An admirable effort to present a comprehensive and unbiased source reference integrating the cultures, political systems, and societies of the Middle East into four volumes. The encyclopedia covers the 19th and 20th centuries from Afghanistan to the Sudan, delving into politics, economics, religion, history, literature, art, and the most influential figures of each country, particularly as they relate to modern conflicts. Naturally, given this scope, the entries tend toward the brief side but offer bibliographies. Includes maps and photographs. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.
Grade 10 Up. This informative and broad-ranging encyclopedia focuses on historical, political, and biographical information and issues related to 24 countries in the Middle East. It attempts to provide "scholarly, balanced, and proportionate coverage of the conflict between Arabs and Israelis...and to integrate that issue into the fabric of Middle East politics and culture." By and large, this resource succeeds in this goal, even though the coverage is uneven in currency. The article on Israel strangely ends its historical coverage in 1993, while a separate biographical piece on Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu goes through May 1996. The essays related to Palestinian issues and people tend to be sympathetic to their cause, and those on Israel and Israelis tend to be supportive of Israel's stance on many issues; however, criticism of both the PLO and Israel appears in some entries. Most of the articles conclude with a short list of sources. Generally dark and undistinguished black-and-white photos and maps supplement the text. A 12-page appendix details the genealogical lineage and lines of succession for royal families in Morocco, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Egypt, Bahrain, Persia and Iran, and the Ottoman Empire; the 12 imams of Islam are also listed. Biographical entries are enumerated by vocational category or profession. The subject index is unusually thorough and helpful. While not comprehensive, this clearly written encyclopedia provides a wealth of information and a minimum of partisanship on a region of the world that continues to generate controversy and conflict.?Jack Forman, Mesa College Library, San Diego
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
The editors, all associated with the Columbia University Middle East Institute of Palestine Studies, Washington, D.C., have aimed to create a comprehensive reference work for the English-speaking general public that would provide balanced, proportionate, scholarly coverage of the Middle East from 1800 to the present. In this ambitious undertaking they have succeeded admirably. The four-volume set contains over 4000 signed articles (most with bibliographies) covering the 24 countries of the Middle East from Morocco to Afghanistan, including Israel and other non-Arab, non-Muslim countries such as Cyprus and Malta. The extent of coverage of a topic was determined by its usefulness and relevance to readers; hence, the most space was given to Egypt, Israel, Turkey, petroleum, agriculture, and other matters of interest to the Western world. Cultural, religious, and social topics are also included, as are historical/political events and people, so that information on obscure subjects (such as the Alevi and Bektashi sects) is provided as well. The 300 contributors are mostly academics from the United States, Britain, and the Middle East. This encyclopedia is unique in its breadth and currency; The Cambridge Encyclopedia of the Middle East and North Africa (1988) is much less extensive and is nearly ten years old, while The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World (LJ 3/15/95) is current but has a narrower focus. Where affordable, this is a valuable reference tool recommended for most libraries.?Ruth K. Baacke, Whatcom Cty Lib. Sys., Bellingham, Wash.
Copyright 1997 Reed Business Information, Inc.
Treating events over the past two centuries in 24 countries, from Morocco on the West to Afghanistan on the East, this encyclopedia is unique in that it covers Israel along with predominantly Muslim countries. Two of the three editors are associated with the Middle East Institute at Columbia University; the third is director of the Institute for Palestine Studies in Washington. The 300 contributors are affiliated with universities in the U.S. and the Middle East.
Of the almost 4,000 entries, more than 1,500 are biographies treating such people as Saddam Hussein and Benjamin Netanyahu as well as Westerners who were important in Middle Eastern history. Some entries are dictionary length; others are eight pages long. There are many brief entries on cities, universities, treaties, newspapers, companies, and foods. All but the shortest entries conclude with a bibliography; most materials listed are in English. The set is illustrated with small, often dark black-and-white photographs. Oddly, many of these date to the 1950s. Simple maps accompany articles on countries, and political and geophysical maps of the region are found on the endpapers. Many internal cross-references and an extensive general index make access easy. Appendixes include genealogies of several dynasties and an index of the biographies by occupation.
Some general entries are disappointing because they cover only one or two countries instead of the whole region. Family Planning, for example, only discusses Turkey. Currency of information varies from article to article. Afghanistan is only current as of mid-1993 and concludes, "The possibility of all-out civil war looms large." Palestine Liberation Organization mentions the 1995 peace accords, but Israel only covers peace efforts through 1993. Balance is maintained in articles on controversial topics such as the Kurds, the PLO, and various religious factions in Lebanon.
Although the time period covered by EMME and The Oxford Encyclopedia of the Modern Islamic World [RBB My 1 95] is the same, the geographic scope is different. Oxford covers Islam all over the world, not just in the Middle East. While it is hard to separate the sacred from the secular in Islam, and both sets cover religious topics, Oxford has more extensive coverage of religion and religious law. For example, Oxford devotes three pages to Allah, while EMME has only two paragraphs. Oxford has a lengthy article Afterlife, while EMME does not touch on this topic. EMME's emphasis is on the political. Its Communism in the Middle East is a historical treatment and does not discuss religious implications as Oxford's Communism and Islam does. Oxford has fewer biographies, although a direct comparison of these entries is difficult since the two sets use different systems of transliteration. Oxford has longer entries and longer, more scholarly bibliographies. There is inevitable overlap--both sets have entries on religions other than Islam, the arts, the Iranian revolution, and terrorism. EMME's accessible articles will appeal to a more popular audience than that of Oxford. While continuing upheaval in the Middle East and a lack of currency in some entries mean that readers will need to consult other sources for recent events, the Encyclopedia of the Modern Middle East is an excellent overview for high-school, public, and academic libraries. Sandy Whiteley
