Great starting points for any research topic. They provide background information on people, historical events, political movements, all of which are excellent research terms.
'Updated edition of this lauded work on Judaism features more than 21,000 entries on Jewish life, culture, history, and religion, written by Israeli, American and European subject specialists.' (from database homepage)
Written by the most prominent scholars in American Jewish history, this encyclopedia illuminates the varied experiences of America's Jews and their impact on American society and culture over three and a half centuries. - Publisher ABC-Clio
This second edition, which is intended to reflect both changes in academia and in the world since 1987, includes almost all of the 2,750 original entries -- many heavily updated -- as well as approximately 600 entirely new articles. Preserving the best of Eliade's cross-cultural approach, while emphasizing religion's role within everyday life and as a unique experience from culture to culture, this new edition is the definitive work in the field for the 21st century.