Online Biographical Reference Works
- Artists of the World Online This link opens in a new window
This database contains the world's most current, reliable, and extensive reference work on artists. It has authoritative, up-to-date biographical information on more than 1.2 million artists - more than any other database in the world. It covers all genres of fine arts, painting, graphics, sculpture, architecture, photography, video, installation art, and much more.
- Biography Reference Bank (1 user) This link opens in a new window
A conglomerate of biography databases, offering images and some full text sources.
- Dictionary of Literary Biography This link opens in a new window
More than 16,000 biographical and critical essays on the lives, works, and careers of the world's most influential literary figures from all eras and genres. Includes the DLB main series, the DLB Documentary Series, and the DLB Yearbook Series. Learn more about this database
- Encyclopaedia Britannica Online This link opens in a new window
Online edition of the Encyclopaedia Britannica, covering all subjects.
- Killy Literaturlexikon This link opens in a new window
Bio-bibliographical articles about German-language authors from the Middle Ages to the present. Also includes journalists, screenplay authors, literary scholars, and writers of specialist literature.
- KLG Online (Kritisches Lexikon zur deutschsprachigen Gegenwartsliteratur) This link opens in a new windowA bio-bibliographical database of contemporary (post-1945) German-speaking authors. Part of Nachschlage.NET.
- Literary Encyclopedia This link opens in a new window
Over 5100 authoritative profiles of authors, works and literary and historical topics, written by over 2000 specialists from universities around the world. Also lists over 22,000 works by date, country and genre. Covers canonical literature originally written in English, French, German and Russian, and is extending its coverage of Italian, Spanish, Latin and Greek. Data can be arrayed by date, country and genre.
- Verfasser Datenbank (Database of Authors) This link opens in a new window
Over 20,000 articles on literary authors in the German-speaking world from the Middle Ages to the present, drawn from the standard reference works Die deutsche Literatur des Mittelalters, Deutscher Humanismus 1480–1520, Frühe Neuzeit in Deutschland 1520–1620 and the Killy-Literaturlexikon.
- World Biographical Information System (WBIS) Online This link opens in a new windowProvides short biographical information on 5.49 million people from the 8th century B.C. to the present. Note that the WU Libraries subscribe only to the index, not to the full-text articles.
- AEIOU Österreich-LexikonProvides culturally relevant information about Austria, including Austrian literary figures.
- Brockhaus Konversationslexikon - 14. Auflage (1894-1896)16 vols. Late 19th-century edition.
- Deutsche BiographieSearches Allgemeine Deutsche Biographie (ADB, Neue Deutsche Biographie (NDB), & other biographical reference, lexika.
- Meyers Konversationslexikon - 4. Auflage (1885-1892)19 vols. Major competitor to the Brockhaus encyclopedia until their merger in 1986.
- Oxford Companion to German LiteratureCovers authors and their major works as well as historical, intellectual and cultural periods of German-speaking countries from 8th century to mid-1990s.
- Zedlers Grosses Universal-LexikonMajor 18th century German encyclopedia.
Print Biographical References Works
Metzler Lexikon Autoren : deutschsprachige Dichter und Schriftsteller vom Mittelalter bis zur Gegenwart by ISBN: 9783476023049Publication Date: 2010Bio-bibliography of 400 German authors from the middle ages to the present.
Deutsche Biographische Enzyklopadie by ISBN: 3598231601Publication Date: 1995-01-01A German biographical encyclopedia
Metzler Lexikon der Deutsch-Jüdischen Literatur by Call Number: PT1109.J4 M48 2012ISBN: 9783476024572Publication Date: 2012Bio-bibliography of 310 German-Jewish authors
Kürschners deutscher Literatur-KalenderCall Number: Z2230 K92ISBN: 9783110769722Publication Date: 1937-A reference work that lists not only currently around 12,000 bio-bibliographic articles and addresses of writers of German literature, but also translators, publishers, agencies, radio stations, writers‘ associations' academies, literary magazines and feuilletons as well as literary prizes and awards in the German-speaking countries. Currently it is published every other year in two volumes by the publisher Walter de Gruyter. The reference work is named after the specialist in German studies Joseph Kürschner.
