine

 * Encyclopedia of Ukraine – English five-volume version of the Encyclopedia of Ukrainian Studies
 * Internet Encyclopedia of Ukraine – online version of the Encyclopedia of Ukraine
 * Encyclopedia of Modern Ukraine – multi-volume comprehensive encyclopedia about Ukraine from the 20th and 21st centuries

United Kingdom

 * The London Encyclopaedia – 1007-page reference of the city of London; pub. 1983

United States

 * Encyclopedia of Chicago
 * Encyclopedia of New Jersey
 * The Encyclopedia of New York City
 * Handbook of Texas

Yugoslavia

 * Enciklopedija Jugoslavije
 * Opća enciklopedija JLZ (1977–82)

Art and architecture

 * Encyclopedia of Vernacular Architecture of the World – in 3 volumes (1997)
 * Grove Dictionary of Art – in 34 volumes (1996)

Entertainment

 * Allgame – comprehensive online guide to computer and video games created by All Media Guide
 * Allmovie – comprehensive online guide to movies created by All Media Guide
 * Allmusic – comprehensive online guide to music created by All Media Guide
 * The Aurum Film Encyclopedia
 * The Motion Picture Guide

Environmental science

 * Encyclopedia of Earth (EoE) – electronic reference about the Earth, its natural environments, and their interaction with society
 * Encyclopedia of Life Support Systems (EOLSS) – sponsored by UNESCO—an interdisciplinary encyclopedia, inspired by the sustainable development movement

Fashion and dress

 * Berg Encyclopedia of World Dress and Fashion – edited by Joanne B. Eicher, 10 volumes

Fiction

 * The Rocklopedia Fakebandica – by T. Mike Childs, published in 2004
 * The Star Trek Encyclopedia
 * TV Tropes

History and biography

 * African American National Biography
 * Africana – The Encyclopedia of the African and African-American Experience
 * American National Biography
 * Appleton's Cyclopedia of American Biography – 19th-century American encyclopedia
 * Conspiracy Encyclopedia
 * An Encyclopedia of World History – single-volume work; First Edition, 1940; Sixth Edition, 2001
 * Encyklopedia Polski
 * Harper's Encyclopedia of United States History
 *  (Great Figures of our History) – Brazilian encyclopædia published in 1969
 *  (Great Figures of World History) – Brazilian encyclopædia published in 1970
 * Lexikon des Mittelalters – German encyclopedia of medieval history, published in 1980
 * Oxford Classical Dictionary – despite the name, a one-volume encyclopedia for antiquity

Law

 * American Jurisprudence
 * Corpus Juris Secundum
 * Halsbury's Laws of Australia
 * Halsbury's Laws of England
 * Stair Memorial Encyclopaedia
 * Encyclopedia of Law

International and comparative law

 * Max Planck Encyclopedia of Public International Law

Library and Information Science
Encyclopedia of Library and Information Sciences

Literature

 * Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia
 * Benet's Reader's Encyclopedia of American Literature
 * The Cambridge History of English and American Literature
 * The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction – first published in 1979 by John Clute and Peter Nicholls
 * Encyclopaedia of Indian Literature
 * Literary Encyclopedia (Литературная энциклопедия) – 11 volumes, 1929–39 (incomplete; 12th volume draft later published)
 * The Literary Encyclopedia – online encyclopedia started in 2000
 * The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural – published in 1986; edited by Jack Sullivan
 * The Poets' Encyclopedia – edited by Michael Andre
 * Soviet Concise Literary Encyclopedia – Soviet-era encyclopedia of literature; 9 volumes published between 1962 and 1978
 * Cyrillo-Methodian Encyclopedia of the Institute of Literature at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences from 1985 to 2003.
 * Kindlers Literature Encyclopedia – german encyclopedia about world literature. Online-only since 2009
 * Killy Literaturlexikon – german encyclopedia about german authors. Second edition in 12 volumes from 2008 to 2011.

Mathematics

 * CRC Concise Encyclopedia of Mathematics – second edition 2002, based on Mathworld
 * Encyclopaedia of Mathematics – published by Springer Verlag in 2002
 * Encyclopedia of Cryptography and Security – published by Springer-Verlag in 2005
 * Encyclopedic Dictionary of Mathematics (EDM2) – second edition published in 1993 by The Mathematical Society of Japan
 * Klein's encyclopedia – published 1898–1935
 * Mathworld – online encyclopedia by Eric Weisstein
 * On-Line Encyclopedia of Integer Sequences (OEIS)
 * planetmath

Medicine

 * Kitab al-Tasrif (The Method of Medicine) – by Abu al-Qasim al-Zahrawi (Abulcasis)
 * The Canon of Medicine – by Avicenna
 * Encyclopedia of Public Health
 * Medical Compendium in Seven Books – by Paul of Aegina in the 7th century CE; it was the most complete medical encyclopedia in its day
 * Taber's Cyclopedic Medical Dictionary

Music

 * Eerste Nederlandse Pop Encyclopedie
 * Encyclopedia of Popular Music
 * The Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians
 * International Encyclopedia of Women Composers
 * Musik in Geschichte und Gegenwart
 * The New Grove Dictionary of Opera
 *  (Musicians of Brazil: an Instrumental Encyclopædia)

Nautical

 * List of nautical dictionaries

Philosophy

 * Encyclopedia of Philosophy – edited by Paul Edwards
 * Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy – online encyclopedia
 * Routledge Encyclopedia of Philosophy
 * Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy – online encyclopedia

Christianity

 *  – 17th-century (1652–1744) Portuguese encyclopædia on hagiography and ecclesiastical matters
 * The Catholic Encyclopedia – 1907–1912 (15 vls.)
 * Encyclopædia Biblica
 * Encyclopedia of Christianity – John Stephen Bowden, ed., 1 vol., Oxford UP, 2006
 * Encyclopedia of Mormonism
 * Lexikon für Theologie und Kirche – 1930–38 (10 vls.)
 * New Catholic encyclopedia – 1967–96 (15 vls. and 4 supplementary vls.); 2. ed. 2003 (15 vls.)
 * Theologische Realenzyklopädie (TRE) – ed. Gerhard Müller. 38 vls.; Berlin 1977–2007
 * Twentieth Century Encyclopedia of Catholicism – Hawthorn Books. 150 vls.; New York City 1958–1971

Islam

 * Encyclopaedia Islamica
 * Encyclopaedia of Imam Ali
 * Encyclopaedia of Islam
 * Encyclopaedia of Shia
 * The Hussaini Encyclopedia
 * Urdu Encyclopaedia of Islam
 * Islami Bishwakosh

Judaism

 * Encyclopaedia Judaica – published 1972–91, second edition 2006
 * Jewish Encyclopedia – published 1901–06; original full 12 volumes
 * Shorter Jewish Encyclopedia in Russian – 11 volumes, published 1976–2005 in Jerusalem
 * Talmudic Encyclopedia
 * The YIVO Encyclopedia of Jews in Eastern Europe – Yale University Press, 2008

Hinduism

 * Encyclopedia of Hinduism – published 2012

Science

 * Encyclopedia Astronautica – reference website maintained by space-travel enthusiast Mark Wade
 * Encyclopedia of Analytical Chemistry – Wiley, 2000, 15 volumes
 * Encyclopedia of Flora and Fauna of Bangladesh
 * Encyclopedia of Genetics
 * Encyclopedia of Life Sciences (ELS) – owned by John Wiley & Sons; both a 20-volume print edition and an online edition
 * The Illustrated Science and Invention Encyclopedia
 * McGraw-Hill Encyclopedia of Science and Technology – also available in a one-volume edition
 * The New Encyclopedia of Snakes
 * Larousse Encyclopædia of Animal Life

Chemical Engineering

 * Ullmann's Encyclopedia of Industrial Chemistry – currently in its 7th edition; first edition in German available in the public domain.

Social sciences

 * International Encyclopedia of the Social & Behavioral Sciences – edited by Neil Smelser and Paul Baltes, 26 vls., Elsevier, 2001
 * International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences – edited by David L. Sills, New York, New York (etc.); Macmillan, 1968
 * International Encyclopedia of the Social Sciences – edited by William A. Darity, Jr., Detroit (etc.); Macmillan Reference USA, 2008

Economics

 * The New Palgrave Dictionary of Economics – 2nd Edition (2008)

Sports

 * The Baseball Encyclopedia
 * Total Baseball, The Ultimate Baseball Encyclopedia – 2004, by John Thorn et al.
 * World Sports Encyclopedia – 2003, Atena/MBI

Other

 * Atlas of the Prehistoric World
 * Above and Beyond: The Encyclopedia of Aviation and Space Sciences
 * Christie's World Encyclopedia of Champagne & Sparkling Wine
 * Encyclopedia of Cybernetics
 * Encyclopedia of Marxism – online encyclopedia released under the GNU Free Documentation License, part of the Marxist Internet Archive.
 * The Grocer's Encyclopedia
 * Illustrated Encyclopedia of Aircraft
 * Larousse Gastronomique – encyclopedia of food and cooking
 * A Military Encyclopedia
 * Mining Encyclopedia
 * MusicBrainz – project to create a free music encyclopedia, released under the Open Content License; the first goal is to create a database similar to CDDB
 * The Oxford Companion to Wine
 * Perelman's Pocket Cyclopedia of Cigars – encyclopedia and history of (Non-Cuban) cigars and their manufacturers (also Perelman's Pocket Cyclopaedia of Havana Cigars)
 * The Sotheby's Wine Encyclopedia
 *  (Little Encyclopædia of Morality and Civism) – Brazilian state-sponsored school encyclopædia during the military dictatorship
 * Encyclopedia Recipica – Encyclopedia of Recipe