TWENTIETH CENTURY CHINA: A GUIDE TO SELECTED SOURCES IN THE DUKE UNIVERSITY LIBRARIES
Abstracts and Indexes 3
Atlases and Gazetteers 6
Bibliographies 2
Biographical Sources 7
Chronologies 8
Computer Assisted Research 10
Directories and Phone Books 9
Dissertations 4
Encyclopedias and Historical Dictionaries 8
Handbooks and Guides to the Literature 1
Language Dictionaries 8
Media 5
Online and Subject Card Catalogs 5
Source Document Collections 5
Statistical Sources 9
This guide lists basic English-language reference sources (as well as some foreign language sources) relating to the study of twentieth century China. Users should check the guides to the literature and bibliographies (below), and the Online and Subject Card catalogs for additional sources.
Div.S. Divinity School Library
DOCS Public Documents and Maps Department, Perkins
LAW School of Law Library
Lilly Lilly Library (East Campus)
R or Ref Reference Department, Perkins
Ref. Desk Reference Desk, Perkins
X Per Bound Periodicals, Perkins
China, a Country Study. Ed. by Frederica M. Bunge and Rinn-Sup Shinn. 3d ed. Washington, D.C.: 1981. (DOCS D101.22 550-60/3)
One of the continuing Area Handbook Series. Describes and analyzes the social, political, historical and economic aspects of contemporary China. Includes statistical data, maps and an extensive bibliography.
Berton, Peter and Eugene Wu. Contemporary China: A Research Guide. Ed by Howard Koch, Jr. Stanford: Hoover Institution on War, Revolution and Peace, 1967. (R z951.05 B547C; also Lilly)
Sections deal with reference works, documentary materials, serials, and dissertations and theses. Annotated and indexed.
Essays on the Sources for Chinese History. Ed. by Donald D. Leslie, Colin Mackerras and Wang Gungwu. Columbia, S.C.: University of South Carolina, 1973. (R 951 E78)
Of particular interest are chapters XX-XXVI, which cover archives and newspapers on modern China. There is a glossary index.
Nathan, Andrew J. Modern China, 1840-1972: An Introduction to Sources and Research Aids. Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 1973. (915.1 M624 no. 14)
The major sections cover research aids, libraries, and primary sources. Annotated with author and title indexes.
See also the Guide to Chinese Religion (Div.S. 01629951 Y94 G946 1985)
Association for Asian Studies. Bibliography of Asian Studies. Ann Arbor, Mich.: The Association, 1941-. Latest five years in Reference. (R 016.95 F219)
This standard reference work covers journals, pamphlets and books. Periodically cumulated by the Cumulative Bibliography of Asian Studies, 1941/1970- (R 016.95 F219A & F219B). The Bibliography was preceded by the Bulletin of Far Eastern Bibliography, 1936-40 (R 016.95 qB936F).
Bibliography of Chinese Studies. Berlin: Ostasien-Verlag, 1983-. (016.951 B582 C539x)
Lists English, Chinese and German periodical articles. Author index.
China. Comp. by Peter Cheng. Oxford, Eng.; Santa Barbara, Calif.: Clio Press, 1983. (Ref. 016.951 C518 C539)
Annotations of about 1450 books in English, covering the wide span of Chinese history and civilization. It is updated by Cheng's Current Books on China, 1983-1988: An Annotated Bibliography (Ref. 016.951 C518 C976 1990). Other books in the Clio World Bibliographical Series include Hong Kong (Ref. 016.95125 S426 H772 1990), Macau (Ref. 016.95126 E24 M117 1989), Taiwan (Ref. 016.951249 L482 T135 1990) and Tibet (Ref. 016.9515 P652 T553 1991).
China in Western Literature: A Continuation of Cordier's Bibliotheca Sinica. Comp. by Yuan Tung-li. New Haven: Yale University, 1958. (R 016.951 qC795BB)
Books and monographs published in English, French and German, arranged under topical and geographical headings. Names index.
Fu, Charles We-hsun and Wing-tsit Chan. Guide to Chinese Philosophy. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1978. (Ref. 016.18111 F949 G946 1978)
An annotated bibliography of Chinese philosophy, with coverage of modern China in general history and topical sections. Author/title index.
Hucker, Charles O. China: A Critical Bibliography. Tucson: University of Arizona, 1962. (z915.1 qH882C)
A selective and annotated bibliography of articles, books, and chapters or sections of books. Topical sections are subdivided by historical period. Author index.
Lust, John and Werner Eichhorn. Index Sinicus: A Catalogue of Articles Relating to China in Periodicals and Other Publications, 1920-1955. Cambridge, Eng.: W. Heffer, 1964. (R 016.951 qC795BD)
"Other Publications" includes congresses and related works. Topically arranged with author and subject indexes.
Modern Chinese Society: An Analytical Bibliography. V. 1. Publications in Western Languages 1644-1972. Ed. by G. William Skinner. Stanford, Calif.: Stanford University, 1973. (z915.1 qM689 v. 1)
An extensively indexed bibliography of monographs, chapters of books, journal articles and dissertations.
National Foreign Assessment Center. CIA Publications Released to the Public. Annual, 1972- . (DOCS R PrEX3.10/7:)
The list of unclassified publications is arranged by country and in chronological order. The department has many of these reports.
Nunn, G. Raymond. Asia: Reference Works: A Select Annotated Guide. London: Mansell, 1980. (Ref. 016.95 N972 A382 1980)
Section Q covers China. The section on bibliography includes Chinese, Japanese and Western language materials. Author and title indexes.
Schmidt, Marlis. Economic Reforms in the People's Republic of China since 1979: A Bibliography of Articles and Publications in English-language Magazines and Newspapers. West Cornwall, Conn.: Locust Hill Press, 1987. (Ref. 016. 338951 S353 E19 1987)
Topically arranged and indexed by author.
Tsien, Tsuen-hsuin. China: An Annotated Bibliography of Bibliographies. Boston: G. K. Hall, 1978. (R 016.016951 C539 1978)
More than 2,500 bibliographies and bibliographical essays; author, title and subject indexes.
U.S. Department of the Army. Communist China: A Bibliographic Survey. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1971. (DOCS D101.22:550-9)
A comprehensive bibliography containing maps, charts, appendices and resources for further research. Updated by China: An Analytic Survey of Literature, 1978 ed. (DOCS D101.22:550-9-1).
U.S. Government Printing Office. Subject Bibliography: China. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office. (DOCS R GP3.22/2:299)
A brief, regularly updated and annotated list of maps, guides and publications currently available for sale from the G.P.O. Covers foreign trade, maps, economic statistics, public health, science, history and finance.
Other bibliographies, e.g., Notable Books on Chinese Studies (R 016.951 L913N), Selected Works in English for the Topical Study of Modern China (z951 qC461S), and Women In China: A Selected and Annotated Bibliography (Ref. 016.3054 W415 W872 1984) may be located in the Online and Subject Card catalogs, using headings such as "China-Bibliography," "China-Union Lists" and "China-Catalogs."
Congressional Information Service. CIS Index. 1970-. (DOCS)
This is the most comprehensive index to congressional publications, including thousands of reports, documents and committee prints done by and for Congress each year. Some examples of the documents indexed in this source and available in the department are Amerasia Papers: A Clue to the Catastrophe of China (Y4.Ec7:C44/v.1-2) and China Under the Four Modernizations: Selected Papers (Y4.Ec7:C49/9/pt.2).
Historical Abstracts, 1775-1945. V. 1-16. Santa Barbara, Calif.: Clio Press, 1955 - 1970. Continued by:
Historical Abstracts. Part A. Modern History Abstracts, 1775-1914. v. 17, 1971 - v. 18, 1972. Continued by:
Historical Abstracts. Part A. Modern History Abstracts, 1450-1914. v. 19, 1973-; and
Historical Abstracts. Part B. Twentieth Century Abstracts, 1914- . v. 17, 1971-.
(Ref. Index Area)
Abstracts of historical articles in periodicals, Festschriften, etc., are arranged by topics and by area or country. Parts A and B are issued quarterly, with a cumulative annual index the last quarter, and five-year cumulative indexes are published. Author and subject indexed. Historical Abstracts is computer searchable (see p.10).
Humanities Index. New York: Wilson, v. 1-, 1974-.
Social Sciences Index. New York: Wilson, v. 1-, 1974-.
(Ref. Index Area; also Lilly)
These indexes began as the International Index in 1907, which later became the Social Sciences and Humanities Index, and which then split into the two indexes in 1974. Both cover scholarly English-language journals, arranged by author and subject.
Index to U.S. Government Periodicals. 1970-. [Chicago:] Infordata International, 1975-. (DOCS)
Subject index to articles appearing in periodicals published by government agencies. Especially good for finding State and Agriculture department publications.
Public Affairs Information Service Bulletin. V. 1-. New York: Public Affairs Information Service, 1915-. (Ref. Index Area; also DOCS)
The PAIS Bulletin is a useful source of citations to books, reports, pamphlets, government documents and journal articles. Arranged by subject and indexed by author. See also the PAIS Foreign Language Index and the PAIS CD-ROM in the Reference Index Area. PAIS is computer searchable (see p. 10).
Social Sciences Citation Index, 1966-. Philadelphia: Institute for Scientific Information, 1972-. (Ref. Index Area)
SSCI covers about 2000 journals (1000 comprehensively). The primary divisions are the Source Index (indexes articles by author), Citation Index (indexes cited bibliographic references) and the Permuterm Subject Index (indexes articles by keywords in titles). A guide to the use of SSCI is available at the Reference Desk. ISI's major coverage of historical journals was switched in 1980 to the Arts & Humanities Citation Index (Ref. Index Area). SSCI and AHCI are computer searchable (see p.10).
U.S. Superintendent of Documents. Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government Printing Office, 1895- . (DOCS Index Table 3)
This catalog provides access to many reports and studies from Congress and the executive agencies. The subject headings are the same as those used in the main library Subject Catalog. See also the cumulative subject index for the years 1900-71 and 1971-76, and the Government Documents Cataloging Service (1976-). The Monthly Catalog of U.S. Government Publications is computer searchable (see p.10).
Doctoral Dissertations on Asia: An Annotated Bibliographical Journal of Current International Research. V. 1, Summer, 1975-. Comp. and ed. by Frank Joseph Shulman. Ann Arbor, Mich.: Association for Asian Studies, 1975-. (q016.95 D637 D613x)
Includes completed and in-progress dissertations, mostly from North America, and can be used to update Doctoral Dissertations on China (see below). Some entries are annotated.
Doctoral Dissertations on China: A Bibliography of Studies in Western Languages, 1945-1970. Comp. and ed. by Frank Joseph Shulman and Leonard H. D. Gordon. Seattle: University of Washington, 1972. (016.951 G663 D637 1972; shelved with supplement, 1971-75.)
More than 4,000 domestic and foreign dissertations are cited in these two volumes. Some entries are annotated. Arranged by broad subject areas with author, (modified) subject and institutional indexes.
See also Reference's handout "How to Use DISSERTATIONS ABSTRACTS INTERNATIONAL." Dissertation Abstracts International is computer searchable (see p.10).
U.S. Library of Congress, Subject Cataloging Division. Subject Headings Used in the Dictionary Catalogs of the Library of Congress. Washington, D.C.: Library of Congress. (Latest at Ref. Desk and Online Catalog)
The subject headings used in the Online and Subject Card catalogs are listed in these two volumes. Includes cross references and subheadings.
In the Subject Card Catalog, the main headings for China are:
In the Online Catalog, the main headings are:
China [covering all time periods, and including the People's Republic of China]
Taiwan [replacing the old heading "China (Republic, 1949-); however, government bodies of the
Republic of China are still cataloged under the old heading]
For further assistance in using the Online and Subject Card catalogs, please ask at the Reference Desk.
The Declassified Documents Retrospective Collection. Washington, D.C.: Carrollton Press, 1976. (DOCS Ref. 015.73 D295)
Thousands of documents (primarily from the CIA and of State and Defense departments) are indexed and abstracted. An accompanying fiche collection is kept in the department. DOCS also receives the Declassified Documents Quarterly Catalog, which continually updates the collection (fiche available at UNC-CH).
There are several collections of Chinese documents in English translation, most featuring introductory comments or essays and indexes:
A Documentary History of Chinese Communism. (335.4 B821D; also 947.084 H339R no. 6)
The People's Republic of China, 1949-1979: A Documentary Survey. 5 v. (q951.05 P419 1980) (Supplement, 1979-84: q951.058 P419 1986)
The People's Republic of China: A Documentary History of Revolutionary Change. (951.05 P420 1979)
Source Materials for Communist China. (z338.951 qC461S)
Additional source document collections may be located through the Online and Subject catalogs using headings such as "China-History--1949-1976--Sources" and "China-History-Sources."
Newspapers and Microforms Department.
The library currently receives Renmin Ribao (Peking) and Chung Yang Jih Pao (Taipei). Copies of each are held in the department for one year.
Non-Chinese newspapers such as the Times of London and the New York Times may be useful in the study of modern China. The indexes to these and other newspapers are available in the Reference Department, and the newspapers are available in the Newspapers and Microforms Department.
Some U.S. and foreign newspapers and news services are computer searchable (see p.10).
U.S. Air Force Department. Current News: Foreign Media Edition. Biweekly, 1984-. (DOCS Micro D301.89/7:)
Translations of news items of interest to key Defense Department personnel. The articles are geographically arranged in each issue.
U.S. Foreign Broadcast Information Service (FBIS). Daily Reports: China. 1947-. (DOCS and Newsp.-Micro. Dept.)
Coverage of current political and social events through translations and analyses of information collected from broadcasts, news accounts, commentaries, newspapers, periodicals and government statements published within the previous 48 to 72 hours. DOCS has 1947-51 (Y3 N21/17:107/), part of 1971 (PrEx7.10: FBIS-CHI-), and 1974 to date (Micro PrEx7.10: FBIS-CHI-); 1952-73 are available in Newsp.-Micro. (S106). Indexed by Newsbank's Index, Foreign Broadcast Information Service, Daily Report: People's Republic of China, 1976- (DOCS; check with the department's staff for access to older material).
________. Trends in Communist Media. 1978-July, 1981. (DOCS Micro PrEx7.12:)
Weekly, analytical report featuring Chinese and other communist media discussions of key issues.
U.S. Joint Publications Research Service (JPRS). 1958-61 (DOCS Y3.J6), scattered holdings; 1962- (DOCS Micro), fairly complete coverage.
Primary source, unclassified documents (approximately 300,000 pages per year) covering a broad range of topics (science, foreign and domestic policy, economics, social science, etc.) predominantly from communist countries. The China Reports includes articles translated from Chinese newspapers (e.g., Xinhua, Gongren Ribao, and Tianjin Ribao), and is divided into subject series: Agriculture, Economic Affairs, Political, etc. Indexed by geographic area and subject. The classification numbers on the documents have changed frequently, but the most recent reports are arranged according to JPRS numbers, which can be obtained from either the Monthly Catalog or the Transdex Index. See the DOCS staff for assistance in using these indexes and in finding older reports.
(Atlases-Historical)
Catchpole, Brian. A Map History of China. London: Heinemann Educational Books Ltd., 1976. (R 951 C357M)
Includes many military and other specialized maps.
Hermann, Albert. An Historical Atlas of China. New edition. Gen. ed. Norton Ginsburg. Chicago: Aldine Publishing Co., 1966. (R 915 qH568H)
An authoritative revision of Hermann's 1935 Historical and Commercial Atlas of China. Indexed by geographical and proper names.
(Atlases-General)
Hsieh, Chiao-min. Atlas of China. Ed. by Christopher L. Salter. New York: McGraw-Hill, 1973. (R 912.51 qH873A)
Divided into four parts: Physical, Cultural, Regional and Historical. Bibliography, glossary and indexes.
The Population Atlas of China. New York: Oxford University Press, 1987. (R Atlas Case f912.13046 P831 1987)
Based primarily on the three national censuses: 1953, 1964 and 1982.
The Times Atlas of China. Ed. by P. J. M. Geelan and D. C. Twitchett. London: Times Books, 1974. (R Atlas Case 912.51 fT583)
A comprehensive atlas including historical, province and city maps and plans. (Some maps are reproduced from the CIA's atlases, below.)
U.S. Central Intelligence Agency. People's Republic of China: Administrative Atlas. Washington, D.C.: The Agency, 1975. (DOCS Atlas Shelves)
Shows major subdivisions for each province and autonomous region. Gazetteer and romanization tables.
________. People's Republic of China. Washington, D.C.: Government Printing Office, 1971. (R 912.51 fU58P; also DOCS)
Regional and topical (population, railroads, climate, industry, etc.) maps. Also published as the Rand McNally Illustrated Atlas of China (912.51 fR186R).
(Gazetteers)
Gazetteer of the People's Republic of China: Pinyin to Wade-Giles, Wade-Giles to Pinyin. Washington, D.C.: Defense Mapping Agency, 1979. (DOCS I33.8 C44/2)
Republic of China: Official Standard Names Approved by the United States Board on Geographic Names. Washington, D.C.: Defense Mapping Agency, 1974. (DOCS I33.8 C44)
Both of these authoritative gazetteers are strong on contemporary place names.
For other similar publications, e.g., the Cultural Atlas of China (q951 B658 C968 1983; also Lilly) and the Population Atlas of China (f 912.13046 P831 1987) see the map collection in the Public Documents and Maps Department, The Geography of China (z901.9 qN5670 no. 7), and the Online and Subject Card catalogs, using headings such as "China-Historical geography" and "China-Maps."
Bartke, Wolfgang. Who's Who in the People's Republic of China. 2d ed. Muchen: K. G. Saur, 1987. (Ref. q920.51 B288 W628 1987)
A comprehensive listing of important figures in the fields of Chinese government, politics, education, military, etc. Many entries include photographs.
Biographical Dictionary of Republican China. Ed. by Howard L. Boorman and Richard C. Howard. 4 v. New York: Columbia University, 1967-71. (R 920.51 qB615)
Covering major personalities of 1911-49, this scholarly work follows Hummel's Eminent Chinese of the Ch'ing Period (R 920.051 qU58E).
Perlberg, Max. Who's Who in Modern China (From the Beginning of the Chinese Republic to the End of 1953). Hong Kong: Ye Olde Printerie, 1954. (R 920.51 P451W)
Most of the more than 2,000 sketches are from Chinese sources.
The Public Documents and Maps Department has Central Intelligence Agency publications useful for information about Chinese officials.
Other biographical sources, e.g., Biographical Dictionary of Chinese Communism, 1921-1965 (R 920.51 K64B) may be located in the Online and Subject Card catalogs, using headings such as "China-Biography" and "China-History, 1949-1976--Biography."
Cheng, Peter. A Chronology of the People's Republic of China from October 1, 1949. Totowa, N.J.: Rowman & Littlefield, 1972. (951.05 C518CH; also Lilly)
Subject indexed under foreign and domestic affairs general headings. Updated by Cheng's A Chronology of the People's Republic of China 197-1979 (Ref. 951.05 C518 C557 1986) and the following:
Mackerras, Colin. Modern China: A Chronology from 1842 to the Present. New York: W. H. Freeman and Co., 1982. (Ref. 951.00202 M157 M689 1982)
Arranged with columns for economic, social, cultural and domestic and foreign policy events, and other specialized information. Indexed.
A continuing (but not cumulative) contemporary chronology for the PRC appears in Issues & Studies (X Per I86S; latest in Current Periodicals).
The Cambridge Encyclopedia of China. Gen. ed. Brian Hook. Cambridge and New York: Cambridge University, 1982. (Ref. 951.00321 C178 1982; also Lilly)
A general encyclopedia of the geography, people, history, culture and science of China. Includes bibliographical notes, illustrations and an index.
Dillon, Michael. Dictionary of Chinese History. Totowa, N.J.: F. Cass, 1979. (Ref. 951.03 D579 D554 1979; also Lilly)
Covers pre-history through 1977, with fairly good coverage of contemporary terminology and events.
Encyclopedia of Asian History. Ed. in chief Ainslee T. Embree. 4 v. New York: Charles Scribner's Sons, 1988. (Ref. q950 E56 1987)
Signed articles, many with bibliographies, and a subject index.
Encyclopedia of China Today. Ed. by Frederick M. Kaplan and Julian M. Sobin. 3d ed., rev. and expanded. New York: Eurasia Press, 1981. (Ref. q951.0503 E56 1981)
Major sections cover geography, people, government, personalities, economics, education and culture. Maps, charts, chronologies, tables, glossary and index
Examples of more specialized historical dictionaries are the Historical Dictionary of Hong Kong & Macau (Ref. 951.25003 R643 H673 1992) and the Historical Dictionary of Revolutionary China, 1839-1976 (Ref. 951 H673 1992).
Chi, Wen-shun. Chinese-English Dictionary of Contemporary Usage. Berkeley, Calif.: University of California, 1977. (R 495.1321 C532C)
A comprehensive dictionary which includes both Wade-Giles and Pinyin, with romanization and character (complex/simplified) conversion tables.
Doolin, Dennis J. and Charles P. Ridley. A Chinese-English Dictionary of Communist Terminology. Stanford: Hoover Institution, 1973. (495.132 D691C)
Includes political and philosophical terminology; and names of Chinese and foreign government organizations, publications, cities, etc.
Other dictionaries, e.g., Mathews' Chinese-English Dictionary (R 495.132 qM429M), the Dictionary of Chinese Law and Government: Chinese-English (495.103 B595 W554 1981; also LAW) and The Pinyin Chinese-English Dictionary (Ref. 495.103 P659 1979; also Lilly), may be identified through Chinese Dictionaries: An Extensive Bibliography of Dictionaries in Chinese and Other Languages (016.49513 C539 1982) and the Online and Subject Card catalogs using headings such as "Chinese Language-Dictionaries," "Chinese Language-Dictionaries-English," and "Chinese Language-Government jargon."
China Facts & Figures Annual. Ed. by John L. Scherer. v. 1, 1978-. Gulf Breeze, Fla.: Academic International Press, 1978-. (951.005 C539x Latest in Ref.)
Based on U.S., Chinese, U.N. and other international sources; topical areas include: government, party, military, economy, demography, etc.
Other statistical sources, both general and specific to China, include:
Almanac of China's Economy (330.951005 A445 C539x, Latest in Ref.)
ASI (American Statistical Index). (DOCS)
China: International Trade Annual Statistical Supplement. (DOCS)
China Official Yearbook (q951.05705 O539 O32x, Latest in Ref.)
China Social Statistics (q315.1 C539 S678x, Latest in Ref.)
China Rural Statistics (q315.1 C539 R948x, Latest in Ref.)
China's Urban Statistics (q315.1 C539 U72x, Latest in Ref.).
Index to International Statistics. (DOCS)
International Historical Statistics: Africa and Asia (Ref. q315 M681 I61 1982)
SRI (Statistical Reference Index; Reference Index Area)
(State and Regional Resources)
Mid-Atlantic Directory to Resources for Asian Studies. (Ref. q950.072074 A489 M627 1980)
Resources on China in North Carolina. (Ref. 951.0070756 A832 R434 1980)
Scholar's Guide to Washington, D.C., for East Asian Studies (China, Japan, Korea, and Mongolia). (Ref 026.95 K49 S368 1979)
(General Directories and Phone Books)
China Directory in Pinyin and Chinese. (951.0025 C559x Latest in Ref.)
The China Phone Book & Address Directory. (Ref. International Phone Book Shelf)
(Some Specialized Directories)
Directory of Chinese Libraries. (Ref. 027.051025 C559 1982)
The China Directory of Industry and Commerce and Economic Annual. (q382.029451 C539 D598x, Latest in Ref.)
Directory of Chinese Learned Organizations (Ref. 068.51249 D598 1990)
Directory of Chinese Officials and Organizations, 1968-1983. (Ref. 951.0025 L218 D598 1984)
Directory of Scientific Research Institutes in the People's Republic of China. 3 v. (607.2051 S972 D598 1977)
The Public Documents and Maps Department has a number of CIA publications which are useful directories of officials in China. The department's staff will help you locate these publications.
Although we have specific data bases for Chinese studies (e.g., the Bibliography of Asian Studies is not available on computer), the Reference Department offers a computer assisted research service which accesses several of bibliographic data bases which may be of interest to those researching topics on modern China. The service features rapid retrieval of references to journal articles, books, government documents, dissertations, foundation grants, etc. Among the files of possible interest are (those marked with an * are also available through CD-ROM access):
Information (fees, capabilities, limitations, etc.) about these and other databases is available at the Reference Desk.
Kenneth W. Berger-Reference Department-William R. Perkins Library-Duke University-Revised, August 1993